Massachusetts Books

This copy of Walden is beautiful and the extensive notes are very helpful.

150 years ago, a philosopher went to live in the woods off a small Massachusetts pond, and write about his experiences and meditations. Today, his thoughts, opinions, and experiences inform and educate us, enlightening us to a world of possibilities. Henry David Thoreau wrote Walden, and now all of us have a chance to spend time there in this richly illustrated edition.

Jeffrey Cramer, Thoreau scholar, has meticulously put together this labor of love for the book, as is shown on each and every page. Writing a short, insightful introduction to this book, and carefully research notes in the margins of the book, add layers of understanding to an already powerful book.

I hadn't ever visited Walden prior to this book. As a Walden novice, it served as an excellent introduction to an amazing man and an amazing work. I'm sure that both novices and scholars will benefit from this wonderful literary escape from the world. Yet the escape teaches us more about the world than we might ever know. Thanks to Cramer, and thanks to Henry for crafting this word feast.

I have at least six or seven different editions of Thoreau's greatest classic, and this one is my prized possession. Of course, if I took his ideas more seriously I would simplify things and give away the other copies, but they have my notes in them and I find it hard to let go of them. Part of the problem of this edition being so beautiful, on excellent paper, with very useful notes and images, is that I would hate to mark it up with the lines and notes that I have included in some of the other editions. Still, that's a good problem. The notes in this book are useful notes -- not just a haphazard list of some scholars' remarks (not always authoritative) on favorite passages, and not speculation, but clear sources for some of the obscure references in the text.

On the book as a whole, it is worth noting that Walden is rich in ideas and is one of the most profound American philosophical classics, and no reading could exhaust its wealth. It is much more than a journal of Thoreau's time alone in the woods (as it were) on the banks of Walden Pond (as it is often thought to be by those who haven't read it - I know because I often ask my students what they know about the book before they read it).

A quick introduction to the project of Walden, that will help organize and make sense of some of the variety of Thoreau's remarks here, is to think of his remarks as falling under three rough stages:
(1) an account of the problem we face, that we waste away our lives trying to make a living, that we seek to acquire property for the sake of freedom but find ourselves encumbered, that we associate the rise of modern technology with enlightenment but find that our technologies and advances increasingly take us away from ourselves and our self-sufficiency, and make us dependent on what we do not individually understand.
(2) an account of an experiment undertaken to discover what is truly essential for a life of fulfillment, and the discovery that a complete and worthwhile life can be achieved through a deliberate simplification of desires.
(3) an account of the many remarkable discoveries that can be made about ourselves and about the natural world and the relation between these when we voluntarily simplify our lives.

This is a book to read and return to throughout one's life, and there aren't many books that really merit such attention. Given its importance, having a copy in what is probably the best edition available now makes a lot of sense.

This edition of Walden is a joy to read, with lovely typeface and layout. I am not a Thoreau scholar, but found the annotations accessible and absorbing. The layout allows you to read Walden straight through or wander off into the annotated notes, depending on your mood.

A book that serves as a miniature vacation every time you open it.

Walden, since the age of fourteen, has always been a special place for me. Ironically, I did not disturb the leaf laden path through Thoreau's wood until seven years after, but at a young age I enjoyed the utopia this book offers. Interestingly enough the surface was read, and with little understanding of history, of which I know have a Masters degree, I did not know the context. With this Annotated version you are thrusted further into Thoreau's world than ever before. I suggest strongly to read the text, then start over with just the annotations. It takes you into the historical/political context of the book's purpose, and from that, into a world leading to civil war, that would traverse those growing pains into a time of reform. Truly a book before its time, yet speaks to the reform movement of the latter 19th c., and perhaps today.

This book will make you jealous to think that 18 and 19 year olds write this well.

It would be very wise to read this and adopt the level of quality these young men and women used in their essays. Some of the events are extrinsically insignificant or common, but these bright students displayed the intrinsic value of each through excellent writing, grammar, and detail.

I'm leaving the military for college, and the essay once seemed like a massive hurdle for me. Using these essays as a standard, I no longer have that fear.

Good advice. But who's kidding whom ... it's going to take more than a great essay to get into Harvard. You need the GPA and strong test scores. If your grades and credentials aren't up to par, it doesn't matter how much lipstick you put on that pig.

Vernon M
Cambridge, MA

This is a fantastic book. As a first-generation student, I had no clue what to expect from a college essay; I had no idea what made an essay good and what made it bad.
Although this book doesn't directly teach you what a good essay is, the amazing essays in here allow you to 'absorb' the good writing and use it to your advantage.

Vernon (poster before me) is correct here; you still need the grades, the scores, the extracurriculars.. or else the book does not help much.
However, if you KNOW you have a strong profile but do not know what to expect from a college essay (like me), then this book is right for you!

I can't thank this book enough. I learned good writing only paying $14 instead of something astronomical for those editing services.

Ironically, with the help of this book, I got accepted into Harvard's rival school :)

[Handsome Dan] out.

These essays were very good, some of them were very moving. I found that this book explained the college essay process and was an easy read.

This is a fantastic collection of application essays. If you or your child is in need of examples of well-written essays, these 50 essays are just the thing for you. Not only are the essays themselves printed, the book also provides an analysis for each, by the Staff of "The Harvard Crimson". Within each analysis, you learn what topics to choose, what to avoid and how to keep the reader from discarding your essay. If they worked for Harvard students, they'll definitely help you with your school.

Angela the Upside-Down Girl is a revelation. Emily Hiestand is one of Robert Frost's true poets, "one upon whom nothing is lost." As she trains an eye of the rarest perception on the world we thought we knew, we discover the heart of light within ordinary and not-so-ordinary things. I marvel at her scope: her Weltyesque Aunt Nan Dean; her eloquent witness to the power of faith and community at Union Baptist Church; her love affair with automotive neon, which manages (as Emerson never could) to be both transcendental and funny; and, of course, there's Angela, whose gravity-defying grace can be seen as a figure for the whole book. But perhaps most engaging of all is the voice of our guide--Hiestand herself--the unifying principle through the book's many travels, wise, witty, shimmering in its clarity, a wonderful companion.

Angela the Upside-Down Girl is a revelation. Emily Hiestand is one of Robert Frost's true poets, "one upon whom nothing is lost." As she trains an eye of the rarest perception on the world we thought we knew, we discover the heart of light within ordinary and not-so-ordinary things. I marvel at her scope: her Weltyesque Aunt Nan Dean; her eloquent witness to the power of faith and community at Union Baptist Church; her love affair with automotive neon, which manages (as Emerson never could) to be both transcendental and funny; and, of course, there's Angela, whose gravity-defying grace can be seen as a figure for the whole book. But perhaps most engaging of all is the voice of our guide--Hiestand herself--the unifying principle through the book's many travels, wise, witty, shimmering in its clarity, a wonderful companion.

Thoreau lives! Emily Hiestand could take you on a trip down the most familiar street in your town and show you things you've never seen before. She has a way of noting the realities of everyday existence that simultaneously lights up their surfaces and illuminates their deeper significance. What a mind this writer has. What an imagination. --And what a way with words. I simply loved this book.

I knew Emily for a very short time when I lived in Boston. She and my sister were friends, along with a group of people whose lives centered around a triple decker on Wendell Street.

A new book from Emily is like a long letter. I get to catch up on her life and comings and goings. I always feel sheepish about not staying in touch when I'm through with it. She writes such beautiful and thoughtful things, I think. I really need to write her back.

Reading her prose is exactly like having a conversation with her. I can hear her light, sweet voice as if I'm at a reading, and can summon her laugh in my mind's ear too.

It's impossible for me to separate my acquaintance with Emily from her work, but I will say I'm always astounded with her descriptions and way with words. She is at once erudite and approachable, and her work is always informed by both these things. Being a poet, Emily brings thoughtful cadence to her essays, and very often I will read them outloud to myself.

For those of you who don't know Emily personally, you will after you read this book, and what's more, you'll want to know her better. You'll also learn that New England watersheds are not only interesting but epic in their own way, and that stories are told in the details.

Thanks Emily. I'm doing quite well and think of you often.

[An] enchanting new book of essays.... Many personal essayists today try to capture our interest by being confessional but run the risk of revealing, like clumsy strippers, what we'd really rather not see. Hiestand has taken the more unusual risk of writing about the quotidian, and produced a tour de force. "Oooouuuweee!" as her cousin Bill would say. What a good book this is. --Boston Sunday Globe Book Review

Angela the Upside-Down Girl is about how to live creatively, see life through an artist's eye. With a subversive sense of humor and a wicked ability to pierce convention, [Hiestand] takes us on her journey to discover a meaningful sense of place in a chaotic world. Her place turns out to be North Cambridge, which she describes with the freshness and originality of Joyce in Dublin...

Angela the Upside-Down Girl reveals Emily Hiestand's exceptional talents which include an artist's eye for color and form, a cu! ltural anthropologist's ability to get people to tell their stories, and a poet's facility to express what is felt but not seen. --Cambridge Chronicle

Rich, revealing, and often hilarious... This book travels between only two places...but it travels so deeply into each place, both their pasts and their presents, that you come away from it feeling enlightened and enticed, and ready to hop on the next train heading north or south. --Hope Magazine

...and I say, also, "What a good book this is!"

-Chuck Eisenhardt

Thanks for giving me more insight to how my Friend J'Michael died. This book brought tears to my eyes. I couldn't even begin to imagine how these Men suffered such a horrible death.

The fact that someone would read this book and regard Captain Mike Goodridge as a cowboy clearly shows your lack of competence related to the marine salvage industry. Anyone who reads his resume would clearly see that he is regarded as one of the best commercial salvors in the country and is consulted on many cases up and down the coasts. Had Mr. Goodridge been called by the Coast Guard when they knew divers were needed he clearly would have been there in time, to first stabalize the vessel, and then rescue the trapped men with spare air tanks. The reviewer who regards him as a cowboy either has a personal vandeta against Goodridge, which is the most likely, or probably has never seen a salvage situation and therefore has no idea what it takes to complete an operation like this. Capt. Goodridge has stabalized and saved hundereds of boats from sinking while running Marine Services and Tow Boat US. The Coast Guard knew this but still danced around the red tape, fearing they would be up-ended by a civilian. This incompetence, which is still present today, cost three men their lives, and the family and friends a life of heartbreak. Shame on you for regarding this hero as a cowboy.

This book is a must read for all who knew Jeff, John Mike, and Kevin. I know I felt as many others did, That we needed to know why there rescue went wrong. Although it was a very hard book to read. Kate Yeomans did a very fine job on her research. I'd like to thank her for telling their story. They deserved it.

Gripping, Riveting. Great for anyone interested in tales of the sea, but is AN ABSOLUTE MUST-READ for recreational boaters and working mariners. Kate has done a wonderful job explaining and tying together many complex and even frustrating story-lines to shed light on the way these tragic events unfolded. Aside from the accident and subsequent rescue attempts, she provides great,well-researched insight into the privatization of the marine salvage/towing industry and subsequent policy changes within the Coast Guard. Great Work.

This book was awesome. Ms. Yeomans writes a terrific story that will have you sitting back totally buried in the story she tells. Having had many friends and acquaintances in the fishing industry who have had similar experiences, most of them fatal, I can only surmise that the entire United States Coast Guard needs to be revamped, all its employees trained, and that the Guard MUST be held accountable for the actions that they take, or in this case, that they refused to take by not allowing Mike Goodridge to assist in the rescue. Had he been able to communicate with the Coast Guard and been given the real truth about what was going on, I feel certain that these three men would not have drowned. As to the comment that Mr. Goodridge is a cowboy, I can guarantee that everyone of the fishermen I talk to and work with would call him or a member of one of his franchises (SeaTow) in a heart beat, rather than taking the chance that the Coasties would not appear on time.
A must read for anyone involved with the commercial fishing industry. Well read, excellent plot, extremely well researched and heartbreaking. I would recommend this book to anyone who wanted to find out about the perils of maritime salvage, commercial fishing, and just for a plain old damn good read.

I picked up this book to read while waiting for an oil change, and I laughed out loud. You wouldn't peg me for a person who would get such a "kick" out of a book on football--I'm a female English teacher. But the author does a great job of describing how he felt when he joined a semi-pro team made up of people who don't run in his usual social circles. I have given copies of the book as gifts to a wide range of people (a lawyer, a college coach, my mother, my aunt, and a friend who also played semi-pro football, for example), and all of them have called to tell me how funny the book is. They each recount a scene or two, laughing as they describe events from memory in great detail.

This book would also make a great birthday gift for any guy who fears he's headed over the hill.

This is a funny, inspiring, wonderfully readable book. It's about love, sports, human nature, team, and one person's growth. Highly recommended.

Anyone who enjoyed the movies Rudy, Invicible, The Rookie & Hoosiers will want to read this book by Mark St. Amant. Once again the ordinary guy succeeds when he fufills his dream with hard work & determination. That's how a 37 year old author was able to become a place kicker for a minor league football team, even though he never played a game of organized football on any level. Mark accepted an unexpected invitation to place kick for the Boston Panthers of the EFL. You'll enjoy his journey from a struggling doubting Thomas to a league all-star his second season. His insight to human nature & racial tensions is worth the read as well.

This is just a terric book--exciting, well-written, and smart. It gives hope to all armchair athletes, besides being a really detailed and wise study of human hature with sports as the backdrop. This is the kind of memoir everyone can relate to--an "everyday, normal" person doing something out of the ordinary and writing about it with depth and insight. This book would make a great gift for the thinking sportsperson.

"Just Kick It" is an excellent follow-up to Mark St. Amant's first book "Committed". I found myself laughing out loud on the train ride home from work. But it is more than just a funny story of an ex-soccer player becoming a place kicker for a semi-pro football team. Mark St. Amant does a wonderful job bringing the reader close to his teammates, each taking a different path to semi-pro football. In describing their stories, I felt closer to the team. "Just Kick It" is about much more than just a football season. And the members of the Boston Panthers are much more than just football players. It is about decisions, priorities, and looking at life from the perspective of others. Keep writing mark, you have a unique talent.

When I finished reading this book, I was sad that it was over! It was so good I didn't want it to end. The beginning is at first hard to read because it's sad, but by chapter two, I was completely hooked! It's very exciting and mysterious. It would make an excellent movie. It's about the relationship between a 14-year-old girl who loves horses, a Brittish 16-year-old girl named Meg, and two teen boys, who have many adventures together while helping the Patriot army. This book teaches history while at the same time you're actually enjoying reading it! I highly recommend this book to kids of all ages who love mystery, adventure, and of course horses! C age 13

This book is Fantatstic! A great young adult book and also anyone who loves horses and history.

i love this book!!!! its about a girl named hannah who is sent by her horrid aunt pheobe to be a indengered servant. she loves horses and becomes friends with two stable boys named will and caleb. hannah hates being a servant, so to breakaway from the servant life, she goes on midnight rides on her beloved horse promise. i'm not gonna say anything else though!!!! read this book and find out what happens!!!

this book was awesome!
they really could make a movie out of it
if u like horses and a little bit of history then u will like this book!

I have read this story with students average age 14. Their response was total involvement in the plot and the character, Hannah and her horse, Promise. They did not believe at first that the book would be interesting, since they thought it would be "ho hum" history. The cover illustration suggests it might be another Paul Revere Midnight Ride to Lexington and Concord. Wrong! The main historical event is the lesser known "Salem Alarm." The author weaves fascinating historical events into a plot that today's kids love. Not a bit boring! In fact, one student said, "It was like watching a movie in my head." Kids LOVED this story and rated it a 10/10. Did I forget to mention that I loved it, too?

A True Crime Mystery

MURDER AT MOUNT HERMON is a spellbinding true-life mystery of a sensational unsolved murder that occurred in 1934. Elliott Speer, the recently appointed headmaster of a well-known New England prep school, was shot dead through his study window by someone whose identity remains unknown. It was a little past eight on the evening of September 14, 1935 that a single blast of double-o buckshot from a 12-gauge shotgun tore through the screened window of Ford Cottage killing the thirty-six-year-old headmaster. The murder became one of the most sensational murder cases of the mid-thirties, receiving national news coverage.
Several elements assured that the murder of Elliott Speer would arouse national interest. Mount Hermon School for Boys was founded in 1881 by Dwight L. Moody, one of the best-known evangelist in American history. Elliott Speer was recruited to bring the school into the twentieth century. Many of the old guard at the school felt that Speer's progressive views were a rejection of the founder's vision and mission for the school. The man suspected at the time of being guilty of the crime was none other that Thomas Elder, dean of the school. Dean Elder was among those who felt the school's mission was endangered by Elliott Speer's progressive methods. Elder also felt that he, not Speer, should have been appointed headmaster in 1932.
The murder of Elliott Speer remains unsolved to this day, but Craig Walley, a Mount Hermon graduate and attorney, believes that his investigation of the crime comes as close as anyone ever will come to identifying the murderer. Adding to the mystery is the fact that Elliott Speer's two dogs did not bark during the night of the crime. One is reminded of Sherlock Holmes and the "Silver Blaze." Also, Elliott Speer was a fan of mystery novels, and among those in his personal library was a copy of The Public School Murder by R. C. Woodthorpe. This English crime novel published in 1932 was lent by Speer to Dean Elder when the latter was ill. The Public School Murder reads like a script for Speer's murder, right through to the fact that the crime was never solved. Was the Mount Hermon murder the perfect crime?
MURDER AT MOUNT HERMON is as well written as any fictional mystery novel, made all the more interesting by being a true mystery. Readers familiar with Josephine Tey's classic, The Daughter of Time (1952), will delight in this book. It is one of only a very few that this reviewer could not put down until finished.N

I was transfixed by this well-written account of a Mount Hermon legend. I attended the school in 1951-52 and remember it fondly. Reading about people and buildings and locations with which I am, even after all these years, familiar, the story was very real to me. I found the experience compelling and commend it to others.

Murder At Mount Hermon: The Unsolved Killing Of Headmaster Elliott Speer is a true crime story concerning the 1934 murder of a thirty-five-year old school administrator, whose efforts to bring progressive reform to the tradition-bound Christian prep school earned the good graces of many students and faculty. A shotgun blast through his study window killed him, and the murder was front-page news nationwide, yet no criminal was ever charged. Veteran attorney Craig Walley pieces together the clues of history and dares even to indicate the most likely killer. A fascinating, fact-filled study of murder and the shortcomings of a 1930's homicide investigation.

As a student at Northfield Mount Hermon in the early 1970s, little was said about the unsolved murder of former Headmaster Elliott Speer. I recall a rumor that the gun used in the killing was somewhere on the bottom of the school's Shadow Lake. Craig Walley's well-researched and -written book examines that rumor and many more in an absorbing murder mystery. Murder at Mount Hermon captures the school's history and religious roots, and how the forward-thinking Speer's efforts to break from the past and move the school and its students into a new era sealed his fate. While the murder remains unsolved, Walley's book comes closer than ever before to finding the "smoking gun."

The 1934 murder of Mount Hermon School for Boys Headmaster Elliott Speer remains unsolved today, legally speaking. What youngster could resist such a mystery's allure? Not Craig Walley, a Mount Hermon student from 1957 through 1961. During the years afterward, throughout his career as an attorney, Walley thought about it often. In 2001 he decided to research the case and write this book.

MURDER AT MOUNT HERMON tells the story, provides its background, and analyzes the available evidence with an attorney's precision. I think it's safe to say that you'll come away from it certain you know the murderer's name and understand his motives. More case study than murder mystery, the book reaches for broader relevance - and for a connection to our 21st Century present - by speaking of another time when "Fundamentalism" and "Modernism" clashed. Did that clash at Northfield and Mount Hermon, sister schools founded by the great 19th Century evangelist D.L. Moody, lay the groundwork for Elliott Speer's murder? To answer this intriguing question for yourself, you'll have to read the book.

I've wandered through that musuem and been impressed, but this book brings my appreciation and awe to an entirely new level. I don't know whether to make a return visit or just reread the book whenever I need to be reminded of that treasure house in Cambridge. Nancy Pick's text is like a curator tour of the collection highlights; the best tour you could imagine.

The Rarest of the Rare is an excellent and entertaining look at many of the truly unique and historically-significant treasures found at the Harvard Museum. It is very well written, with just enough information to capture your attention and imagination, but not so much as to be boring; together with the exceptional photographs, this makes for a wonderful addition to any natural history or museum buff's library.

Museum enthusiasts and natural history buffs alike will find the museum stories in The Rarest of the Rare: Stories Behind the Treasures at the Harvard Museum of Natural History are enhanced with nearly a hundred color photos by Mark Sloan as images accompany descriptions for some of the unusual specimens housed at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, with Nancy Pick explaining the special importance of each. The Rarest Of The Rare is more than a mere listing or summary outline of specimens as author Nancy Pick reveals just how the item was collected and where, as well as noting the diverse financial and collector contributors who often performed extraordinary feats to get the specimen to the museum.

This is a gem of a book. A rare combination of science, history, and photography. The book presents the history of Harvard's Museum of Natural History and the great scientific treasures it holds. Nancy Pick's wonderful writing style includes historical information on how the specimens came into the collection and on the scientific importance of these specimens. You get to see material collected by Lewis and Clark, Captain Cook, Darwin, Nabokov, and many, many others. There is something here for everybody: birds, insects, orchids, mammals, fishes, reptiles, etc. This is truly an outstanding book.

This is a beautifully produced book, as carefully designed as a "coffee table" book, but without the cumbersome size and off-putting price. The book will appeal both to those with a cabinet-of-wonders curiosity and to those who are more interested in the scientific relevance of this great museum's holdings. Aside from its production, there are three great stars to the book. First, its writing: clear, humorous, informative and narratively driven. Second, its photographs: gorgeous, telling, often interestingly angled. Finally, its selection: a wide-ranging collection of different kinds of objects with very varied histories and significances. -- Again, everyone will find something in this book, and most people will find a lot indeed.

Contrary to one of the other reviewer's comments, the importance of this book is in showing precicely that it is not the "endemic" culture of Silicon Valley, but rather the innovative institutions and networked relationships in Silicon Valley that explains the region's success. A great contribution to the literature on embeddedness and network forms of organization.

The book is written by a person who lived in the Route 128 area and in the Silicon Valley. Besides the great insights and fantastic scholarly work, the book reflects the experience of seeing the development of both regions, not only through the eyes of a scholar, but also through the experiences that can only be gained by "being there."

The best book I have ever read concerning High Tech culture. Everyone should read this book to better understand how to motivate info exchange and networking among our society and world.

saxenian argues that silicon valley's competitive advantage is the vast network of small firms that compose silicon valley and cross pollinate each other. she compares the valley to the route 128 area in boston which she classifies as detrimentally hierarchical, even puritanical.

Although she is a bit partial to the Silicon Valley area, the author presents the information in a very "down to earth", easy to read fashion - not too technical or too dry.

Margaret McLean's UNDER OATH is an excellent first novel from a former prosecutor who knows the workings of the criminal courts inside and out. The courtroom segments of the book are by far the best, as the action takes place against the backdrop of the murder trial of two hoodlums from Charlestown, Massachusetts. The victim was from the same neighborhood as the accused Malone brothers, and the legendary "code of silence" is always in the background as the trial unfolds. Malone thugs fiendishly locate and silence government witnesses before they can testify, and the victim's sister finds herself partnered with the chief detective as they attempt to undo the damage done to the prosecution's case. McLean's legal expertise and experience are evident throughout the book, ranging from an insolent bailiff to a biased juror, and by the book's suspense-filled end the reader will agree with one character's observation that "The law is far from logical". Part ALL SOULS and part BLACK MASS, McLean has written a worthy addition to Boston literature and I hope we see more of her work.

I was very impressed with Margaret McLean's ability to captivate the reader during long courtroom processes. She also captures perfectly the Charlestown/Boston inflections of speach, and makes the dialogue completely believable.

Witnesses deaths might have been presented with a little more mystery, drama and excitement, but overall I enjoyed Ms McLean's book tremendously.

Since I am a citizen of the author's hometown and a frequent visitor to the Boston area, I was especially anxious to read this book; and will certainly look forward to her next work.

Rebeccasreads highly recommends UNDER OATH as a legal mystery that is also a courtroom thriller of the first order. Margaret McLean, an erstwhile criminal prosecutor & Assistant District Attorney, puts to excellent use her trial experiences as background in this superb tale about a high profile murder trial.

Presenting the case of two brothers accused of killing an FBI informant is a seasoned prosecutor; up against him is a flamboyant & cunning defense lawyer. What follows is fine courtroom action.

UNDER OATH is a great legal read, right up there with ANATOMY OF A MURDER & TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, & we look forward to more from this lawyer-cum-author.

my sister has and loved it. She may be a bit biased though as and there is a character based on her as she was college roommates with Margaret!

Written by a former Assistant District Attorney with hundreds of criminal cases to her personal experience, Under Oath is a gripping and dramatic crime novel of the struggle to see justice done. A legal thriller following a murder and conspiracy trial in which jurors are intimidated, witnesses are killed and FBI cover-ups obfuscate the truth, Under Oath is haunting in its eerie accuracy and solid grounding in real-life courtroom experience. Utterly compelling from cover to cover.