I'm No Monster

September 21, 2009
Proving beyond a reasonable doubt the falsity of the title, London Times
writers Marsh and Pancevski detail the internationally infamous life and depraved crimes of Josef Fritzl. Born in Austria in 1936, married in 1956 and the father of seven, Fritzl saw himself as a hardworking family man. In reality, he was a rapist (convicted in 1967) and a tyrant, routinely beating his wife and children. He began sexually abusing his daughter Elisabeth when she was 11 and later imprisoned her for 24 years in a secret bunker beneath the family home, during which time she bore seven children. (Fritzl told everyone she had run away to join a cult.) But when one of Elizabeth's daughters became gravely ill, requiring a trip to the hospital, his plot unraveled, and he was sentenced to life in prison in 2009. Through interviews with family acquaintances, doctors and prosecutors, Marsh and Pancevski not only portray a “sadistic” Fritzl, but also Elisabeth's courage in surviving and attempting to protect her children. The authors also indict police and social service agencies for ignoring clues that something was terribly amiss in the Fritzl household.

November 1, 2009
Like a car wreck one can't stop looking at, this story will likely draw in readers, but it is not for the weak of stomach. Elisabeth Fritzl's 24-year imprisonment by her father, Josef, caused a worldwide sensation when it came to light in 2008. Josef Fritzl initially imprisoned his daughter when she was 18 years old and brutally raped her over the course of her confinement; she went on to have seven children. Marsh and Pancevski, both "Times" (London) reporters, keep the story moving, but the tone is outright creepy when they write from Fritzl's perspective. They merely touch on the role of Austrian authorities and the traditional patriarchal society that turned an indifferent eye to the disappearance of Elisabeth and the bizarre appearance of three of her children. Had they explored these issues in detail, the book would have been much better. Elisabeth is planning her own book, for those who prefer to wait. VERDICT The creepiest book this reviewer has ever read, this will still likely be popular with true crime aficionadosespecially in light of the recent Phillip Garrido/ Jaycee Dugard case.Karen Sandlin Silverman, CFAR, Philadelphia

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