Kids Who Kill

by Charles Patrick Ewing

- Brenda Spencer, 17 years old, opened fire on a crowded elementary schoolyard with a semi-automatic rifle because "Mondays always get me down." - Timothy Dwaine Brown, 16 years old, beat his brother to death before killing his grandparents in cold blood. - Molested repeatedly by her father, 16-year-old Cheryl Pierson hired a classmate to execute him. - Two Missouri brothers, ages four and six, attacked and brutally murdered a baby girl because "she was ugly." There is a new breed of killers loose in America today -- and its numbers are growing at an astounding rate. They are responsible for over ten percent of the nation's homicides. They are often victims themselves of neglect, violence and sexual abuse, of drugs and poverty. They murder alone or in groups -- in anger and frustration, for attention . . . or for thrills. And they have one thing in they are all children.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime

229 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[J.H. Moncrieff · Rating 2 out of 5]

This read like a series of Wikipedia entries with a whole lot of statistics thrown in for good measure. There was also quite a bit of repetition as the same cases were mentioned in several different chapters--sometimes this was mentioned, but other times it seemed like the author didn't expect for readers to notice...or to read the entire book, which was quite short.

[Wendy Beckman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kids Who Kill by Charles Patrick Ewing is a painful read. He wrote it well from his extensive research, and it's organized well. That last factor came in handy as I read it, because I read it for research. After reading chapter after chapter on kids who kill, I was relieved that I could skip chapters such as "Gang Killings" and "Little Kids Who Kill." At the end of the book, I felt as if I needed to check with all my kids to make sure they didn't harbor any unresolved hate toward me. Then I hugged my puppy.

[Martín Q. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book as an undergraduate student while earning a degree in administration of justice. I believe this was specifically for a juvenile justice course. I came back to it after not having much of a memory about this book, though I remembered a lot about the course. This book was simply not very good. Its just a collection of short descriptions of juvenile murders, with some (but not much) statistical analysis included. There was very little to no analysis of underlying contextual factors like racism, poverty, mental health, etc. even though there's an acknowledgement of the presence of all of these issues. That gave the book a sense that it was more for shock value than actual study of the issue. Disappointing.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never judge a book by it's cover! I was hoping this was going to be a salacious look at cases of kids who kill, but what I got was o much more-and I'm really rather glad, Ewing's book is a look at why kids kill. This is a well researched, well thought out look at what leads oung people to resort to the ultimate in violence. This also looks at the court decisions surrounding kids and many of the judicial rules that are now in place. A fascinating but sad read, because nothing has changed in the 30 years since this was published, and every cause that Ewing mentions is still prevalent and steadily getting worse.

[Sunni · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book spent volumes on statistics, and the stories of the children who kill were, in some cases, less detailed then the newspaper articles would have been. I wasn't looking for gore, and horror, but by the time I was finished with the book I didn't understand what would drive a child to kill any better than I would have reading a psychology text book, or my local newspaper. I was very disappointed.

[Elisa Vangelisti · Rating 1 out of 5]

cronache tristi e desolanti di giovani assassini americani. pensavo fosse più romanzato.

[Will · Rating 3 out of 5]

charles ewing if you use the word youngster one more goddamn time...

[Melissa Gigstead · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting facts would be curious to know more about recent finds after 2000-2010

[Denise MacDonald · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book consists of many cases of young people who committed violent crimes in the US. It was published in 1990, so the statistics and so on are very much out of date. It would be interesting to see a comparison to present day stats and crimes committed by young people.
The stories told in this book were disturbing and heartbreaking. It discusses the crimes as well as the punishment. I'm not sure where I stand on death sentences in general, but I do know I disagree with youth being sentenced to death. I'm not even sure if I agree with life imprisonment for a 14 year old, taking into consideration brain development and so on. However, the crimes committed by the youth in this book were brutal and extremely violent.
This was not a comfortable read. I don't recommend it to those looking for a pleasant read.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gruesome. Absolutely gruesome. I found this gem in the basement of my home about 3 years ago, I was so taken by it that I immediately ran up to my room and finished it in approximately a day. This book changed my outlook of my and others generation. This book taught me that everyone can be capable of anything no matter what age, never underestimate the capabilities of those who you think are beneath you; they are everywhere, in the play ground, babysitting the young, everywhere; you'll never know when they'll come for you and murder you in a senseless and horrific way.

[Troy Palmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

For me I enjoy reading more of the case file details, and less about the statistical analysis of the crimes. This book focuses on both in equal parts. There is no doubt that Mr. Ewing has done his share of research, the statistical facts he states in this book seem endless, and some may find that more interesting than I. I tend to enjoy more of a behavioral profiling point of view when reading a true crime book, and this book delivers plenty of that also.

[Darcey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is really messed up but its a good book. Its about different kids who go through different things and in the end they end up killing the people they probably once loved. Charles Patrick Ewing is a great author who describes things very well. I recommend this book for grades 6-12.

[Ashley]

#
CompNtBk
Own in paperback.

FS: "They called him the "Iron Man."

LS: "If that proves to be the case, the number of juvenile homicides will expand much faster than the number of juveniles, and the 1990s will witness the highest annual number of juvenile homicides in American history."

[Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book's copyright is 1990, so the information is out-dated. The case studies are quite horrifying & the outlook is dark. Extensive notes are included & the information is surely accurate, but this book is not easy to read.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man, the kids in this book are messed up. All in all this really was a good read.

[Silje · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this sort of books, its fuck up. but its so hard to lay down. everybody should read a book like this, just to try undertand how much pain and suffer some kids have to go true.

[Bri Davis · Rating 1 out of 5]

Data is old, inaccurate, and biased. Book is written like a college freshman just learning about MLA. Most of it is the author's opinion. Don't pick it up, it's not even worth it for the cases.

[Nathan Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little outdated and very devastating, this book makes me never want to have children.