Part of the reason I applied for this internship is because I absolutely love books. I’m pretty much an insatiable reader and will devour pretty much any book I can get my hands on. You can imagine my excitement when on my first day here at the UPF I was given two advance review copies of books that are coming out in the Spring/Summer season for 2012. I recently finished the first book, Trout, and I must say that it was kind of amazing. It’s one the first true crime books published by the UPF, and is definitely a hit. It deals instead with the Trout Auto Parts chain in Pensacola, FL and the true story of a murder that took place there in 1991.
Patrick Bonifay, Clifford Barth and Eddie Fordham were three teenage boys hired to do a very adult crime. Patrick’s uncle, Robin Archer, offered his dirt poor nephew a suitcase full of money if Patrick killed the man who got him fired from his job at Trout Auto Parts. The problem was that the man who Patrick was supposed to kill, Daniel Wells, called in sick the night of the murder, and an innocent man lost his life that night instead. The book goes into the details of the boys lives before the murder as well as the aftermath and how everything changed for them forever. It also explores the history of sentencing minors to the death penalty and whether or not they can truly be held accountable for their actions at such a young age.
I personally found this book fascinating. It was so interesting to get a real glimpse into each character’s mind. You got to know the characters of the book so intimately as it progressed, and it made the outcome seem all the more tragic for it. You really start to feel for all three boys and wish that things could have been different for them. I also really enjoyed all of the psychology in the book and reading about the history of sentencing juveniles to the death penalty. I even found myself looking up some of the other cases mentioned and wondering what punishment I would recommend if I’d been a juror in one of the cases. Trout is a gripping book from beginning to end and is a great read for fans of crime books everywhere. You can click on the image to go to the book’s page on the UPF website for more information and to pre-order a copy for yourself. It officially goes on sale April 15.
Confessions of a Publishing Intern 