Scan barcode
A review by henrymarlene
Double Lives by Kate McCaffrey
4.0
This book. I’ve not read anything like it before. The whole idea of a double life in this book was applied in several ways, and I think that was a pivotal element in this book by Kate McCaffrey. Amy Rhinehart wants to be the next big thing in radio. Upon her return to Western Australia, she pitches an idea for a podcast on the murder of a transgender woman, Casey Williams, by Jonah Scott, currently serving life in prison after admitting guilt immediately to the crime. Amy thinks there’s more to the case and uses this for her climb to the top. At the same time, the story exposes a world of gender and identity, drugs, a religious cult and Amy’s own double life experience.
The majority of the book is the narration of the episodes of the podcast created by Amy and her assistant, Sarah. We have the story of the crime that was committed, the back stories of Jonah and Casey, and women intent we see Amy’s life story emerge, from why she returned to Western Australia and her own personal relationship that inspired her interest in this case (you’ll need to read the book to find out what it is). As the podcast is researched by Amy and Sarah, their questions become the reader’s questions: why confess to a crime so easily? Are there other elements we don’t understand about Jonah? Was something else influencing what had happened? Who was Casey and how did she come to be who she was? What was it about both Jonah’s and Casey’s identifies that were skewed in their portrayal by the press, by those that knew them ,and the podcast itself? Were the social stereotypes about Casey and Jonah based on bias and ignorance? What is the power of a podcast over books?
A relatively short book, but it captured a lot of detail and things to think about.
Thank you to Echo Publishing for my gifted copy
The majority of the book is the narration of the episodes of the podcast created by Amy and her assistant, Sarah. We have the story of the crime that was committed, the back stories of Jonah and Casey, and women intent we see Amy’s life story emerge, from why she returned to Western Australia and her own personal relationship that inspired her interest in this case (you’ll need to read the book to find out what it is). As the podcast is researched by Amy and Sarah, their questions become the reader’s questions: why confess to a crime so easily? Are there other elements we don’t understand about Jonah? Was something else influencing what had happened? Who was Casey and how did she come to be who she was? What was it about both Jonah’s and Casey’s identifies that were skewed in their portrayal by the press, by those that knew them ,and the podcast itself? Were the social stereotypes about Casey and Jonah based on bias and ignorance? What is the power of a podcast over books?
A relatively short book, but it captured a lot of detail and things to think about.
Thank you to Echo Publishing for my gifted copy