True Story tie-in edtion

Murder, Memoir, Mea Culpa

By: Michael Finkel

Narrated by: Rich Orlow

Now a Major Motion Picture Starring Jonah Hill & James Franco and Distributed by Fox Searchlight Pictures

When New York Times reporter Michael Finkel meets accused killer Christian Longo–who has taken on Finkel's identity–his investigation morphs into an unforgettable game of cat and mouse. True Story weaves a spellbinding tale of murder, love, deceit, and redemption, following Finkel's relentless pursuit of the shocking truth.

Better than the movie!

If you could sum up True Story in three words, what would they be?

Heartbreaking, Truthful, &

What was one of the most memorable moments of True Story?

The explanation of Mike Finkel's Africa story and the truth behind what he did and why he did it.

What about Rich Orlow’s performance did you like?

He did a wonderful job, was very easy to listen to.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes but I didn't. It took me about a week.

Any additional comments?

The story is heartbreaking and sad. Mike Finkel got sucked into a twisted mans life and produced a true story.

Disturbing

I really appreciated the author’s acknowledgment of his own faults. The story was engaging and kept me guessing till the end. But the truth of the story is just so heartbreaking.

slow reveal of a dark character

The origin of this story is already strange: an accused murderer uses the name of a recently disgraced journalist. Then, covering the story becomes the journalist's (ultimately successful) attempt at reviving his career. It's a fascinating look into the psychology of both the author and the accused murderer, Christopher Longo, through a long correspondence and the trial of Longo for murder of his wife and children. The narrator is unobtrusive. I'd recommend this for fans of true crime.

Compelling intertwining stories.

I enjoyed the self discovery on the part of the author as well as being in suspense about how the crime was committed.

Bizarre, Riveting, Heartbreaking

A bizarre, riveting, well-written story. A truth is stranger than fiction tale. I was so engaged in the book that I finished listening to it within 2 or so days, which rarely happens. I removed one star for the story because it is SO heartbreaking it will leave you stunned. It left me wondering if I should have listened to it at all. But ultimately I think it is valuable to explore such darkness to count our own blessings and to remind ourselves that people are much more complicated than we imagine. Just because someone SEEMS like "such a nice guy/gal" it doesn't mean they actually ARE. How many times has someone we thought we knew did something that shocked us? Why don't we ask more questions? Listen to our intuition more closely? What happens when we abandon our own ethics? Do we realize how capable the human mind is of rationalizing behavior in the most convoluted and frightening ways? These are questions worth asking ourselves and examining the answers we give to them.