The Autobiography of Jack the Ripper - James Carnac

The Autobiography of Jack the Ripper - James Carnac

Blurb

This memoir was recently discovered and appears to have been written in the 1920s by somone who asserts that he was Jack the Ripper.

This person is James Carnac, this memoir written shortly before his death is an account of his entire life, including a few short months in 1888 when he became the murderer known to posterity as Jack the Ripper.

This book introduces a new suspect for the infamous murders in Whitechapel in 1888. There is information in this book that does not appear to be derived from contemporary newspapers or any other publications and the descriptions of Tottenham in the 1870s, the visits to performances of Jekyll and Hyde, the intricate geography of Whitechapel in 1888 are written with pin-point accuracy. There is also a credible motive given for James becoming the murderer Jack and also a reason for the end of the murders. Given the fact that the author also appear to have knowledge about aspects of the case not in the public arena at the time it could be that this actuallyis the autobiography of Jack the Ripper.

Ultimately it is up to the reader to decide if they believe the mystery has been solved at last but even if they end up deciding the account to be a work of fiction it would still be one of the very earliest imaginings of the Ripper case, written in the early years of the twentieth century, a fascinating piece of period writing and a worthy addition to the Ripper canon.

Whatever side they come down on there is no question that this book will be a source of much debate.

This book can purchased on Amazon by clicking here.

When I started reading this book, I really wanted to believe it. To read a personal account of the thoughts and actions of the Jack the Ripper would be more than amazing. I began reading with an open mind but from the outset there were lots of details that caused me to doubt the authenticity. I won't go into too much detail at risk of spoiling it for prospective readers but there are certain parts to the book that I simply cannot make sense of.

The most mystifying aspect for me is Sydney George Hulme Beaman's introduction. He claims that this book was left to him as prosecutor of James Carnac's will. He claims that he didn't want to publish the book, as requested in the will of James Carnac, but kept it hidden away and removed all of the parts that he considered too gruesome........WHY?!?!?!?! This little snippet of information is driving me crazy. If he genuinely believed that James Carnac was Jack the Ripper, why destroy the most insightful and, dare I say, interesting parts of the manuscript?!? Why not discard of the whole manuscript or simply hide the whole thing away? I understand that times were different and people were probably a little more 'sensitive' to such issues but surely, even then, a respectable author would understand the significance of keeping these sections - especially if he didn't intend to publish it. I don't know how else to express my frustrations over this other than....WHY, WHY WHY???? It is this that first planted the seed of doubt in my mind. I was also a little uncertain as to why you would write a foreword for a book that you never intended to publish...!

I initially thought that the typeface was a little indiscreet - by this I mean that it was deliberately made to look like a typewriter manuscript. I feel like this was an attempt to convince readers of the books credibility and authenticity. I felt like the author/publisher was trying a bit too hard. 

It is also a little suspicious that there are no historical records of the so called James Carnac and I found the authors desire to remain vague and protect the identity of individuals a little bizarre. He is reluctant to name people by their real names and refuses to give details such as the name of the medical school he attended. He tells us that they are unimportant although this couldn't be further from the truth - these are all things that could be used to trace the history of James Carnac and substantiate the text. 

I know that even a genuine autobiography would probably only mention the most significant parts of childhood years but I felt like this one was trying to outline reasons for why Jack the Ripper did what he did. It seemed incredibly fictional,like setting up a story. When reading the book you get the impression that the author is very aware of explaining himself. That said, even if this is a work of fiction, the background and childhood described in the book is incredibly gripping and does a very good job of humanising Jack the Ripper. His motives become almost understandable and logical and there are times when you sympathise with him. Only an incredible writer could create sympathy for the worlds most infamous serial killer. 

The deciding factor for me was the final chapter. I don't want to betray the ending for those who want to read it but I found it all a little bit too coincidental. The last chapter reads exactly like a work of fiction and definitely persuaded me that the book is not an authentic autobiography. I genuinely feel a degree of disappointment at writing this as I really did want to believe that the identity of Jack the Ripper had been revealed. 

Despite this, it was an incredibly good read. It was well written and managed to keep my attention. The vagueness of the murders was disappointing and although it would have been extremely gruesome and possibly disturbing to read these accounts, it is necessary to make the story believable. The narrator explains why he kills the women but never touches on the more explicit and gruesome aspects such as the mutilation of the women. In fact, he never even acknowledges that he did anything more than slit their throats.

Although this seems like a negative review I actually loved this book. It was an amazing work of fiction - exactly the reason I am disappointed. 

8/10

For those of you who want to know more about the authenticity of the book or read an academic review check out Paul Begg (Ripperologist)