The Man from the Train

The Solving of a Century-Old Serial Killer Mystery

By: Bill James, Rachel McCarthy James

Narrated by: John Bedford Lloyd

Length: 17 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

Using unprecedented, dramatically compelling sleuthing techniques, legendary statistician and baseball writer Bill James applies his analytical acumen to crack an unsolved century-old mystery surrounding one of the deadliest serial killers in American history.

Between 1898 and 1912, families across the country were bludgeoned in their sleep with the blunt side of an axe. Jewelry and valuables were left in plain sight, bodies were piled together, faces covered with cloth. Some of these cases, like the infamous Villasca, Iowa, murders, received national attention. But few people believed the crimes were related. And fewer still would realize that all of these families lived within walking distance to a train station.

When celebrated baseball statistician and true-crime expert Bill James first learned about these horrors, he began to investigate others that might fit the same pattern. Applying the same know-how he brings to his legendary baseball analysis, he empirically determined which crimes were committed by the same person. Then, after sifting through thousands of local newspapers, court transcripts, and public records, he and his daughter, Rachel, made an astonishing discovery: They learned the true identity of this monstrous criminal. In turn they uncovered one of the deadliest serial killers in America.

Riveting and immersive, with writing as sharp as the cold side of an axe, The Man from the Train paints a vivid, psychologically perceptive portrait of America at the dawn of the 20th century, when crime was regarded as a local problem and opportunistic private detectives exploited a dysfunctional judicial system. James shows how these cultural factors enabled such an unspeakable series of crimes to occur, and his groundbreaking approach to true crime will convince skeptics, amaze aficionados, and change the way we view criminal history.

©2017 Bill James & Rachel McCarthy James. All rights reserved. (P)2017 Simon & Schuster Audio. All rights reserved.

Historical true-crime investigation at it’s best.

I enjoyed this audio book, I believe more than I would have if I had read it. There is so much information and historical data, that the authors were compelled to give summaries and go back to re-visit previously relayed information. It was helpful and compelling, I walked a lot of miles in a short span of days to find out if the mystery had been solved. I will now read a couple of the books mentioned by the authors, including “A Game Called Salisbury” by Susan Barringer Wells, due to interest in the part that racism played in the hampering of solving the crimes and preventing more killings. (And causing innocent deaths and incarceration.).

Interesting but hard to recommend

I read it based on Karen Kilgarif's recommendation on MFM. I liked it but rolled my eyes more than a few times.

+ It's detailed and thorough and one of the only true crime books that's piqued my interest to finsih.

- The sentences were repetitive enough I checked my phone more than once to see if there was some sort of playback glitch.

- I enjoyed the material but found the overly familiar writing style cringy; like a professor who thinks he can relate to 'the kids'. I didn't get his dated pop culture references or relate to his jokes or personal flair. It is more off-putting than the gruesome murders.

Loved it

So well read and interesting. Loved it and highly recommended. It was not monotonous. Well done .

Very interesting, but a bit dense

I understood and appreciated the authors intent (particularly in his desire to pay homage to those accused of the killers crimes), but the depth he pursues this often caused me to tune out and got in the way of the story.

Simply Captivating

Baseball and true crime are two of my favorite things on this Earth so the fact that I like Bill James is not a surprise. Popular Crime was a fun dive into well known cases, this was an immersion into a world that has mostly been forgotten to history. James is obsessed with this topic. Because of this I have no reason to doubt his conclusion in discovering the single most viscous serial killer in American history. He certainly meanders at times and the final crime, which I won't spoil, might cause some to roll their eyes. However, the level of detail of crimes that are over 100 years old is mind bending. The conclusions drawn are mostly rooted in overwhelming fact with James signature mathematics to drive them home. This was an 18 hour listen which I completed in three days. When I wasn't listening, I was thinking of how I could extricate myself from whatever I was doing faster to listen some more. It's a brilliant work.

meh

content is very interesting, the way it's written makes it hard to enjoy though. narrator did a good job

Amazing Audio book

I love this book!! Love the research and information that was put into this book!

Book is ok, meant to be a very detailed theory

The story itself was ok, but it was a bit difficult keeping up with the sheer amount of interweaving detail. If you allow your mind to wander for even a few seconds, you're going to miss some detail(s) that will cause another detail to not make sense. Overall, an interesting thought experiment on what would be one of the most prolific serial killers since humans began walking the earth! 🔪🌍
A big issue I had with the book was the recording of it... there are several sections that skip portions of the story, as if it were a record that skips after someone bumps into the table holding the record player.
@ 5:55 of Chapter 46 is a good example of this. There were a few skips where I thought I had just misheard, but this one was much more noticeable, so I decided to point this one out. It skips from "the little girl was missing from school on Monday, then Tuesday, then..." all the way to the description of the bodies that are found sometime in the future. I have no way of knowing if I missed 6 seconds or 6 minutes of the story. That was the most frustrating thing about this particular audio book.

Engrossing Story, Though Slightly Too Long

I really enjoyed this book and the thorough research. I especially enjoyed the side chapters telling of the justice system of the time and the craziness in Villisca. I will admit that it got to be a bit repetitive towards the end, but the ending was good, and I enjoyed the book as a whole.

Entertaining true crime stories

This is one of my favorite books. Loved listening to it. I was already interested in the pfanschmidt murders as I live close to that area. Knew of the Morse story but had never heard of the murders being connected. But now think they were. The writing and performance were both excellent.