Reviews for Sodomy in Early Modern Europe

The average rating for Sodomy in Early Modern Europe based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2008-02-02 00:00:00 Jason Newton How I Came To Read This Book: I had to read it for my Journalism class in university. The Plot: JJ Harper was an average - although perhaps not upstanding - young man who got caught at the wrong place, at the wrong time. After a tip-off to a crime, a slew of police swarmed an area, and one officer shot Harper, an innocent bystander. The book is written by a journalist local to the city the book is set in - Winnipeg, MB - who was intrigued by the fact the media seemed to ignore the fact an innocent man was murdered at the hands of a police officer. The book is a giant piece of investigative journalism that explores whether there was racism, conspiracy, or just plain corruption at play with the murder of Harper. The Good or Bad: In general I am not a fan of the writer's style (both in the book and in his journalism career). He inserts his own opinions, meandering thoughts, and suspicions far too often, never mind his actual personal life. From what I recall, the book started out interestingly enough, but got bogged down (just as in real life I imagine) in the minutiae of the various trials and mental breakdowns of all the key characters involved - and ultimately, the case is unresolved as well. Anything Memorable?: I think I ambitiously tackled the first section of this book quite handily, but I really dug my heels in for the last few sections - so dry, so boring, so aggravating. Bottom Line: Not worth a read - although the book has the potential to explore the interesting dynamic between the First Nations and police populations in Winnipeg, it gets too bogged down in Sinclair's own opinions to be relevant to anyone other than himself.

Review # 2 was written on 2012-11-06 00:00:00 Fabiola Gonzalez This Arthur Ellis award winning true crime account depicts the change of culture that began in the wake of the shooting of J.J. Harper by Winnipeg police. Focussing in large part on the unfolding of the inquiry processes that led to a major overall of criminal justice approaches to Aboriginal peoples and communities, it is a painful read. It highlights the forces within the criminal justice system not through some distant condemnation, but through the personalities and lives of those caught up in this story. While some "heroes" and "villains" do seem to emerge, these categories are too sweeping to capture the mixed feelings one has while meeting the characters.