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Kidnapped: Child Abduction in America
Few crimes capture our imagination as completely as child kidnapping. We are both fascinated and revolted, seeing in each victim our own child, in each bereaved parent ourselves, and in each kidnapper a monster striking straight at the heart of the family and our society. Kidnapping is a modern morality play, the innocence of the child in stark contrast to the corruption of the criminal, all played out by a media industry eager to feed the worst fears of every parent. In this pathbreaking book, Paula S. Fass explores how our fear has evolved from its first chilling realization in 1874, when Americans were startled and horrified to discover that their children could be held for ransom, until today, when sexual predators seem to threaten our children at every turn.
Kidnapped is a mesmerizing look at some of the great kidnapping cases in American history, the stories that have haunted parents over the past 125 years. Fass describes the kidnapping of Charley Ross in 1874, the first of a series of kidnappings to be called "the crime of the century"; the notorious case of Leopold and Loeb, two rich young men who murdered a younger cousin simply to see if they could get away with it; the abduction of Gloria Vanderbilt, the "poor little rich girl" taken by her own aunt at the start of a vicious custody battle; and the most famous case of all, the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby. More importantly, Kidnapped presents, in a series of brilliant narratives, a window into the American mind, providing us with new insights into parenting and the American family, the media and our fascination with celebrity, policing and law enforcement, gender and sexuality, mental health, and much more. She shows, for instance, how the Leopold and Loeb case revolutionized
the insanity plea, how the abduction of Gloria Vanderbilt brought the problems of divorce and child custody into the public eye, how the case of Stephanie Bryan was shaped by the gender assumptions of the 1950s, and how the Lindbergh tragedy was defined by the ever-present media. Turning from these historic cases, she takes us back to crimes that have only recently fallen out of the headlines, such as the disappearance of Etan Patz in New York or Jacob Wetterling in Minnesota, and the growing industry revolving around missing children, from not-for-profit foundations publicizing missing children to for-profit businesses offering to insure children against kidnapping.
In this sharp, vivid book, Fass skillfully illuminates our national obsession with child abduction in a society which both values and exploits its youngest members. The loss of each child is a unique and devastating tragedy. But how we respond as a community and as a nation to these crimes speaks volumes about who we are. In confronting how we have treated the children stolen from our lives, Fass shows, we confront ourselves.
Kidnapped is a mesmerizing look at some of the great kidnapping cases in American history, the stories that have haunted parents over the past 125 years. Fass describes the kidnapping of Charley Ross in 1874, the first of a series of kidnappings to be called "the crime of the century"; the notorious case of Leopold and Loeb, two rich young men who murdered a younger cousin simply to see if they could get away with it; the abduction of Gloria Vanderbilt, the "poor little rich girl" taken by her own aunt at the start of a vicious custody battle; and the most famous case of all, the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby. More importantly, Kidnapped presents, in a series of brilliant narratives, a window into the American mind, providing us with new insights into parenting and the American family, the media and our fascination with celebrity, policing and law enforcement, gender and sexuality, mental health, and much more. She shows, for instance, how the Leopold and Loeb case revolutionized
the insanity plea, how the abduction of Gloria Vanderbilt brought the problems of divorce and child custody into the public eye, how the case of Stephanie Bryan was shaped by the gender assumptions of the 1950s, and how the Lindbergh tragedy was defined by the ever-present media. Turning from these historic cases, she takes us back to crimes that have only recently fallen out of the headlines, such as the disappearance of Etan Patz in New York or Jacob Wetterling in Minnesota, and the growing industry revolving around missing children, from not-for-profit foundations publicizing missing children to for-profit businesses offering to insure children against kidnapping.
In this sharp, vivid book, Fass skillfully illuminates our national obsession with child abduction in a society which both values and exploits its youngest members. The loss of each child is a unique and devastating tragedy. But how we respond as a community and as a nation to these crimes speaks volumes about who we are. In confronting how we have treated the children stolen from our lives, Fass shows, we confront ourselves.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published November 20, 1997
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About the author
Paula S. Fass
16 books5 followersPaula S. Fass is an American historian and the Margaret Byrne Professor of History (Emerita) at the University of California, Berkeley. A social and cultural historian, Fass has published numerous books on the history of childhood and youth in the United States, and served as president of the Society for the History of Children and Youth from 2007 to 2009.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 17, 2007
This is another book I consulted when I did the first draft of BREATHING OUT THE GHOST years ago. It's a great history of the abducted child phenomenon and how fears, panics, and press start generating "epidemics." There are great chapters on Little Charley Ross and Etan Patz. Fass is a topnotch historian---I liked the book even more because it was by the author of one of my favorite books on the 1920s, The Damned and the Beautiful.
July 4, 2009
I saw this episode of Dateline a while back about David Goldman, a man living in New Jersey with his Brazilian wife and their son; and then under the pretense of visiting family, wifey-poo took their son to Brazil and then rather inexplicably told David she wanted a divorce and could never see their son again. She remarried and was holding true to her word about keeping their son from David, but when she died in childbirth with her new husband's baby, it was believed that David would get his son back and the mess would be over. However, the Brazilian family is fighting to keep David's son and with the Brazilian legislature involved now it's been an ongoing battle.
And I'm, like, obsessed with this story now. (If you're interested... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31100749/.)
So then I got to thinking about the law, and does it constitute as kidnapping when it's your own child, and then how exactly does someone who is not even a blood relative get any say in what happens to this child. Which then led me to wonder how often these sorts of things happen, which then got me curious about child abduction which, obviously, led me to this book.
Paula Fass begins with likely the first child abduction in American media, Charley Ross, in 1874. She does not deny there were not abductions prior to that point, and certainly comments on children sold into slavery prior to 1874 as well; but Charley's story hit the public and began a media sensation across the country. From there she jumps to Leopold and Loeb, and then the abduction of Charles Lindbergh's baby right from out of his crib, and then more current stories of abductions. There is a chapter specifically dealing with parental abductions which does talk in some detail about the red tape that goes along with cases like those. However, with so many modes of transportation (cars, trains, planes) it's almost easy to disappear with your own child now.
Fass obviously knows her stuff, which leads for an interesting read, though disappointing that it has to be written at all. There are a lot of crazies in the world which is basically what this book helped solidify in my mind. But it is history, and you know what they say about studying history lest you have to repeat it.
And I'm, like, obsessed with this story now. (If you're interested... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31100749/.)
So then I got to thinking about the law, and does it constitute as kidnapping when it's your own child, and then how exactly does someone who is not even a blood relative get any say in what happens to this child. Which then led me to wonder how often these sorts of things happen, which then got me curious about child abduction which, obviously, led me to this book.
Paula Fass begins with likely the first child abduction in American media, Charley Ross, in 1874. She does not deny there were not abductions prior to that point, and certainly comments on children sold into slavery prior to 1874 as well; but Charley's story hit the public and began a media sensation across the country. From there she jumps to Leopold and Loeb, and then the abduction of Charles Lindbergh's baby right from out of his crib, and then more current stories of abductions. There is a chapter specifically dealing with parental abductions which does talk in some detail about the red tape that goes along with cases like those. However, with so many modes of transportation (cars, trains, planes) it's almost easy to disappear with your own child now.
Fass obviously knows her stuff, which leads for an interesting read, though disappointing that it has to be written at all. There are a lot of crazies in the world which is basically what this book helped solidify in my mind. But it is history, and you know what they say about studying history lest you have to repeat it.
February 17, 2010
This is a history of child abduction in the United States, beginning in the late 1800s. The book contains the story of many famous missing children, including Charley Ross, Etan Patz and Polly Klaas, and it even covers family abduction. It should be noted that this is not a true-crime book, but a social history written for a scholar's eyes. It addresses the social impact of child abductions, methods police and parents have used to get their children back, and the problem of family abduction.
May 26, 2015
A classic case of falling between two stools, this book felt rushed and summarized. It focuses so narrowly on already well-documented cases like that of the Lindbergh Baby and Etan Patz that it provides neither new details on specific incidents nor fresh insights on the topic as a whole. It's neither exciting enough for a true crime book nor rigorous enough for a scholarly work. Also, the 1997 publication date means that it's now missing major chunks of new information.
September 28, 2009
Fake history. A disaster. The author offers a heavily censored politically correct history of child kidnapping in America.
Her chapter on parental kidnapping is chocked with deliberate fabrications (especially in regard to the 19th century through the 1960s) -- rendering the academic community and all others who need to understand the phenomenon of parental kidnapping ignorant and deceived.
Her chapter on parental kidnapping is chocked with deliberate fabrications (especially in regard to the 19th century through the 1960s) -- rendering the academic community and all others who need to understand the phenomenon of parental kidnapping ignorant and deceived.
July 29, 2008
I chose this book because of the author's discussion of the 1989 abduction of eleven-year-old Jacob Wetterling in St. Joseph, Minnesota. Sadly, Jacob still has not been found.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews