The Complete History of Jack the Ripper [Paperback]

Philip Sugden (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 9, 2002

Adding more new material for his Complete History of Jack the Ripper, crime writer and historian Philip Sugden already has painstakingly uncovered much new and hitherto neglected material, including a new Ripper sighting, a possible earlier assault, and a potential American connection. As noted Ripperologist Dan Farson observes, "This is indeed the ‘definitive account'," for armchair sleuths of the White Chapel Horrors and all true crime aficionados. "A meticulous and reasoned profile for readers and future detectives."—Kirkus Reviews "The charm of well written history about a character of almost mythical standing."—Daily Telegraph (London)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

British historian-researcher Sugden here presents an exhaustive study of the Whitechapel murders of 1888 (some would say 1888-91) and examines the books by other "Ripperologists" to show that many have been derivative or have succumbed to the mythology surrounding the case. He makes it clear that, given the state of forensic medicine at the time, the police did good work but had almost no clues. Sugden concludes that none of the prime suspects was the Ripper, except perhaps George Chapman. Born in Poland as Severin Klosowski, he apprenticed as a surgeon; in London, where he was a hairdresser, he was suspected of several slashings but was never arrested. Included are photos and sketches of the murder locations and the women who were butchered.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

The series of murders in London in 1888 attributed to someone called Jack the Ripper constitute one of the most famous and mysterious unsolved criminal cases. Time has not diminished the gruesomeness of the killings: all the victims' throats were cut (some were almost beheaded), some victims were disemboweled, and from a few the killer took organs. When fear of the Ripper peaked, the killings stopped, and a century of speculation ensued. Sugden does not resist adding to the inquiry a chapter on his theory of Jack's identity, yet his book isn't intended to solve the puzzle. Rather, he painstakingly sifts through press clippings and police records to dispel misinformation, much of it stemming from police refusal to release information to the newspapers, as a result of which the press published rumors as facts, which were subsequently used by researchers as the basis of their books. Sugden is exhaustive, and his book is for the serious student, not light reading. Future writers on Jack the Ripper will use this text as the basis of their research. Jon Kartman --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 544 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (January 9, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786709324
• ISBN-13: 978-0786709328
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (72 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #660,048 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

118 of 119 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Sacred Tome of Ripperology, March 12, 2001

By 

Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Complete History of Jack the Ripper (Paperback)

Having read several books on Jack the Ripper, I can enthusiastically declare Sugden's volume the best of the lot, for a number of reasons. First and foremost, this book is not about "Jack the Ripper" per se, but rather it is about the series of murders in Whitechapel and the ensuing investigation. It is the author's stated goal to present the facts as clearly as can be gleaned from extant police files and press reports of the time (albeit, in the latter case, cautiously and only when information is not available in official form). As other reviewers point out, Sugden is not trying to convince us that his own pet suspect is the Ripper. Whereas most Ripper books begin with a conclusion and are written with the arbitary purpose of convincing us that the author has identified the Ripper, this book actually saves the conclusion to the end. Even that conclusion, however, is not definitive. The author does, in the end, tell us why a certain suspect seems to fit the facts better than other named suspects, but he clearly states that there is no definitive proof as to whether or not that suspect was Jack, and he by no means accuses the man of the crimes. In the same vein, Sugden does not attack other writers in the field. That being said, he does point out flaws and outright mistakes in others' thinking. Even this, it must be said, is done in a noble fashion. Sugden is very determined to dispel a number of myths that have wrongly influenced Ripperology for many years, and his contribution toward this end is the most important contribution he makes. He goes to great lengths to not only point out false "facts" (such as the supposed pregnancy of Mary Kelly, for example, an idea that even Donald Rumbelow accepted when he wrote his Casebook) but to explain where these myths came from and why they were accepted by other writers.

Another wonderful thing about this book is Sugden's treatment of the victims. I must admit that I have always viewed the victims with some detachment--this is surely a personal shortcoming on my part, but it is one that many people may share, especially given that the victims were prostitutes in Victorian London over a century ago. In the pages of this book, though, these poor women actually become real and "human." I feel as if I knew them now, to at least a small degree, and, besides feeling pity and compassion for them, I have discovered that I actually liked a couple of them (especially Annie Camp). These women were not just poor "prostitutes." Other writers have done a good job of explaining the wretched conditions in Whitechapel, but no one else has made that world and its occupants really come alive and real to me before. Sugden deserves much praise for putting so much effort into researching, learning, and telling the true story of these women as comprehensively as possible.

In this book, you will find the most complete, objective story that can be told of the Whitechapel murders. "Facts" you have assumed were true will be brought to light and revealed to be myths. New information, particularly in regard to the victims, will be presented. You will not be shown Jack the Ripper, however. What do the facts tell us about Jack the Ripper? That is the question Sugden poses. He has some ideas, which he shares, but any "answers" to this mystery are ultimately left with the reader.

This book should be required reading for any person even remotely interested in Jack the Ripper. Sugden has written the sacred tome of Ripperology, in my opinion.

36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitive!, October 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Complete History of Jack the Ripper (Paperback)

As an amatuer "Ripperologist" I have read most of the books published on this subject. About a half dozen works stand above the rest thanks to thorough research and a sound investigative approach. Until now, only Donald Rumbelow's CASEBOOK had been so thorough, but new theories and evidence have come to light in the many years since that book was written. This book was way overdue! Sugden has done an amazingly thorough and readable job of seperating fact from fiction, identifying myths that far too many authors have carelessly passed off as truth. Sugden's no-nonsense assessment of the various suspects, witnesses and resources is as refreshing as it is informative. From the waxwork dioramas of the 1880's to the phony diaries of today, unscrupulous people have made many fortunes by co-opting Jack the Ripper's infamy. Here we have the best book yet written to dispell the hype and tell us what is really known about history's most famous serial killer. You could read a handful of other recent Ripper books and not get what you do right here -- I only hope there will be new editions as new issues come to light.

48 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Complete history worth buying in any format, September 13, 2000

By 

Author Bill Peschel "Writers Gone Wild" (Hershey, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete History of Jack the Ripper (Paperback)

This is an unusual Ripper book, one that does not have an axe (or knife in this case) to grind, nor does it have a favorite theory to advance. Following in the steps of Donald Rumbelow's "The Complete Jack the Ripper," Philip Sugden decided to go back to the original source material, plus the packet of material taken from the London police that was mailed back to them in 1987, and recount the history of the case. This he does well, going over the material, the press reports and other writers' theories with a skeptical eye and a fearless passion for the truth. He finds, not surprisingly, that the press reports are extremely inaccurate, that most of the memoirs written by police officials decades after the fact were not to be believed, and that many Ripperologists were either criminally negligent or, at best, unable to see deeply into the evidence and render accurate judgments.

There is some new material here, however, particularly Sugden's researches into the three suspects Sir Melville Macnaghten thought were prime Ripper candidates. At the time of the killings, Macnaghten was assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police in charge of CID, but that rank did not spare him from Sugden's dissection of his claims that the Ripper was M.J. Druitt, Kosminski, or Michael Ostrog. By checking out Macnaghten's other claims in his statements, it becomes plain that the old boy had no evidence to back up his charges.

Sugden traces other claims and counterclaims like this, and while he was unable to unmask the Ripper, he does offer a candidate more suitable that Macnaghten's three, and with the help of criminal profiling, suggests a line of investigation that may throw more light on this century-old mystery. If you're unable to plow through the 800-page Ripper book coming up in December, this is the one book to get!