They All Love Jack: Busting the Ripper

Publisher Marketing: In a literary high-wire act reminiscent of both Hunter S. Thompson and Errol Morris, Bruce Robinson offers a radical reinterpretation of Jack the Ripper, contending that he was not the madman of common legend, but the vile manifestation of the Victorian Age's moral bankruptcy. In exploring the case of Jack the Ripper, Robison goes beyond the who that has obsessed countless others and focuses on the why. He asserts that any "gentlemen" that walked above the fetid gutters of London, the nineteenth century's most depraved city, often harbored proclivities both violent and taboo-yearnings that went entirely unpunished, especially if he also bore royal connections. The story of Jack the Ripper hinges on accounts that were printed and distributed throughout history by the same murderous miscreants who frequented the East End of her Majesty's London, wiping the fetid muck from their boots when they once again reached the marble floors of society's finest homes. Supported by primary sources, this breathtaking work of cultural history dismisses the theories of previous "Ripperologists." As Robinson persuasively makes clear with his unique brilliance, the Ripper was far from a poor resident of Whitechapel ... he was a way of life. Contributor Bio:  Robinson, Bruce Bruce Robinson is a director, screenwriter, novelist, and actor, most famous for writing and directing the British cult classic "Withnail & I." Robinson was nominated for an Academy Award and won a BAFTA Award for his screenplay for "The Killing Fields "and directed an acclaimed adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson s "The Rum Diary", starring Johnny Depp and Aaron Eckhart. Robinson is also the author of a novel, a collection of interviews, and two children s books. He lives in London.