This book has been perhaps the most keenly anticipated in the field for many years. New information was promised and radical claims made many months in advance. Sadly the book does not live up to the hype. What new information there is is limited and peripheral. Of more concern is the fact that previously existing information is often ignored and/or misrepresented in the service of a very narrow agenda. Ms Rubenhold’s central preoccupation is the assertion that at least three of the five canonical victims were not prostitutes and that only the misogyny of contemporary police officers and subsequent researchers have allowed this reading to flourish. The theme is repeated so insistently that one suspects that the conclusion was predetermined and the ‘evidence’ conjured to support it. The difficulty with her assertion however is that it is supportable only by doctoring and misquoting some contemporary sources and omitting others entirely. Do not be misled on the point; not only is there ample evidence that all of these women were casual prostitutes but this information is very compelling.
I understand that in writing the book Ms Rubenhold was attempting to restore these women to personhood; but to deny the very social evil which made them vulnerable in the first place is to deny the awful truth of their existence. Their status as casual prostitutes was not voluntary and they are no less virtuous, no less deserving of our respect and compassion for having been so.
On the plus side the book is beautifully written and provides a rich context in which to place these events. If I have one further criticism it is that compelling and sometimes detailed narratives are occasionally woven from very sparse materiel which permits of many interpretations (the least plausible of which is often Ms Rubenhold’s). It is fair to say that the author ‘reconstructs’ events and motivations which she cannot and does not know based on a selective reading of very terse documents. At these times the book descends into pure fiction.
The book has heart and would be a joy to read but for the ideological posturing. For the casual reader it will be an immersive and sometimes moving read but for those acquainted with the facts it will come across as wrongheaded and manipulative.
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Customer reviews
A powerful book, that blends true crime and one that’s rich in historical detail
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 April 2019
I have read many true crime books over the years, and they have always focused on infamous killers with little thought given to the victims. I’m sure you can all think of a list of infamous killers, but can you remember any of the victims’ names or their life stories? Probably not I know I can’t, which is desperately sad. This book provides the reader with an incredible insight into the five victims of Jack The Ripper, Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine and Mary-Jane. Yes, they were victims of the most atrocious crimes, but Helen Rubenhold’s The Five finally gives these women a voice. Beautifully written the author brings 1888 London to life, but more importantly she brings to life the five women, giving them back their dignity, which for almost 150 years they have been cruelly denied.As a reader of true crime I have read many books on Jack The Ripper and many of them describe the five victims as prostitutes, a fact that obscured the truth about the women’s real life’s, (only one of the five women sold her body for money). Even back in 1888 the victims of Jack The Ripper were blighted by ‘here say’ and speculation, they were shaped and embellished to make the crimes more newsworthy (sound familiar?). As most of the victims had no permanent roof over their heads or a husband to protect them, they were seen to be outcasts and so considered to be corrupt and impure, they faced violence, abuse, lived day to day, hungry, cold and unloved, was it any wonder every single one of the woman had struggled with alcohol addiction.Towards the end of their short life’s circumstances for each woman changed, either through bad choices or misfortune. Perceived to be either “broken women” or “fallen women” It’s at this point they were treated with contempt, and even in death the rumour mill spewed false accusations and showed little sympathy for the Ripper’s victims. None of the women were treated as individual victims in death, but were banded together as victims of “an unfortunate class”, which made me angry and incredibly sad. For the first time ever someone has taken the time to share their stories, they are desperately sad and harrowing but at the same time we see them as wife’s, daughters, and mothers, who faced adversary, and poverty, where every day was a struggle for survival, sometimes wrong choices were made, but then the choices these women had were very limited by circumstances.Helen Rubenhold’s descriptions of a London in 1888 are vividly described, the sounds, the smells, the doss houses, overcrowded slums, the pubs, transport you back to an age where poverty, malnutrition and disease were rife. It’s obvious the author has extensively researched her subject. Although some parts are speculative, she has incorporated as much factual detail where ever possible. I should mention, if you’re expecting gruesome details of the murders of these five women, or another theory to the ripper’s identity then this book won’t be for you. If you are looking for a powerful book, that blends true crime and one that’s rich in historical detail, that gives a voice to #FiveWoman, Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine and Mary-Jane, then The Five is definitely a book I would recommend.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 April 2019
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