Psychopathy
Simply click on the title of the book or the photo of the cover and you will be taken to Amazon.com where you can (usually) read further reviews and make a purchase.
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The Antisocial Personalities - David T. Lykken |
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Bad
Men Do What Good Men Dream - Robert
I. Simon, M.D. Boy, did Dr. Simon come up with a great title for a fairly limited book. He has some good thoughts in the first and last chapters; everything in between is not very illuminating. In the statement that is basically the concept for his book, Simon says (I just HAD to write that) "The basic difference between what are socially considered to be bad and good people is not one of kind, but one of degree, and of the ability of the bad to translate dark impulses into dark actions." I very much agree with this statement and it is important to understanding the psychopath as not being that much different in general from you or I. We all have the capacity to do evil and often we even consider it, but the issue is whether we feel justified in committing the act or not. |
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Before It's Too Late - Dr. Stanton E. Samenow |
| Cheaters
Always Prosper - James Brazil This is a sick little book of how to cheat and rip people off and enjoy every minute of it. Nice look into the psychopathic mind. An example of what he thinks is perfectly all right? Rent a car for a day and switch all the tires with your own. $35 is a lot cheaper than a set of new tires. Nice guy, huh? |
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| The Creation of Dangerous and Violent Criminals - Lonnie H. Athens | |
| Hunting
Humans - Elliot Leyton Elliot Leyton’s theory of why serial killers kill has been a source of controversy for some and a target of ridicule from others. I, personally, am in Leyton’s camp. Leyton is an anthropologist (also part of my background) and finds the reason for serial murder to be a result of the individual’s failure to achieve in society and the mission of the serial killer is to "wreak vengeance on the established order". Leyton views their acts as a kind of "deformed creativity" rather than the result of a "drooling derangement". I have to agree. Whether you side with Leyton and myself or you find more for psychological or religious explanations of serial murders, this book will challenge you to see the individual in the context of his environment. Also, even if you disagree with the theory, you will see how the killer views himself in the context of society and you will gain a great deal of insight on the killer’s way of seeing life |
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Inside
the Criminal Mind - Stanton E. Samenow THIS is the Samenow book to buy. Very good description of psychopathic behavior from someone who has spent his life working among them. Students should purchase this book in order to thoroughly familiarize themselves with the personality traits and patterns of thinking. I seriously part ways with Samenow on his etiology theories, but the other information is very useful. |
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It's
All in the Playing - Shirley Maclaine Okay, I admit I have never been fond of Shirley Maclaine, her books or her acting. But, really, I am not just trying to 'dis' the woman. I include this book (which IS a yawn, so find it in a used bookstore) to acquaint you with a very dangerous concept that psychopaths employ and Maclaine does also. She likens life to a play and believes we ALL pick our parts and others are just characters in our play and besides, they PICKED their part too! Isn’t that convenient? Whatever you choose to do in your life is for the experience and quite eliminates the need for much of a conscience. After all, if you kill someone, their murder was in THEIR life script as well. Psychic types also often promote this viewpoint. They claim a person who has been murdered was really a willing participant, as they actually wanted to leave this world. Scary concepts that psychopaths buy right into for their justifications. |
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Killer
Fiction - G.J Schaffer, as told to Sondra London, Foreword by
Colin Wilson A totally depraved book that we should condemn our society for allowing it on the market. Gerald Schaefer (and that little helper of serial killers, Sondra London, God have mercy on her soul…) treats us to his "fictional" stories of murder. One of the nastiest serial killers that ever walked, this book will acquaint you with the depth of sadism and lack of empathy that exists in the killer’s mind. Extremely cruel and disgusting descriptions with every detail of horrendous murders. This creep has a whole cabinet full of paraphilias including urophilia, coprophilia and necrophilia. |
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Lustmord
- Brian King This very fascinating book is worth reading. The writings and artwork of some thirty-seven murderers are contained in this book including Berkowitz, DeSalvo, Fish, Glatman, Heirens, Panzram, Schaefer, Starkweather, and the Zodiac just to name some of the more familiar ones. Good way to get into the mind of a psychopaths from his own point of view. |
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Lustmord: Sexual Murder In Weimar Germany - Maria Tatar |
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The Mad, the Bad,and the Innocent - Barbara R. Kirwin, PH.D. |
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My Day! - George Hayduke Hayduke is the master of revenge techniques. One wonders what went wrong in his little psychopathic life to make him write this crap. But, take a look (if you see it in a bookstore) – don’t buy it for God’s sake!! – and check out some of the stalker mentality in here. |
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The Making of a Serial Killer - Danny Rolling and Sondra London |
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Mask of Sanity - Hervey Cleckley Some say Cleckley is outdated. I say "Never"! Cleckley doesn’t deal in his book with hardened criminals or serial killers, but rather the kinds of psychopaths that wandered into his practice. For this reason, there are no heinous crimes to distract us or enrage us enough to turn away from studying the condition, but rather we can observe with a more detached curiosity and learn a lot about the nature of psychopaths. |
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Narcissism: Denial of the True Self - Alexander Lowen, M.D. |
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The
Nazi Doctors - Robert Jay Lifton |
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People
of the Lie - M. Scott Peck, M.D. Dr. Scott Peck recognizes evil for what it is. A very perceptive book on evil in our society and among regular folks. He discusses how evil manifests itself in these people’s lives and how we often fail to recognize it. My favorite point he makes about evil is that it is confusing. If you become confused every time you are with someone, perhaps it is because evil is present;you know something is wrong but you can’t put your finger on it. Evil bases its existence on a lie (or two or three) which is exactly why it confuses rather than clarifies as does the truth. |
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The
Psychopathic Mind - J. Reid Meloy Meloy is never easy to read, but when you are ready to delve more deeply into the psychological implications of the disorder, this is the place to go. Very good discussion on the concept of "splitting". |
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Talk About Criminals - Stanton E. Samenow Rehash of Inside the Criminal Mind with an obsessive bent on saying it’s not the fault of the family or society that a criminal has developed. Then Samenow goes on to explain how family and society can prevent the development of an antisocial personality and how his methods of rehabilitation are the only methods that work. Seems to me if rehab can be accomplished by society, then prevention can also be accomplished by society. Samenow has trouble not contradicting himself. As this book is but a poor restatement of his earlier book, skip this one and buy Inside the Criminal Mind. |
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| Violent Attachments - J. Reid Meloy | |
| The Violence of Our Lives - Tony Parker | |
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Without
Conscience - Robert D. Hare A very, easy-to-read book by Dr. Hare who is considered the present day authority on the subject of psychopaths. A good, solid explanation but I still prefer Cleckley and Meloy. |
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