Whack Job: A History of Axe Murder

“The axe is a tool of construction and progress, an instrument of growth easily turned into a method of death.” While this book has an interesting topic, it didn’t end up being exactly what I was expecting from the title. When you think of axe murder, you think of serial killers and crimes of passion that involve an axe, like Lizzie Borden. But this goes over more than this, it covers things like political beheadings, ritualistic murders in ancient times, and the use of axes in war. This goes over the history of the axe itself, how it has changed over the centuries, how it has been used, and how it has become a murder weapon. This covers ritualistic murders, war usage, political executions, and of course, the more modern axe murders, which is most likely the main thing people think of when they think of axe murder. I really enjoyed learning about the archeological digs that hint at ritual murders, the history of Ancient Egyptian’s use of the axe in warfare, and the section about the Chinese queen Fu Hao. I am fascinated by ancient history so these really captured my attention. Then it leads into more modern uses of the axe from Henry VIII’s mass executions, the Lizzie Borden case, the Taliesin murders, and recent murders cases like Candy Montgomery. Of all the cases in this section were new to me except Lizzie Borden and Henry VIII. I liked how the author discussed less known cases of axe murder, and that they were not all serial killers. I ended up learning a lot about axes and the different types of murders they have been used for throughout history. I will admit, this is my second time reading this book and I struggled with this the first time around because of this not meeting my expectations from the title/blurb. Also, this was shortly after I had a house fire so my headspace wasn’t great, so I think I was a bit too critical of this book. I also chose to do the audiobook this time and I think that helped a lot because I remember struggling some with the author's writing style originally, but I didn’t notice it at all this time. Basically, I actually enjoyed this book this time around and am glad I gave it a second chance. If you are interested in true crimes, this book is probably for you. TW: Discussions of murder; violence; gore; racism; slavery; pedophilia; graphic child death; homomisa and conversion therapy;