Non-Fiction Book Reviews

Book Review: Dangerous Women

By Sandy Amazeen Nov 30, 2008, 22:11 GMT

Criminologists have noted a disturbing trend in the last few decades. Though men are still most often the perpetrators of murder, violent assault, and child molestation, more girls and women are becoming dangerous criminals. The news increasingly includes stories of mothers molesting or killing their children, female teachers having "affairs" with grade school boys, and young girls beating up or molesting other children.Simultaneously fascinated and repelled by these lurid accounts, ...more

Criminologists and laypersons alike cannot help but notice the increasing number of violent crimes committed by females. Most readers will remember the news coverage of tearful mothers shortly after being arrested for murdering their small children, schoolteachers convicted of having sex with their underage students and disturbing videos on YouTube showing middle school aged girls beating up a classmate.

Morris, a clinical and forensic psychologist uses his thirty years of experience to examine the reasons for this growing trend by looking, not only at the sensational cases, but also at those that received little notoriety. Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton, what Morris dubbed the “Triple Xs of Evil” have had a serious negative impact on today’s girls as can be seen in schools across the country. Compelling looks into a series of cases including Aileen Wuornos, Loretta Fontaine, Andrea Yates and Jennifer Lynn Sanchez digs into the factors that tipped these women over the edge. The atrocities against young girls by religious groups like the polygamist sect led by Warren Jeffs are laid out in a surprisingly unbiased manner. From a history of physical or mental abuse in early childhood to a complex cocktail of psychological and cultural issues, Morris sheds light on the many reasons more women are committing violent crime.

Fascinating, well written and thoroughly researched, this is an engrossing wakeup call to educators and parents alike. Morris went beyond writing a simple “scare tactic” book, he examined the often complex history that created murdering women and provides thoughtful insights into how to recognize and prevent potential problem behaviors.