DOOMED

A narrative nonfiction account of a 1920s trial that gained international attention.

On April 15, 1920, in South Braintree, Massachusetts, the paymaster for a shoe factory and the security guard accompanying him were shot dead in the street. The money they were carrying—the wages of 400 employees—was stolen. Witnesses disagreed on the particulars, but about two weeks later, on a flimsy, speculative pretext, police arrested Italian immigrants Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti for robbery. They were later charged with murder. The two men had nothing to do with the crime but were in fact anti-capitalist anarchists, part of a growing post–World War I movement to secure workers’ rights and improve the lives of the poor. The government had begun a harsh campaign against these so-called radicals, and Sacco and Vanzetti fit right into the established narrative. The judge at the trial was known for hating anarchists. Not only were the men found guilty, but, despite international protests, the recanting of several witnesses, and a confession from another inmate, they were executed. Florio and Shapiro document the story well, including historic photographs and letters the defendants wrote. They put events into historical context up until the moment of execution but fail to show what, if anything, changed as a result of the deaths of innocent men, making the story feel incomplete.

A vivid account that will leave readers feeling there should have been lessons learned.