Compulsion: A Novel by Meyer Levin

Fig Tree Books, 2015 (Originally Simon & Schuster, 1956)

ISBN-13: 978-1941493021

Available: Pre-order paperback (April, 2015)

There is a fine line between horror fiction and the fictionalized true crime novel.

Meyer Levin’s Compulsion is considered the founding classic of the genre of the fictionalized true crime novel, popularized by Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood. The events contained in Compulsion are based on a real case, thinly veiled into novel form, with names changed to protect the not-so-innocent. The source of the horror is in the minds of the two successful college students who murder a child, simply as an intellectual exercise.

This new reprint of the 1956 novel shows its age from time to time. It is based on the case of Leopold and Loeb, which took place in 1924 Chicago, and was considered the crime of the century at the time. Levin was a contemporary of the accused, and based this novel on his experience of following the real case.

Some of the most interesting aspects of the novel involve the Chicago Jewish community’s reaction to the crime. The community demanded justice, but there was a lot of fear of anti-Semitic backlash. I suspect that is why a new publisher of Jewish fiction, Fig Tree, has chosen this as its first release.

As a novel, this work feels like the works of Grisham and Turow– most of it is courtroom thriller. Although I felt that the book was drawn out longer than it needed to be, it is a compelling account, and I can see why it is considered a classic.

Libraries, especially in communities with large Jewish populations, will find this book essential. I am interested to see what this publisher does next. Highly recommended.

Reviewed by David Agranoff