The Man who hunted the Ripper, Edmind Reid: Victorian Detective.

[DVV]

This book is really a must, providing a unique insight into the murders. Everybody here should have read it.

[Tom_Wescott]

Hi Kent. Bump it to the top of your list. And don't forget your sub to the Casebook Examiner. It's crazy cheap.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[TomTomKent]

Ah, the review in the Examiner has bumped this book up my must-read pile. Looks like gentically enhanced super soldiers of the fourty third millenium will have to wait a little while longer...

[Celesta]

There was a thread devoted to the collaboration on the Sickert letters, Tom, but it's been awhile. I don't remember if there was any time table mentioned. It would be interesting to see what they came up with.

[Tom_Wescott]

That's very well said, Celesta and you, Monty, and Stewart are quite right. Skinner's place and history in the field is beyond reproach. I'm just curious to what happened to the Cornwell and Diary projects he was attached to but that I haven't heard anything about in years.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Celesta]

Sometimes people don't seem to understand that research takes time, and that, if you're worth your salt, then you're not going to put something out there, with your name on it, until you're damned sure it's as good as you can get it, to the extent that you have any control.

[John Bennett]

Re: the last three posts

Absolutely.

[Monty]

Keith Skinner? What's he done in the last decade? All I've heard about is Diary and Sickert research, none of which has been published.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

Tom,

From what Ive heard about Keith, this by very reliable people, he is a solid pefectionist.

His latest 'assignments' means he is restricted in what he says/releases. This doesnt dimish the fact he is a bloody good researcher. One whose contribution to the field has made a distingushed mark of reliability. His track record needs no defence really.

Nick is made from the same cloth.

Monty

[Stewart P Evans]

Professional

Keith Skinner? What's he done in the last decade? All I've heard about is Diary and Sickert research, none of which has been published.
Yours truly,
Tom Wescott

Keith, too, is a formidable researcher, a professional and, as such, much of this work is what he does for a living. He has been working on the update of the A-Z for a few years now and I am sure that the fruits of his labours will be evident in this new work when The New Jack the Ripper A-Z is published in July. It will be a 'must have' book for Ripper students.

[Tom_Wescott]

I like to think of this book as Nick's 'baby', he put so much work into it I felt proud to be able to help. It stands as a reminder of how good research can result in a very interesting volume. Many thanks to the foregoing posters for their kind remarks. Nick and I appreciate it.

Nick spent hours and hours in dusty archives to obtain the material for his book, as opposed to surfing google on his lunch break. As someone stuck in the states, I'm envious of his proximity to the best archives in the world for our kind of research. It sounds like a blast!

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Tom_Wescott]

Keith Skinner? What's he done in the last decade? All I've heard about is Diary and Sickert research, none of which has been published.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Stewart P Evans]

Nick's 'Baby'

Tom,
I agree.
If I see anything with Nicks name on then I know its going to be a well researched thorough piece.
Keith Skinner has competition.
Monty

I like to think of this book as Nick's 'baby', he put so much work into it I felt proud to be able to help. It stands as a reminder of how good research can result in a very interesting volume. Many thanks to the foregoing posters for their kind remarks. Nick and I appreciate it.

[Monty]

Tom,

I agree.

If I see anything with Nicks name on then I know its going to be a well researched thorough piece.

Keith Skinner has competition.

Monty

[Tom_Wescott]

I have this little book and am glad I read it. I was happy to see that someone took enough interest in Edmund Reid to write about him. He was an interesting fellow and, obviously, his own man. It's a nicely put together little book and I like Reid.

If I remember correctly, Nick Connell was only 22 when he wrote a Reid biography as a solo project, but failed to find any publisher. He was just about to give up when Stewart Evans suggested he contact Sherlockian publisher and book dealer, R. Dixon Smith. Smith agreed to publish the book if the Reid stuff was cut down and more Ripper stuff was added. It was at this point that Evans joined on as co-author and provided the Ripper material that truly makes this book memorable. I do not yet have a copy of the new edition, but Smith did an excellent job with the first. I very much hope we hear more from Connell on the Ripper front in the future.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Jon Guy]

I`ll second that, Monty!! It`s a delightful and quirky read. Recommended.