Everyone knows the deal with assigned readings in college. While some students choose to actually read them and some students choose to skim them, others choose to pretend that these assignments do not exist altogether. Almost Midnight, a book by sociology/anthropology professor Michael Cuneo, is one assigned reading that surpasses these three individual learning methodologies.
The book is centered on the true story of Darrell Mease and the triple-homicide murder for which he was convicted in the late 1980s.
Cuneo, as a sociologist, writes Mease's story as an involved participant, not as a distant, apathetic individual randomly assigned to this particular topic. Cuneo collected information for the piece by traveling to the location where the murder was committed and forming relationships with virtually everyone involved in the lives of Mease and those he murdered (Lloyd Lawrence and his family).
His "scrupulous and unwavering attention to detail" is an ideal he has infused into both his novel and his classroom, and he holds his students to this same standard.
This book deviates from typical crime fiction in its narrative nature, and that is what ultimately drew me into the story. While Cuneo's writing style is straightforward, it is simultaneously deeply compelling; he makes Mease's situation read like a child's fairytale.
An especially interesting component of Almost Midnight is Cuneo's ability not only to articulately explain Mease's predicament, but that he successfully gives his readers an understanding of crime sociologically. He does not seek to excuse or justify Mease's actions; instead he strives to get his readers to understand how structures of society influence human behavior. I found it particularly interesting how Cuneo correlates the influence of Missouri Ozark culture, vigilante justice, xenophobia and even cockfighting on Mease's and Lawrence's adult lives.
Professional critics also acclaimed this "American story of murder and redemption," citing it as "a fascinating and often chilling read (MSNBC)," "crisp informative and evocative, compelling, vibrant and rich with winning details (Washington Post)," and "skillful and vivid (Publisher's Weekly)." Cuneo is also the author of American Exorcism and The Smoke of Satan and continues to conduct research in his travels between Toronto, Canada and Fordham University.
2008 Woodie Awards
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