KINGSTON — Author Jan Brogan will discuss her newly published book, The Combat Zone: Murder, Race, and Boston’s Struggle for Justice, on Wednesday, Oct. 12, at 6:30 p.m. at the Adams Center.
The book has been shortlisted for a 2022 Anthony Award, and a 2021 Agatha Award.
Brogan’s book is the true account of a brutal murder in 1976, two flawed trials, and the not-so-delicate balance between justice and revenge. It tells the story of an annual Harvard ritual that sent 40 football players into Boston’s crime-plagued red-light district for a “last drink, together,” and the death of a 21-year old cornerback who tries to save a friend. Three Black men are charged with first-degree murder in a racially divided city at the peak of busing violence.
The book tells the story of a victim’s family trying to cope with a devastating loss, while verdicts seesaw, and the Italian mob offers to step in.
The murder and city’s two trials forever changed the way that juries are chosen in Massachusetts and the nation, ending the once common practice of excluding jurors based on their color of their skin.
The Combat Zone shows how a murder trial isn’t always about the victim or the accused, but about a city in turmoil and a criminal justice system in need of reform.
Brogan has been a journalist for more than 30 years, working as a correspondent for the Boston Globe, a staff writer for the Worcester Telegram, and the Providence Journal, where she won the Gerald Loeb award for distinguished business writing. In addition to being the award-winning author of four mysteries,
Transactional Pictures purchased the rights to A Confidential Source, which is currently under development for a TV series. Brogan continues to work as a novelist and journalist while teaching writing at the Boston University Summer Journalism Institute.
Following Brogan’s talk, she will be on hand to answer questions about her novel. Copies of The Combat Zone will be available for purchase after the discussion.
To register for this free event, please visit http://kingstonpubliclibrary.org.
For more information, you can contact Steven Miller, Reference Librarian at (781) 585-0517 x6272 or at smiller@kingstonma.gov.