In the summer of 1937, with the Depression deep and World War II looming, a California triple murder stunned an already grim nation. After a frantic week-long manhunt for the killer, a suspect emerged, and his sensational trial captivated audiences from coast to coast. Justice was swift, and the condemned man was buried away with the horrifying story. But decades later, Pamela Everett, a lawyer … a lawyer and former journalist, starts digging, following up a cryptic comment her father once made about a tragedy in their past. Her journey is uniquely personal as she uncovers her family’s secret history, but the investigation quickly takes unexpected turns into her professional wheelhouse.
Everett unearths a truly historic legal case that included one of the earliest criminal profiles in the United States, the genesis of modern sex offender laws, and the last man sentenced to hang in California. Digging deeper and drawing on her experience with wrongful convictions, Everett then raises detailed and haunting questions about whether the authorities got the right man. Having revived the case to its rightful place in history, she leaves us with enduring concerns about the death penalty then and now.
A journey chronicled through the mind of a lawyer and from the heart of a daughter, Little Shoes is both a captivating true crime story and a profoundly personal account of one family’s struggle to cope with tragedy through the generations.
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This is a true crime story with a remarkable twist—two of the victims were the author’s aunts, whose short lives and painful deaths in 1937 were unknown to Pamela Everett until she was fifteen. A lawyer and former journalist, Everett dissects the past with skill and compassion, poignantly demonstrating how a crime of this magnitude ripples through the generations and how its pain is not erased by a rush to judgment of the purported killer.
It was a tear jerker at times. If you love true crime novels you will love this book!! The author really spent time writing this novel, it came from the heart. Eventhough I’m sure at times it was painful to write and research I really appreciated her imense attention to detail. She really put her heart into telling her families story. It is amazing read for those who love true crime novels.
Well presented publication on the true story of a murder of three little girls. The extent the author goes to share facts, details and rationale for perhaps arresting the wrong killer is useful yet convincing that often everything that could be done is not.
Everett uncovered a horrifying tragedy in her own family and tells the story with perfect balance. A wrenching and astonishing true crime story, as relevant today as it was in 1937. A must-read for true crime buffs and criminal justice scholars alike.
This is another example of over-zealous police interrogation, no follow through with dna. And a great example to rid our country of the death penalty.
Heartfelt account of family tragedy
Such a sad story. So glad I read it. It was well written and a real page turner for me.
A heatbreaking, life & law changing event told at the family level.
It’s a good read, but a sad story all the way around. It’s a fast read until you get to the trial and attempts at a retrial, then it gets bogged down with too many details. I was able to skip over that part and still get understand what happened.
Though a sad tale of a tragic event it was well written.
There was no real closure for this true crime. It leaves the reader with more questions at the end than at the beginning. No question that the crime occurred but not enough detail to be satisfied the real culprit was apprehended and punished.
Little Shoes is really a sad story. I did find it informative and the author did an excellent job explaining the trial. I strongly recommend this book .
Well written, good character development
Thought provoking
It was an OK book.
Well written page turner…for true crime genre’ readers, very sad for all involved.
True crime that did not sensationalize the event. Tragic events from the 1930’s as told by a family member who’d never known about them.
The tragic murder of three young girls in the 1930’s is investigated in current times by their niece, a lawyer with the Innocence Project.
A depression era family secret. Things were just not openly discussed back then as they are today. Secrets often remained buried. When a lawyer and former journalist learns she had two aunts that were brutally murdered as young girls, her curiosity and investigation leads her back in time to the tragedy that had remained hidden in her family. I must admit that from the description, I expected an entirely different scenario and was a little disappointed that I misinterpreted. However, this is true crime; not fiction. The research was detailed and the reading was interesting, but what a sloppy initial investigation in the 1930s.
A very sad true story.