‘Four shotgun blasts that, all told, ended six human lives.’ A grisly multiple murder in Kansas in 1959 inspired one of the major books of American twentieth century literature, and one of the first novels in the true crime genre; making its author famous, selling millions of copies, translated into thirty languages, and spawning several Hollywood films. However, buried under the hype lies controversy about the author's bias, changing facts to suit his purpose and misquoting local residents, romanticising the killers and giving them much more attention than the victims.
