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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A fascinating text for both the academic and the lay reader., 23 April 2001
I loved this book! The content might look a little 'dry' to the uninitiated, but the book more than proves itself with a collection of interesting and stimulating studies. Because each chapter boasts a different author, there is a pleasing range of literary styles and a different methodology to each study. As the title suggests, the subject focus is theft, but many other interesting aspects of crime are investigated, extending to arson, fraud and armed robbery. It is fascinating to see profiles unfold with the research, and often surprising - such as the extent and manner in which the theft victim's house is desecrated being related to specific burgulary 'types'. As each profile emerges it becomes evident how prevention of crime could be possible in the future. It is made even more interesting by the inclusion of case studies and interviews with both the criminals and victims, which relates the data to the real world and the impact of these crimes on society. I particularly liked the presentation of the studies: each one is clearly formatted and broken down into concise sections with understandable statistics and results. For number crunchers, it could be said that there is a dearth of hard-core statistical detail but, in my opinion, this does not detract from the overall excellence of the book. It was also frustrating that in an effort to keep the chapters concise sometimes an interesting point was mentioned but not pursued, even when it appeared highly relevant. Having said this, every section is individually referenced, which is ideal for students using it as a reference text, as it saves time trawling through the back of the book to locate the appropriate reference. Another practical feature is the cross-referencing between chapters, which again makes the material much more accessible. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and would strongly recommend it to anyone with an interest in criminal profiling, because it excellently bridges the gap between academic text and enjoyable reading material.
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by D. Kim Rossmo
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