ROGUES

In these days of disposable tweets, fake news, and celebrity insta-pundits, there is still a place for long-form journalism, as this sharp collection of essays from award-winning writer Keefe shows.

Keefe, a Kirkus Prize finalist for Say Nothing, is one of our most diligent investigators and skilled journalists. In this gathering of his New Yorker articles, the author covers subjects ranging from the counterfeit wine business to Swiss banking to the illegal arms trade. Each piece revolves around a particular person, often a nefarious character—e.g., El Chapo, Dutch gangster Wim Holleeder, and Amy Bishop, a university academic who, after being denied tenure, shot and killed several colleagues. Elsewhere, Keefe profiles a lawyer who specializes in defending serial killers and mass murderers, and Mark Burnett, who created junky but addictive TV shows like Survivor and The Apprentice. In some cases, the author interviewed his subjects; in others, he had to piece the story together from the opinions of other people and public records, a challenge Keefe seems to enjoy. He is aware that examining the background of a criminal can make them seem unduly sympathetic, even like victims themselves. He does his best to stay on the right side of the line, noting that El Chapo, while slightly comical in his liking for Viagra and gourmet food, was responsible for countless murders. Keefe effectively shows how we can seek to understand why people commit evil acts without absolving them. Some of these articles are more successful than others in finding the core of their subject. For example, Keefe clearly respects celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, and he colorfully chronicles his explorations of Hanoi’s hawker stalls. So the fact that Bourdain committed suicide in 2018, mentioned only in a coda, comes as a shock. Nevertheless, there is plenty to like in this book, and as always, Keefe writes with flair, color, and care.

Thought-provoking examinations of human motivation, choices, follies, and morality.