Rating: 
Summary: Bizarre subject matter, tedious reading
Review: Deranged is Harold Schecter's true crime history of the fascinating, horrifying life of Albert Fish. The reader must be prepared for graphic detail, which is often scatological and consistently perverse and disturbing. On the surface, Schecter falls short of creating a suspenseful nonfiction novel. His arbitrary historical anchors and tedious inclusion of irrelevant details detract from the coherence of the story. Even so, the extremity and depravity of Fish's behavior create an original, unforgettable glimpse into the workings of a criminal sexual psychopath. I recommend this book to true crime buffs who have not yet heard much about the case of Albert Fish because there are no other books on this subject that I have yet located.
Rating: 
Summary: Harold Schecter is the absolute king of true crime!
Review: Excellent! I would highly recommend "Deranged" to all true crime fanatics who are interested in knowing all there is to know about a particular case, rather than the sensationalized, semi-fictional information found in most books of this type.
Rating:
Summary: Not for everybody.
Review: Harold Schechter writes the best books about the worst people who ever walked the face of the earth and I believe Albert Fish is top dog in that category.Raised in an orphanage in the latter part of the 19 century, Albert was subjected to all manner of mistreatment including beatings, homosexual perversions and did he learn! He turned out to be a serial killer of children in the late 1920s and 30s but he was much worse than that. The psychiatrists at that time had to invent new words for some things that Albert did and considered normal. Mr. Schechter does not try to 'liven up' his books by going into great detail on every morbid and disgusting thing that his subjects did but describes their actions with almost a clinical detachment Great book for the true crime fan.
Rating: 
Summary: Well-researched account of little-known killer
Review: Harold Schechter's books are great, and in my opinion Deranged is the best of them. 'True Crime' books tend to be overly-sensational or poorly written, this is neither. This is a very shocking book, I'm surprised that more people don't know about Albert Fish. After reading Deranged, I have looked for other books about Fish and have been unable to find a single one, yet his crimes are about the most brutal I've read about. The fact that he preyed on children makes this absolutely terrifying. As fascinating as it is horrific, this is a must-read for crime buffs.
Rating:
Summary: Very well researched
Review: I found this book to be filled with details, some times too many details. It is very obvious that the author researched this book. I was shocked to see pictures of the elderly man who did all these terrible things. It just goes to show you that sometimes a kindly old man is not anything more than a sick, perverted evil person.
Rating:
Summary: A MUST READ FOR TRUE CRIME FANS
Review: I love Schecter's books. They are filled with tons of facts and little known details, but are never boring or unclear. The research he does is first class. as your reading you feel like you are actually part of the story. if you enjoy true crime its a must read, although not for the squeemish. Mr. Schecter, if you read this review, please, keep these great books comming.!
Rating:
Summary: Decent
Review: I read DEVIANT over the summer and found it somewhat mediocre. I'm not sure if that's because I was anticipating a more gruesome tale of a cruel and demented killer or because the writing left much to be desired. In either case, Harold Schechter is a decent writer that can at times put too much emphasis on the medias reaction to crimes, rather than the killer and the crimes itself. With that said... Deranged is a bit different, but not much. The thing I do like about Schechters books is that they are truly non-biased. Instead of painting the picture of demonic Hanibal-like killers, he is honest in his decription of Albert Fish (and the others he writes about). So honest that I find myself seeing said killers as ill human beings rather than monsters. I only wish that more was told about these peoples' lives from childhood till death. I'd like a little bit more psychiatric analysis and background information that what is provided. But the most important thing is that the books read like novels for the most part and that keeps the story flowing without too much psychoanalyist crap to sift through. The book is worth a read if you're at all interested in the famous serial killers of the world. Read Shechters books for the story. Use the internet and your library to get details on the men themselves.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutley Insane!
Review: I read this book after reading my 1st one by Harold Schechter, It takes a damn good book for me to sit down and read. This book is the direct insight into someone who was a wonderful father and grandfather, but couldnt help his craving for children that where not his own. This book is wonderfully written, I had to keep putting it down as it was a very disturbing and emotional experience for me reading in detail what a human can do to innocent trusting children. This book will have you in tears, hitting the table and feeling very angry.
Rating:
Summary: deranged but good..
Review: I read this book while I was travelling around my country (Iceland) and I just gotta say that I highly recommend this book cause it's so realistic, it's like you feel you're back in those days..... it takes you as close as possible to the crime scene(s).... be sure to get a copy if you like reading a "shocking true story" but for those who are on the "fragile" notes... take one step at a time cause it contains lots of "evilness" from Mr.Fish.
Rating:
Summary: I thought the book was great one of the best thrillers read
Review: I thought that the ending given to the book was just so wonderful. It completed the book with such grace and understanding.
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