Manson in His Own Words by Charles Manson

Add to Goodreads

Title: Manson in His Own Words

Author: Charles Manson

Genre: True Crime

Length: 256 pages

Published: 1994

Publisher: Grove Press

Brief Synopsis: (Taken from Goodreads) We have called him a devil and quarantined him behind such labels as "the most dangerous man alive." But Charles Manson remains a shocking reminder of our own humanity gone awry. This astonishing book lays bare the life and the mind of a man whose acts have left us horrified. His story provides an enormous amount of new information about his life and how it led to the Tate-LaBianca murders, and reminds us of the complexity of the human condition. Born in the middle of the Depression to an unmarried fifteen-year-old, Manson lived through a bewildering succession of changing homes and substitute parents, until his mother finally asked the state authorities to assume his care when he was twelve. Regimented and often brutalized in juvenile homes, Manson became immersed in a life of petty theft, pimping, jail terms, and court appearances that culminated in seven years of prison. Released in 1967, he suddenly found himself in the world of hippies and flower children, a world that not only accepted him, but even glorified his anti-establishment values. It was a combination that led, for reasons only Charles Manson can fully explain, to tragedy. Manson's story, distilled from seven years of interviews and examinations of his correspondence, provides sobering insight into the making of a criminal mind, and a fascinating picture of the last years of the sixties. No one who wants to understand that time, and the man who helped to bring it to a horrifying conclusion, can miss reading this book.

My Review:

I give this book a 4 out of 5. 

Charles Manson has long been a name synonymous with fear. In this book, compiled by Nuel Emmons, Manson finally tells his story: from his youth to the events that led to the murders perpetrated by members of his "Family" which he currently sits in prison for. 

I found this absolutely fascinating. I've always been intrigued by the Manson Family murders, and even read Helter Skelter in my early teens. I was legitimately horrified by some of the stories from his youth and even found myself incredibly saddened by the way he had been treated. All of those events led to him not trusting authority, and living the free love lifestyle he and his "Family" lived. He did eventually become extremely paranoid and this paranoia (and the fact that one of his followers killed a man) led him to allow his followers to perpetrate the murders that he eventually became convicted of. 

If you find true crime and memoirs as fascinating as I do, this book is definitely for you. From my understanding, none of the proceeds of this book go to Manson. 

You can purchase Manson in His Own Words through Amazon in either hard copy or Kindle format. 

Have you read Manson in His Own Words? If so, leave a comment and let me know your thoughts! 

Please note: I was not compensated in any way for this review. It is strictly my opinion.