Dial M

At 9:00 on the morning of March 6, 1963, in the quiet St. Paul neighborhood of Highland Park, Mrs. Fritz Pearson glanced out her window and saw something almost unimaginable: slumped on the front steps of the home across the street was a woman, partially clothed in a blue bathrobe and bloodied beyond recognition. The woman, Mrs. Pearson would come to learn, was her beloved neighbor Carol Thompson, wife and mother of four.<br /><br />Earlier that morning, T. Eugene Thompson, known to friends as &quot;Cotton,&quot; dropped his son off at school and headed to the office, where he worked as a criminal attorney. At 8:25 am, he phoned home, later telling police that he did so to confirm evening plans with Carol. Mr. Thompson lied.<br /><br />Through police records, court transcripts, family papers, and extensive interviews, William Swanson has re-created Middle America&#39;s &quot;crime of the century,&quot; the deadly plot by a husband that made headlines around the world. But Dial M: The Murder of Carol Thompson also tracks the lives of the Thompsons&#39; children. Their journey from disbelief to acceptance culminates in a private family trial where they decide whether their father truly was responsible for the violent act that crushed their childhood and forever altered their views of the world.<br /><br />&quot;Engrossing, emotionally compelling. . . . An unlikely tale of resilience and redemption, told in a sensitive, straightforward fashion.&quot;&mdash;Entertainment Weekly (graded &quot;A&quot;)<br /><br />&quot;I have never read a book that dealt so expertly and dramatically with the private lives of those who survive incomprehensible tragedy. I highly recommend it.&quot;&mdash;Ann Rule, author of Green River, Running Red