If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer, Prologue by Pablo F. Fenjves, Afterword by Dominick Dunne, Beaufort Books, New York, 202 pages.
I chose to read this book because my brother had previously read it and said it was funny. This book seemed interesting to me because there was so much controversy about its release and the content within it.
The book starts out as the Goldman family stating why they released this book and why they still try and fight for all the money they believe they deserve as compensation and their side of the story for the death of their son Ron Goldman who is believed to be murdered my O.J Simpson although he was acquitted of the charges. After the Goldman’s family’s commentary the book goes into the first chapter of the original If I did It which is mostly about his personal life. The first chapter opens up by Simpson stating how he will explain what really happened the night of the murder and a story nobody has ever heard. Most of the book Simpsontalks about his personal life throughout their 15 year relationship. He describes how his relationship was never perfect and there were several very heated arguments in the household which resulted in police getting involved. He talks about how great of a mother she was most of the time and how great their relationship was when they were not fighting. Simpson has a chapter all about the night of Nicole and Rons death which basically admits to murdering them but claims he doesn’t remember doing it. The final chapter is written by Dominick Dunne who originally covered the case in the popular magazine Vanity Fair.
O.J, who narrates most of the book, has a writing style that seems more as if it is a journal or diary rather than a book. His grammar and language is awful and isn’t like a typical book.
There isn’t a specific theme in the book. The book is just about Simpson trying to cover himself for all he has done and portray himself as a decent person
I would give this book a B. If I did It is a very entertaining book to read. Although ment to be written as a serious book it comes across as funny with the way that Simpson describes things and his colorful use of language throughout the book.
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I really like the authors writhing style. It is like a biography but it explains an interesting murder. The only concern I would have with this book is when its talking about his life. I feel that I would get bored and sidetracked easily. I would only want to know how the everything went down and thats it. So really I'm to lazy to read it I would rather just know the facts.
ReplyDeleteI also read this book. I found some humor in the ways the author described the characters. This book also had some serious points with the murders. I too would recomend this book to anyone. I agree with Alex about the author's writing style, it has many detials. Blue Disley
ReplyDeleteAt first glance I would be interested in reading If I Did It because I always joke about the OJ murders, but in reality it is not that funny. I see this book as a last desperation by OJ to make some money to pay back the victim's families. Your rating of the book makes me want to read the book. The author's writing style seems very detailed.
ReplyDeleteThis definitely sounds interesting. I was thinking about reading it. I got a little lost reading some of what you wrote because you weren't using names all the time, and I haven't read the book. I have to disagree with you about the writing style. I think it's a good idea for Simpson's part of the novel to be like a journal, since it's his recollection of what happened and what his life is like. I do agree that there isn't any need for grammar mistakes and "colorful language." I think if you used a quote to show how the mistakes and language make it tedious to read, then I'd have a more clear opinion on if it's a book I truly want to read, or if it's a waste of my time.
ReplyDeleteWhen i first saw the book i laughed because i had no idea OJ would be even close to writing a book. You describe the story well but this book is nowhere good enough for me to read and i can not take OJ seriously anymore. Dan you are persuasive, however i am going to judge this book by its cover and pass.
ReplyDelete-Garrett Biela
It seems like I would enjoy reading this book. A lot of my friends read this book and if they all like it then I know I would. I had no idea OJ has written a book. I don't take oj as a joke one bit like some imature people do because that's a searious matter and like we all know if the glove don't fit.... dan great job very descriptive
ReplyDeletewell after your description of the book, i may have to read it to see how bad his grammer really is, and also get some inside details on his side of the story. it does seem pretty interesting and controversial
ReplyDeleteI would love to read this book and your grade of the books makes me want to read it even more. I really like reading books that tell actuall events. Plus i am a big O.J fan (just because he played at USC). I also agree with chico that O.J is just trying to make money bacuse everything has been going south for him. However this is a book i would most likely end up reading.
ReplyDeleteErnesto Ayala