Dirty John and Other True Stories of Outlaws and Outsiders

For the category Linked to a Podcast of the 2022 NONFICTION READER CHALLENGE, I chose Dirty John and Other True Stories of Outlaws and Outsiders, by Christopher Goffard, 2018.

This was a difficult category for me because I don’t listen to podcasts much, and the two I’ve listened to aren’t linked to books. I chose this one because I saw the Netflix film, about a charismatic con man who over time terrorizes the woman he marries, and thought I’d get more insight into the motives and style of sociopaths who persuade other people into believing them. But this book didn’t do that.

There are 15 chapters, each focused on a different person or person’s story. But many of them didn’t seem to be either an outlaw or an outsider (other than the fact that everyone is an outsider somewhere). In fact, throughout the book, I kept wondering what the stories had in common so that they were chosen for the same book.

The blurb on the back includes: “… these pieces show people at their most brave, vulnerable, and flawed, and are a must-read for fans of both true-crime and first-rate narrative nonfiction.” But I disagree with each of the claims in that statement.  Most people are at times brave, vulnerable, and flawed. Many of the stories did not involve any kind of crime, and the narrative seemed very simplistic.

The Dirty John chapter was the only story that involved someone who was truly an outlaw and outsider, but there was not much insight about why or how, and the information seemed rather shallow – just listing facts and events. Perhaps this is because Goffard is a Staff Writer for the Los Angeles Times and writes in the style of journalism.

In describing the first date John has with his ‘victim,’ Goffard writes: “John was different. He showed keen interest in the details of her life and business. He didn’t want to talk just about himself, even though his stories were riveting. He told her all about being an anesthesiologist in Iraq, where he’d just spent a year with Doctors Without Borders. He said he had a couple of kids. That he owned houses in Newport Beach and Palm Springs. That he happened to worship at her church, Mariners. That he would love to meet her grandkids.” Overall, I found this writing style to be rather monotonous.

This book could be of interest to readers who want a collection of short descriptions of people who had experienced some kind of difficulty and overcame it, written in a simplistic, non-challenging style.