Books on Criminology

A crime is an act that violates the basic values and beliefs of society. Those values and beliefs are manifested as laws that society agrees upon. Criminology is the study of the nature, causes, extent and control of criminal behavior in society. The term "criminology" was coined in 1885 by Italian law professor Raffaele Garofalo as criminologia. In the mid-18th century, criminology arose as social philosophers gave thought to crime and concepts of law. Over time, several schools of thought have developed namely Classical, Positivst, Italian and many more. Theoretical perspectives used in criminology include psychoanalysis, functionalism, interactionism, Marxism, econometrics, systems theory, postmodernism, etc. Areas of study in Criminology include Criminal Behavior, Domestic Violence, Crime Prevention, Juvenile Delinquency and many more. Comparative criminology is the study of the social phenomenon of crime across cultures, to identify differences and similarities in crime patterns. Some good books on Criminology include The Oxford Handbook of Criminology. It is the most comprehensive and authoritative single volume text on the subject.

Books on Crime

Books/novels that deal with crimes, their detection, criminals and their motives are classified as Crime Books. Fiction and non fiction based on the lives of infamous criminals provide an insight into the lives of the notorious. Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories is one of the most famous of crime novels. When Arthur killed off Holmes in The Final Problem, the public outcry was so great, that he was reluctantly forced to resurrect him.

Adaptations of crime fiction into films have been hugely successful. Crime fiction and the motion picture industry have complemented each other well over the years. Several real life instances and their tryst with fate, makes an interesting read for a book lover. A few noted books are

* Murder Trials
* Do or Die
* The Best American Crime Reporting