A Child's Book of True Crime

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A Child's Book of True Crime
A Child's Book of True Crime book cover.jpg
Author Chloe Hooper
Country Australia
LanguageEnglish
Genre Crime novel
Publisher Penguin
Publication date
March 19, 2002
Pages238
ISBN 0-7432-2512-0

A Child's Book of True Crime is a novel by Australian author Chloe Hooper, published in 2001 by Penguin. It was shortlisted for the 2002 Women's Prize for Fiction.

Contents

Summary

Kate is a young schoolteacher working in a small community in Tasmania. She begins an affair with the parent of one of her students. Some chapters tell an alternate version of the same story, a murder investigation written in the style of a children's book.

Reception

A Child's Book of True Crime received mostly positive reviews. The Guardian described the book as "a Russian doll of a novel" and praised it as "beguiling". [1]

The A.V. Club gave a mixed review, stating that the short book is "padded by redundant passages", while saying parts of the book were "vivid and witty". [2]

The New Yorker said the novel was "suspenseful and self-conscious". [3]

Awards

A Child's Book of True Crime was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction in 2002. [4]

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References

  1. Darnell, Lisa (February 23, 2002). "Not in front of the kids". theguardian.com. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  2. Murray, Noel (April 3, 2002). "Chloe Hooper: A Child's Book of True Crime". avclub.com. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  3. "A Child's Book of True Crime". newyorker.com. Condé Nast. June 3, 2002. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  4. "A Child's Book of True Crime". womensprizeforfiction.co.uk. Retrieved September 6, 2023.