The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris (Crime Friday)
CRIME FRIDAY
JANUARY 29, 2021
Spotlight on THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
Recently, I had the chance to sit down and reread this classic thriller. I have to admit, I still couldn’t put it down. Having just written a master’s thesis on serial killers, reading this book gave me a chance to see how Harris was able to incorporate details of real-life monsters into his two fictional serial killers. It was an interesting assessment, and the fact that I was able to create a class curriculum around this book for my day job made it all the more fun for me.
The story and characters are gripping. And though I’ve read the book and seen the movie more than a few times, I still found it mesmerizing. I suppose it had to do with my research into the real-life crimes of Ted Bundy, Ed Gein, and Edmund Kemper, and the real-life FBI agent, John Douglas, and his co-creation of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit. Such a fascinating study into both hunter and prey.
If you haven’t read the book in a while or have never read it but wanted to, I highly recommend you check it out. It’s such a fantastic crime read, and it makes you appreciate just how much talent Jodi Foster and Anthony Hopkins brought to their respective movie roles. Not to mention excited for the upcoming CBS TV series, Clarice, based on the book (premieres Feb 11, 2021).
THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
A serial murderer known only by a grotesquely apt nickname–Buffalo Bill–is stalking women. He has a purpose, but no one can fathom it, for the bodies are discovered in different states. Clarice Starling, a young trainee at the FBI Academy, is surprised to be summoned by Jack Crawford, chief of the Bureau’s Behavioral Science section. Her assignment: to interview Dr. Hannibal Lecter–Hannibal the Cannibal–who is kept under close watch in the Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane.
Dr. Lecter is a former psychiatrist with a grisly history, unusual tastes, and an intense curiosity about the darker corners of the mind. His intimate understanding of the killer and of Clarice herself form the core of [Starling’s journey into the mind of a serial killer].
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