Seventy Times Seven by Alex Mar

Seventy Times Seven by Alex Mar

A masterful, revelatory work of literary non-fiction about a teenage girl’s shocking crime — and its extraordinary aftermath. 'An absorbing work of social history and a story about the mystery and miracle of forgiveness...it deserves to be read with attention.' Hilary Mantel, Booker Prize–winning author of the Wolf Hall trilogy On a spring afternoon in 1985 in Gary, Indiana, a fifteen-year-old black girl kills a white elderly bible teacher in a violent home invasion. In a city with a history of racial tension the press swoops in. When Paula is sentenced to death, no one decries the impending execution of a tenth grader. But the tide begins to shift when the victim’s grandson Bill forgives the girl, against the wishes of his family, and campaigns to spare her life. This tragedy in a midwestern steel town soon reverberates across the United States and around the world — reaching as far away as the Vatican — as newspapers cover the story on their front pages and millions sign petitions in support of Paula. As Paula waits on death row, her fate sparks a debate that not only animates legal circles but raises vital questions about the value of human life. This story asks us to consider the nature of justice, and what radical acts of empathy we might be capable of.

'Addresses challenges of juvenile punishment with insight. . A probing and moving book.'

* The Wall Street Journal *

'This is a harrowing and thought-provoking portrait of crime and punishment.'

* Publishers Weekly (starred review) *

'Seventy Times Seven is an absorbing work of social history and a story about the mystery and miracle of forgiveness...it deserves to be read with attention.'

-- Hilary Mantel

'A story of crime, punishment and forgiveness, in a literary non-fiction work that reads like a thriller.'

-- Love Reading

Alex Mar is the author of Witches of America, which was a New York Times Notable Book of 2015. Her work has appeared in New York Magazine, Wired, The New York Times Book Review, The Wall Street Journal and the Guardian. She also directed the feature-length documentary American Mystic.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781915798961
ISBN 10	1915798965
Title	Seventy Times Seven
Author	Alex Mar
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Bedford Square Publishers
Year published	2023-11-09
Number of pages	384
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.