UPDATES TO THE ZERO
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| The ground-breaking work of Dr. Frank Ascione has made the connection between animal abuse, child abuse, and domestic violence. But neither the US government nor the Canadian government have yet caught up with Dr. Ascione. Click here to read how one human received a 25-percent steeper sentence for distributing marijuana than he did for dogfighting, and click here to read the story of another human, this one a Canadian facing a maximum of six months behind bars for killing a dog with a machete. (Updated 07-02-08) |
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| Click here to see the cover of Another Life. (Updated 06-25-08) |
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Another Life is the end of a journey that began with Flood, Andrew Vachss' first novel featuring career criminal Burke and
his Family of Choice. "I didn't set out to write a series. Who but a
terminal narcissist would?" the author says of his 1985 debut. But
twenty-three years--and seventeen Burke novels--later, Andrew Vachss
is finally bringing down the curtain on a series that has been
described as "urban nightmares" by Publishers Weekly, and
"strong, gritty, gut-bucket stuff" by the Chicago Tribune.
Anyone who has felt a part of the family that includes recurring
series characters Max, the Mole, Michelle, the Prof, Terry,
Clarence, and Mama--characters the Seattle Post-Intelligencer
says "are as sharply defined as if they were etched in steel"--will
want to be there for the end of the journey, as best-selling, award-
winning author Andrew Vachss ties up the loose ends, and sends his
Family of Choice off to ... Another Life. (Updated 06-18-08) |
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| If you're interested in mental health issues, child development, or developmental psychopathology, you'll be interested in this. Dr. Frank Ascione, the world's leading authority on the connections between animal abuse, child abuse, and domestic violence, has edited a handbook containing articles on animal abuse and cruelty, written by more than two dozen leaders in the field. To learn more about The International Handbook of Animal Abuse and Cruelty: Theory, Research, and Application, just published last month by Purdue University Press, click here. [pdf/1.5M] To purchase the book, click here. (Updated 06-18-08) | ||
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| He looks like a bag of rope, but he's a pedigree toy poodle with the heart of a terrier. He's Coco, and he's the latest addition to Dogs of the Zero! Click here to read all about him. (Updated 06-18-08) |
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Flower came from inside Immaculata's body; Michelle had
taken Terry's shivering little body into her arms and never let him
go. That happened in the backseat of my car, as I was driving away
from what I'd left of the pus-sack who'd been renting the kid out.
Come from, come to--no difference. They're both ours.
Our blood. How you look at it doesn't matter to us. Citizens
think a trial verdict depends on the evidence; we know all that
counts is who's on the jury. Some of you get to visit our world, but
none of you really see it. Some of you try too hard, stick your nose
in too deep. Then you don't get to leave. (Updated 06-11-08) |
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| With the news that Terminal, the seventeenth Burke novel, is to be released this December as a trade paperback in the series format, we've received questions about plans for Mask Market, the sixteenth novel in the series. Released last year in mass market paperback, some readers were concerned that they'd be unable to obtain the entire Burke series in a single series format. So we're glad to be able to announce that in 2009, Vintage will release a trade-paperback version of Mask Market. Click here to see the cover. (Updated 06-11-08) |
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| Jim Adams checked in to give us the sad news that his beloved Alex-- one of our beloved Back-Up Pack--passed away recently. Click here if you want to read the news; and click here if you want to see the work Jim is doing on behalf of the North Mecklenburg Animal Rescue. (Updated 06-11-08) |
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| At 135 pounds of sculpted muscle, and with a mechanical brain, we (belatedly) welcome to our pack Ina the Rottweiler! (Updated 06-11-08) |
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| In 2006, Andrew Vachss wrote, "Today's children are creatures of the media. What they see in the movies must be 'what other kids do,' and the predatory pedophile skillfully introduces child pornography ... during the 'grooming phase.' This allows him to gradually lower the child's resistance." In 2008, CNN reports that "[Todd B.] Barkau began training the girl in 2000, when she was 12, and forced her to engage in sex acts with him and with other men. According to the indictment, he also had the girl watch pornography on the Internet as a teaching tool." Click here to read Andrew Vachss' 2006 Parade article, and click here to read "Feds: Girl, 12, trained to work as dominatrix," as published May 13, 2008, by CNN.com. (Updated 06-11-08) |
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| "Only thing that's true is what you do." I live that.
That's how I found the one place I rightfully belong. My heart and my
life. Your life doesn't mean any more to me than I ever meant
to any of you. Trespassers should bring their own body bags. (Updated 06-04-08) |
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| "I can no more accept a child pornographer saying he is a victim of censorship than I could a mugger claiming his field of activity was performance art." That's what Andrew Vachss wrote in 1994, in an opinion piece for the London Observer. Now, in 2008, the Supreme Court has seconded that opinion. In the matter of the U.S. v. Williams, the Supreme Court upheld a provision of the 2003 PROTECT Act, which made it a crime to offer child pornography, even when those images advertised turn out not to be actual child pornography. In upholding the law, Justice Scalia wrote, "Offers to engage in illegal transactions are categorically excluded from First Amendment protection." Read the article, "Supreme Court Upholds Child Pornography Law," as published by The New York Times on May 20, 2008, by clicking here. And learn about Protect's crusade in Congress to win funding to combat the proliferation of child pornography by clicking here. (Updated 06-04-08) |
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| Behavior is the truth--always the truth. So while a non-profit may say in their mission that their goal is to help children, you can only measure the veracity of their words by objectively viewing their behavior. There are a number of such organizations that do not even perform proper background checks on their volunteers, thus allowing predatory pedophiles access to vulnerable children. In their May 27, 2008 report, "No One to Turn to," Save the Children documents allegations that members of the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the United Nations Volunteers, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, and the United Nations World Food Programme, among others, are sexually abusing children in several war-ravaged and food-poor countries, such as Sudan and Haiti. A 15-year-old Haitian girl said, "My friends and I were walking by the National Palace one evening when we encountered a couple of humanitarian men... . They offered us 100 Haitian gourdes and some chocolate if we would suck them." Read the story, as reported May 27, 2008 by CNN, by clicking here, and read Save the Children's report by clicking here. (Updated 06-04-08) |
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| I don't walk the mean streets, I live below them. I'm not an ex-cop with friends on the force; I'm an ex-con who knows the cops for what they are. I'm not a war hero; I'm a man for hire. (Updated 05-28-08) |
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| You know why we hate you? Not because you don’t know what we know, but because, if you did, you wouldn’t give a damn. So I’m sitting here, waiting to commit extortion, and planning a lot worse. I’m what you’d call a criminal. That’s why I’ll never be you. And I’m proud of it. Time Out calls it "a propulsive, cleanly limned thriller." The Associated Press describes it as "taut and street-wise." It's Andrew Vachss' 17th Burke novel, Terminal, and it will be released in trade paperback by Vintage on December 2, 2008. Click here to read about--and read an excerpt from--the story that prompted author Joe R. Lansdale to declare, "[Andrew Vachss'] books never graphically display abuse, never wallow in it, but they always force us to look at the results of that abuse, how it changes, demoralizes, and destroys the innocent. Long may this man write. Long may he protect children." (Updated 05-28-08) |
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| From the May 15, 2008, The New York Times: "New York City has enacted a tough new policy that allows the authorities to remove newborns from their parents' homes ... if the parents previously had children taken from their custody and their case is still open." That may be a tough new policy for New York City, but it's some twenty years old for Andrew Vachss. Click here to read "The Story of Unborn Baby B.", and then click here to read "Child Welfare Tightens Law on Removal," as published in May 2008 in The New York Times. (Updated 05-28-08) |
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| Humans who could flat-line a polygraph wouldn't get past
the first round with me. All it takes is a few minutes of
conversation, and I know you. Not because I have X-ray eyes. Not
because I have powers. Because, whoever you are, I've met you before. (Updated 05-21-08) |
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| "Members of the loose-knit group, which investigators have nicknamed 'the Spanking Club,' harshly beat children--often their own--with paddles, canes or other devices, and then exchanged videos of those spankings through the mail, officials said. The videos also featured close-ups of genitalia and other pornographic elements." This 2002 article is six years old--but Andrew Vachss' novel Down in the Zero warned of this in 1994. Click here for the whole story. (Updated 05-21-08) |
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| Revenge is like any other religion: There's always a lot more preaching than there is practicing. And most of that preaching is about what not to practice. "Vengeance is mine" translates to: "It's not yours." The karma-peddlers will tell you how doing nothing is doing the right thing, reciting, "What goes around comes around," in that heavy-gravity tone reserved for the kind of ancient wisdom you find in comic books. Every TV "counselor," every self-help expert, every latté-slurping guru ... they all chant some version of the same mantra: "Revenge never solves anything." Their favorite psalm is Forgiveness. And their hymn books are always open to the same page. Get it? When you crawl away, you're not being a punk; you're just letting the cosmos handle your business. Whoever hurt you, they'll get theirs, don't worry. Just have a little faith. Down here, we see it different. We don't count on karma. And you can count on this: hurt one of us, we're all coming for you. (Updated 05-14-08) |
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| In 1995, the Thai government would not enforce its child-protection laws. A grass-roots boycott of the country was put in place, under the banner Don't! Buy! Thai!. And now, in 2008, the Thai government is behaving entirely differently. Click here to read the latest update on Thailand. (Updated 05-14-08) |
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| "With the Burke series, Vachss chronicles a world as harsh as any imagined by Jim Thompson and a character more intelligently brutal than those created by Dashiell Hammet, Raymond Chandler and Ross MacDonald . . . put together. If Vachss leaves no other legacy behind him, he has secured his niche in the pantheon of noir novelists. But if that happens, you can bet he'll be very damned pissed-off." Click here to read Chuck Thurman's recently discovered interview with Andrew Vachss, originally published April 16, 1998, by Monterey County Weekly. (Updated 05-07-08) |
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| The stereotype of the child rapist trolling online for eight-year-olds has been debunked, and the face of the real online predator has been revealed. Click here to read the "news," published February 19, 2008, by the American Psychological Association; then click here to read Andrew Vachss' testimony before the United States National Commission on Libraries and Information Science, presented November 10, 1998. (Updated 05-04-08) |
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| Seems like everyone's got something to say about the Olympics in China. We said our piece back in 1999: "The next morning was so bright and crisp it made the badlands look pretty through my window. Until you looked close. Like those magazine photos of Tibet. The ones that don't show the Chinese troops." Choice of Evil, p. 140. (Updated 04-25-08) | ||
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| "Andrew Vachss ... wants to raise the stakes for people who look at child pornography online. He wants mandatory minimum sentences for those convicted of possessing child porn. He wants the government to negotiate treaties with foreign countries to shut down servers that host child-porn sites. He wants child abuse to be part of the debate in this year's presidential race. What Vachss does not want is to hear arguments like the one made by the attorney for former Pfizer executive Alan Hesketh, who ... said at a bond hearing that his client should be released from prison to get help for a 'sexual disorder.'" Read the whole story, as published April 11, 2008, by The Day, by clicking here. (Updated 04-15-08) | ||
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| If you read Andrew Vachss' Only Child, you read about "noir vérité.” And if you read about that, then you weren't surprised to read this. (Updated 04-10-08) | ||
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| Another presidential election is upon us, and we already know where each of the candidates stands on the issues of healthcare, gun control, taxes, and the war in Iraq. For that matter, we know where a bunch of also-ran candidates who already dropped out of the race stand on those issues. But child protection? Literally dozens of debates into the process, and that issue hasn't been raised in any meaningful way. All we know is that every candidate "loves kids," and believes in "the importance of family"—whatever the hell that means. If you really care about child protection, you have an opportunity to force that issue into the national debate. The only reason the candidates are talking about healthcare, gun control, taxes, and the war in Iraq is because each of those issues is important to a group of lobbyists, and those lobbyists are cornering the candidates and delivering their messages—and making it clear that the candidate's response will deliver votes: either to that candidate, or to his opponent. Well, there's a very real child-protection lobby now—has been, since 2001—and the voice of that lobby gets stronger every year. And it will be loud enough to bring the issue to the national agenda. But the sooner you join—the sooner you add your name and money to that lobby—the sooner we'll achieve that goal. Every day we delay is another day that a child who deserves protection is not receiving it. So click here, join Protect, and count yourself among those who could be counted on. (Updated 04-04-08) | ||
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| He's been called everything from the next Charles Dickens, to the king of slasher porn; an investigative novelist, to a writer with a twisted imagination; a queer lover, to a homophobe. But we're pretty sure this is the first time anyone has referred to him as a "self- help guru." (Updated 03-19-08) | ||
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| German visitors take note: This August, Rowohlt will be publishing a translated edition of Andrew Vachss' The Getaway Man. The 224-page trade paperback has been translated by the incomparable Georg Schmidt, a favorite among German readers. Click here for more information. (Updated 03-06-08) | ||
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| "I would never put 'family' in quotes. My family is the one I chose … and the one that chose me. The only DNA Burke cares about is what might be left at a crime scene. Me, too. In my world, you are what you do. If you ever run across one of my brothers or sisters, you'll understand that. Quickly." Read Tony Black's extensive interview with Andrew Vachss, as published originally in four parts on PulpPusher.com. (Updated 02-08-08) | ||
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| Audio feature! "[Burke's] a thief. He hates people who prey on children. Not because he loves children—because he was preyed on. He wants to get even, that's his revenge. And his revenge and his religion are exactly the same thing. He sees it as an 'us and them' world. He's not really concerned if you're rich or poor, black or white—if you prey on children and you cross his path, it's going to be bad for you." Click here to listen to Ed Goldberg's 26-minute interview of Andrew Vachss, broadcast January 1, 2008, on KBOO radio. (Updated 01-31-08) | ||
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| Audio feature! "We're the only species on the planet that not only tolerates predators of our own kind, but fails to protect our young ... [A]ll the things that you see happening that are being blamed on this, that, or the other all trace to the same tiny little group, which is ... the family—the sacred family that no politician talks about except in very globalized terms. Child abuse is the greatest single danger to every American." Click here to listen to a twelve-and-a-half minute interview with Andrew Vachss, produced by Barnes & Noble as part of their Meet the Writers series for 2007.(Note: link will open a new browser window) (Updated 01-25-08) | ||
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| Shelby was the nemesis of the squirrels that dared venture into her yard, and tolerated the cats with an aloof disdain. She passed away earlier this week, and belatedly joins The Zero Pack. Click here to see her memorial written by Mike Black, her best friend for 10 years. (Updated 01-17-08) | ||
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| When Andrew Vachss coined the term "cyber-chumps" in 1997, he warned that "the real danger [of the Web] is to that vast army of mostly (but not exclusively) young people who affect an oh-so-blasé cynicism but are, in fact, the newest breed of volunteer victim… [who believe] if it's up there, it must be true." And ten years later, a child was killed as a result. Read it here. (Updated 01-17-08) | ||
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| On their Web site, the San Francisco Zoo professes to have designed their zoo "with the underlying belief that interaction and activity lead to conservation action." Their goal is a good one; but their strategy is horrible. An "interaction" with the zoo's tiger left one 17-year-old dead and two others severely mauled last week. There's a better way to achieve that goal—click here to read all about it. (Updated 01-09-08) | ||
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| Yeah, sure, plenty of dogs sun themselves. But in the pool? Check out Svach, a Boxer-and-something mix we're proud to add to the Dogs of the Zero! (Updated 01-09-08) | ||
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| "Dakota was an exceptional dog. He loved what he did, and he was very good at what he did." Those are the words of Clark County [WA] sheriff's Deputy Ed Bylsma, praising the police dog who was shot in the head as he tracked an armed suspect who allegedly threatened to "kill a cop." Learn more about this exceptional German shepherd, who served with distinction, by clicking here. (Updated 12-12-07) | ||
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| The prosecutor's office in Washington state's King County has two employees who are making big headlines for their work with children. Click here to read about the dogs Ellie and Jeeter—then go read about Sheba and about Vachss, two hero dogs who preceded Ellie and Jeeter in this important work. (Updated 12-12-07) | ||
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| "I like the idea of writers actually supporting each other for a change instead of kissing each other's behinds for blurbs or stabbing other people in the back." That's Andrew Vachss, speaking about fellow author Michael A. Black. Click here to read more about the pair in Dan Pearson's article, published October 10, 2007, by the Pioneer Press Group. (Updated 11-29-07) | ||
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| Following on the success of the large-print edition of Mask Market, Thorndike Press will release a large-print edition of Terminal on December 5, 2007. It's a great gift for anyone in your life who loves reading crime fiction, but has limited choices due to limited vision. It's also a great opportunity to help people with visual impairment connect with Andrew Vachss' novels: Ask your local library to order a copy. They're a public institution, and they're supposed to react to public demand. So make your demands heard! (Updated 11-29-07) | ||
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| The ordering window for the Mole's Junkyard T-shirt is closed! T-shirts will ship out December 3, for arrival before December 25. Did you miss out? If you want to ensure you don't miss the next shirt, sign up for the Zero email list by clicking here. (Updated 11-27-07) | ||
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| If you missed Dave Marsh's two-hour show with Andrew Vachss, you missed a tremendous event. But, thanks to the folks at Sirius Satellite Radio, you didn't miss out forever. The interview portion of the show is available for free download on this site. Dave Marsh—the renowned music critic, cofounder of Creem magazine, columnist for Rolling Stone, and author of biographies of Bruce Springsteen, The Who, Bob Dylan, and Elvis Presley—interviewed Andrew Vachss for almost an hour, for broadcast on his Sirius Satellite Radio show, Kick Out the Jams. It's a great interview, and a great introduction to Mr. Marsh's unique radio program. Click here to listen to this tremendous show! (Updated 11-21-07) | ||
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| Michael O'Sullivan, chairman and CEO of the Humane Society of Canada, is an internationally respected figure on the matter of dogfighting. While the Michael Vick case is old news, dogfighting is an ongoing issue. Mr. O'Sullivan was kind enough to allow The Zero to feature his writing on the matter. If you care about dogs, click here to read his call to action. (Updated 10-31-07) | ||
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| Three dogs, one mission: to annihilate chipmunks. Meet Sophie, Maverick, and Ilsa Sabrina, the latest members of the Dogs of the Zero! (Updated 10-24-07) | ||
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| "Reading an Andrew Vachss thriller is like a surprise slap in the face: It stings, the ache lingers, and it definitely wakes you up. The pleasure comes from a renewed clarity when you realize just how polished a writer Vachss has become. His prose has teeth; his dialogue has bite. Together they bury themselves deep inside your brain. ...Whether skittish publishers will allow new voices to be as dark as Vachss's is something that only time will tell. For now, Vachss stands alone as a unique voice in a troubled, battle-scarred landscape." That's what Grant McKenzie wrote in his review of the 16th Burke novel, Mask Market, for the Vancouver Sun. That book has just been released in a $7.99 paperback format, so, if you haven't already been "slapped in the face," now's your chance to do so at a very low price. (Updated 10-17-07) | ||
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| Last night's tour event in New York City was not cancelled! Unfortunately the management at Barnes & Noble had incorrect information and turned away several fans before they could be corrected. For what it's worth, click here to read Barnes & Noble's apology for their "mistake." (Updated 10-12-07) | ||
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| "Those who have read Vachss's previous Burke novels will find [Terminal] a more-than-worthy successor, and for those who haven't yet made the acquaintance of this unrelenting, frightening and compelling character, there's no better time to start." Click here to read Chet Williamson's entire review on Rambles.net—and click here to read more information on Andrew Vachss' latest novel, including tour information and an exclusive excerpt! (Updated 10-10-07) | ||
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| Want to hear David Joe Wirth's dramatic adaptation of the latest Burke novel, Terminal? Here's a way to do it that won't cost you any money: Borrow it from your local public library. If they don't have it in stock, ask them to bring it in—many libraries are happy to do just that. And if your library isn't happy to do that, ask them how they choose the audiobooks they bring in. It should be by public demand—it is a public library, after all, and your taxes pay for it. So find out how many requests they need to get the audiobook in—and then get your friends to request it, as well. If they still won't bring it in … the local library board holds public meetings, at which you can bring up any questions you might have about how they choose what books to stock. (Updated 10-10-07) | ||
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| If you're planning on going to one of Andrew Vachss' tour events, please be aware that the policy still stands: He will only sign his most recent hardcover and audiobook, Terminal, or his most recent paperback, Mask Market. Some may have interpreted otherwise from the Chicago Tribune's listing for the October 12 event. No one should even think about claiming they "drove all the way there" in the expectation of getting their eBay stock signed; it won't happen. Also, the $5-per-book fee that is being charged on books not purchased at the October 12 event is the policy of the store, not Andrew Vachss. (Updated 10-06-07) | ||
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| What kind of dogs live in Zanzibar, Africa? More importantly, what kind of dogs earn the right to protect the family of The Zero's own design guru Olaf Havnes? Click here to find out! (Updated 10-05-07) | ||
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| Bruce DeSilva, of the Associated Press, calls Andrew Vachss' writing in Terminal "as taut and street-wise as ever, drawing his readers again into an evil underworld that is at once impossible to look away from and horrible to behold." Click here to learn more about the latest Burke novel, in stores now! (Updated 10-03-07) | ||
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| Terminal goes on sale today! In his review of Terminal published in Time Out Chicago, Mike Newirth writes, "[Andrew] Vachss portrays the criminal underworld with a grimy, exacting realism matched only by 'convict writers' like Edward Bunker, and the writing is more incisive and less pulpy than earlier efforts. Although the action seems relatively restrained, Burke's verbal fury ensures a propulsive, cleanly limned thriller that illuminates both the darkest excesses of criminality and, in counterpoint, the slack-jawed solipsism of the law abiding. Vachss's literary chops continue to mature, even as his lawyerly rage remains undimmed." Click here to learn more about Terminal, the 17th book in Andrew Vachss' Burke series. (Updated 09-25-07) | ||
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| We've received a ton of emails from readers interested in our opinion of the reality-TV show, "Kid Nation." Our own Dragon Lady has the answer, in her interview with the BBC. Click here to see it for yourself! (Updated 09-21-07) | ||
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| Looking to buy a signed Andrew Vachss book? Well … then you better look real close. Click here for more information. (Updated 09-20-07) | ||
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| "[Leslie Simon is] a professor and Women's Studies chair at City College [of San Francisco] and Project SURVIVE is the peer education program she created to teach students to teach each other about preventing rape and domestic violence. Active since 1993, Project SURVIVE will visit 200 classrooms this year." Click here to read the entire article by musician, child counselor, and PROTECT member Trey Bundy. (Updated 09-20-07) | ||
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| Exclusive! We're proud to be able to bring you an exclusive excerpt from Andrew Vachss' latest Burke novel, Terminal, shipping from Pantheon on September 25, 2007. Click here to be able to tell your friends you got in on the action early! (But if your friend is on The Zero email list, they'll have beaten you to it. Click here to subscribe to the insider list that read this excerpt days ago!) (Updated 09-12-07) | ||
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| Sure, you can see the cover of Terminal all over the internet. Or … the front cover, at least. To see the whole cover (including the new author photo) weeks before it hits stores, click here! (Updated 09-07-07) | ||
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| We've had a lot of people asking what Andrew Vachss thinks of the Michael Vick case. He answered that question long before it was ever asked. And, he answered it again, before Vick was even charged. But, because of the lag time in publishing, you won't get to read it until the next Burke novel, Terminal, is published. You can, however, hear the answer by clicking here and listening to The Zero's exclusive audio excerpt from Terminal, performed by David Wirth and due from Brilliance Audio on September 25, 2007. (Updated 08-22-07) | ||
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| A Milwaukee date has just been added to Andrew Vachss' October book tour. Click here for more information! (Updated 08-22-07) | ||
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| The new Burke novel, Terminal, is hitting stores next month, and that means Andrew Vachss is hitting stores, as well. Click here to see if he's coming to a store near you. (And if you want to be kept abreast of any changes to the schedule, click here and you can sign up for our email updates list. Members of that list will receive a special treat tomorrow!) (Updated 08-15-07) | ||
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| Our friends at Crime Scene Merchandise tell us the Mama's Restaurant T-shirts, autographed by Andrew Vachss are almost sold out. Don't miss out on a chance to own one of these limited-edition, autographed T-shirts that include a one-year PROTECT membership. Click here for complete details and to grab one before they're all gone! (Updated 08-08-07) | ||
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| Some journalists aren't journalists—they write thinly disguised opinions. Click here to read a classic example of the "bend-to-fit" mentality of one such "reporter," as he bends Andrew Vachss' quote to fit his own agenda. (Updated 07-19-07) | ||
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| First look! Vintage will release Mask Market—the 16th Burke novel—in a $7.99, pocket-sized (or mass market) paperback edition next month. Click here for a first look at the complete cover! This is the first pocket-sized Burke paperback since Sacrifice. The smaller size will allow the book to be distributed to far more venues, and allows for the lower, introductory price. But don't worry—a trade paperback-edition in the format of the rest of the series will be released shortly thereafter. (Updated 07-16-07) | ||
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| Did you miss the latest T-shirt from Mama's Restaurant? Well … you may not be out of luck! To ensure orders could be filled, the manufacturer produced over-runs, some of which have been signed by Andrew Vachss and are available now (while supplies last)! For $65 plus shipping, you'll get one of these autographed shirts, plus a one-year membership in Protect, America's first political lobby for child protection. One hundred percent of the purchase price—all $65—goes to Protect to support the group's efforts to change child-protection legislation in the US. Click here to get your signed Mama's shirt! (Updated 07-11-07) | ||
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| Last year, we were proud to announce the release of the first Burke audiobook: David Joe Wirth's adept dramatization of Mask Market. Your response we so positive that Brilliance has contracted Mr. Wirth to adapt the next Burke novel, Terminal, as well, and will make it available on CD and as downloadable MP3s. Enjoy! (Updated 07-05-07) | ||
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| "Dark Horse publisher Mike Richardson recently wrote a column describing a meeting I was party to on March 29, 2000. Mike was a facilitator and I was a witness; the meeting was between Oregonian columnist Steve Duin and Andrew Vachss. That Duin—a journalist by trade—would 'reconstruct' an event … to make him look like a person of great importance who regally consented to 'hear out' Andrew, says everything you need to know about his character. But I have some things to add to further illustrate that character." Click here to read Lou Bank's account of the 2000 meeting, and the events leading up to it. (Updated 06-20-07) | ||
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| On Wednesday, March 29, 2000, a meeting took place between Andrew Vachss and Oregonian columnist Steve Duin. Years later, Duin wrote about that meeting for The Oregonian; you can read Duin's fabrications here. Here's the truth of what occured, as reported by Dark Horse Comics publisher Mike Richardson, who was also at that meeting. There was a fourth person at that meeting, and you'll be able to read that account by coming back here next Wednesday. (Updated 06-13-07) | ||
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| If you've got an older German shepherd, you'll want to read about Tasha, the newest addition to the Zero Pack, to learn about the amazing underwater treadmill that's helping her regain much of her mobility. (Updated 06-07-07) | ||
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| It's a couple weeks past Mother's Day, but it's never too late for a great story about motherhood—or a story about great motherhood. In Another Chance to Get It Right, Andrew Vachss wrote, "We call birth a miracle. What greater word fits adoption?" Click here for a beautiful example of that: Huani, a mixed breed dog who has adopted three newborn tiger cubs who were abandoned by their biological mother. (Updated 06-07-07) | ||
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| The seventeenth Burke novel is less than 20 weeks away! Get a first look at the cover—and a first-read of the story summary—by clicking here. (Updated 05-09-07) | ||
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| If you've already read Mask Market, and are awaiting word on the 17th Burke novel — here it is. Terminal will be released in hardcover this September, from Pantheon. Stay tuned for more details. (Updated 04-19-07) | ||
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| There hasn't been a pocket-sized (or mass market) Burke paperback since Sacrifice. But that will all change this August when Vintage releases Mask Market in a $7.99 edition. The smaller size will allow the book to be distributed to far more venues, and allows for a lower, introductory price. (And don't worry—a trade paperback edition in the format of the rest of the series will be released shortly thereafter.) (Updated 04-12-07) | ||
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| A few years back, Lisa and her family made contact to let us know the pit bull Angel—a puppy playmate for their eight-year-old Bear—had joined their clan. Click here for a sad update, with an uplifting ending. (Updated 04-05-07) | ||
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| W. Scott Fuhrman pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography, but contended he was "merely viewing" the images, not creating them, and therefore requested that he should not be subject to the statutory maximum sentence of ten years in prison. In denying Fuhrman's request, Federal Court Judge William C. Lee cited Andrew Vachss' 2006 Parade article, "Let's Fight this Terrible Crime Against Our Children," and noted that, "[b]y his conduct, Fuhrman created and sustained the market for internet child pornography.—[C]hildren, the most vulnerable and innocent members of our society, are victimized. And, even a 'passive' consumer who merely receives or possesses the images directly contributes to this continuing victimization." Judge Lee certainly knew he was citing Andrew Vachss' 2006 article in his response; but he wrote, "Fuhrman admits that he is making steady progress through his counseling and thus, he will have the opportunity to continue down that road by availing himself of the treatment opportunities available to him while incarcerated," he was probably not aware that he was echoing Andrew Vachss' statement, "Let all 'rehabilitative' experiments with predatory pedophiles continue. But let them continue behind bars." (From Parade, Aug. 20, 1989) A trail may not be a search for truth but, sometimes, a sentence finds it. Read all about it here. (Updated 03-28-07) | ||
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| If you've read or watched the news in the last week, you've heard about the tragic death of two auxiliary police officers in New York. One of those officers was Nicholas Pekearo. From those reports, you'd know that he had given his life in a fight to protect the people around him. And you'd know that he was too young and full of humanity to be taken so soon from his family. But what you probably didn't know was that Nicholas Pekearo has been taken from our family, too. Nick was a card-carrying member of the National Association to Protect Children. Those of us who work on The Zero send our deepest sympathies to the family of Nicholas Pekearo. Over the coming days, PROTECT will be sharing what Nick and his legacy mean to our family and to the cause of child protection for which he fought. Click here to send your memories, tributes and suggestions for recognizing Nicholas Pekearo. (Updated 03-21-07) | |
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| Maryland House Judiciary Chairman Joseph Vallario is putting your child—and every child—at greater risk of being raped. In Maryland, possession of child pornography is a misdemeanor, like jaywalking or driving over the speed limit. Because the crime is categorized as a misdemeanor, child sexual predators have no fear of being caught with the contraband; and because they have no fear, the market demand for new images is huge; and because the market demand is huge, child pornographers everywhere have a huge monetary incentive to rape more children, to create more product. Judiciary Chairman Vallario is blocking at least 29 House members who want stronger laws. The only legislation Vallario will allow out of his committee is a weak and watered down bill (H.B. 285) that keeps child pornography a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine. Tell Maryland House Speaker Michael Busch and Majority Leader Kumar Barve to protect children, and that you will hold them responsible when you next vote. Tell them to join 45 other states by making possession of child pornography a felony. And do it now! (Updated 03-21-07) | ||
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| "[A]llegedly cured of his penchant for [homosexual sex, once-Reverend Ted] Haggard and his wife are reportedly headed out of town, because the evangelical Christian community of Colorado Springs can't seem to forgive him. As the Rev. Mike Ware of Westminster, Colorado, put it, 'It's hard to heal in Colorado Springs right now. It's like an open wound. He needs to get somewhere he can get the wound healed.' Apparently, a Christian community isn't a good place to heal. Go figure." Read all of Dr. Joel Dvoskin's guest dispatch by clicking here! (Updated 03-15-07) | ||
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| Looking for the perfect soundtrack for your next independent movie, spoken-word performance, poetry reading, or any artistic project? We suggest you check out the work of The Zero's long-time pal, Anthony Annucci. Head on over to livebodyproductions.com. Tell them we sent you and, if you're for-real about a project, they might even send you a sample CD. (Updated 03-07-07) | ||
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| In May 2006, the Social Science Research Network published a research paper by law professor Ruby Andrew that details the A to Z on the incest loophole. That paper, entitled, "Child Sexual Abuse and the State: Applying Critical Outsider Methodologies to Legislative Policymaking," was recently listed on SSRN's All-Time Top Ten download list for Legislation & Statutory Interpretation. The Zero commends Professor Andrew on her outstanding paper, congratulates SSRN on their wise decision to publish the paper, and encourages anyone interested in child protection to go check it out! (Updated 02-28-07) | ||
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| When New York's infamous incest loophole was finally destroyed last year, after decades of destroying the lives of child victims, it was the cumulative result of a whole lot of people doing a whole lot of work over a whole lot of years, and will change the future for eons to come. Once the battleground was set in New York's legislature, one woman led the charge: our very own Dragon Lady, Kim Talman, web mistress of The Zero. Ms. Talman has just been awarded the first-ever Circle of Trust Award by Protect, America's first political lobby for child protection, as recognition of "the highest individual contribution of a Protect member to the goals and ideals of our organization." Asked how proud he was of Ms. Talman's achievement, Andrew Vachss said, "I don't write well enough to even try that!" Everyone at The Zero feels exactly the same way. (Updated 01-31-07) | ||
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| The movie "Hounddog" premiered Monday night at the Sundance Film Festival, but Hollywood insiders—and the Catholic League—have been talking about it for weeks. The talk centers on a scene in which 12-year-old actor Dakota Fanning is raped. The Catholic League wants the film investigated as possible child pornography. Andrew Vachss calls that "nonsense," and asks some [unanswered] questions of his own. Click here to read the entire story, as published January 22, 2007, in Variety. (Updated 01-24-07) | ||
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| Thanks for making 2006 a great year! You helped close the incest-exception loophole in both California and New York. We look forward to working with you to make 2007 an even better year! (Updated 12-27-06) | ||
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| Do you want to help people with visual impairment connect with Andrew Vachss' Burke novels? Here's your chance. Ask your local library to order the Large Print edition of Mask Market, being released by Thorndike Core in January 2007. Click here for more information! (Updated 12-27-06) | ||
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| Publishers Weekly calls David Joe Wirth's performance of Mask Market "an insightful mixture—tough, unruffled, pensive, dangerous and, considering the character's past hard-boiled appearances, surprisingly tender at times. …Wirth rises to the challenge, softening Burke's hard edges … without turning him into a sentimental sap." Click here for more information about the audiobook! (Updated 12-20-06) | ||
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| Andrew Vachss' books have been described as investigative novels, because they often reveal news before you can read it in your newspaper. Case in point: In Dead and Gone (2001), he wrote about a shoe waiting to drop on people selling merchandise on online sites. Last month, the IRS dropped that shoe. Click here to read the details. (Updated 12-20-06) | ||
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| The O.J. book and interview may have been canceled. But, Mr. Vachss' response to the many that have asked him his opinion of the previously planned publication (and publisher), and of the "interview" remain unchanged. We wonder if any copies of this filth survived, and when some human will offer them for sale. And we remain quite confident that tapes of that "interview" were not all destroyed, too. (Updated 11-21-06) | ||
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| Thanks to all of you Zero visitors who ordered the Mama's Restaurant T-shirts! You helped raise $3,679.36 for Protect with this shirt (which makes more than $10,000 raised from the Novel-T program). (Updated 11-16-06) | ||
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| Back in 1989, Andrew Vachss took a reporter on a tour of New York: through Times Square, the Badlands, Wards Island … all the places Burke might go. Click here to join the tour! (Updated 11-16-06) | ||
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| Congratulations! You helped ensure the safety of children! With votes still being counted in a few key races, the 2007 Congress will include at least 29 House and Senate members who have pledged their support to Protect's War on Child Predators—a national commitment to build the largest law enforcement army ever created to protect children. And in California, PROTECT supported a bipartisan slate of candidates for the California Assembly and won four big victories: two Republicans and two Democrats. Click here to read the full story! (Updated 11-09-06) | ||
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| While on tour for Mask Market in September 2006, Andrew Vachss was interviewed by Peter Bochan for the radio program, "All Mixed Up," broadcast in New York City on WBAI. It's 18 minutes of conversation: the first nine are about music, the last nine are about Mask Market, the latest in the Burke series. Click here to hear! (Updated 10-25-06) | ||
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| Frequent Zero contributor Dr. Joel Dvoskin—one of America's leading forensic psychologists—visited New Orleans recently. He saw heartbreaking squalor, and it had nothing to do with Hurricane Katrina. Click here to read Dr. Dvoskin's account of the experience. (Updated 10-04-06) | ||
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| Two Trains Running—which was named the #1 mystery of 2005 by Amazon.com—is now available in trade paperback. Click here to see the cover! (Updated 10-02-06) | ||
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| "The Karr case did nothing to solve a murder, but it has shown pedophiles where to find a safe harbor for their "hobby.'" Click here to read Lyric Wallwork Winik's interview of Andrew Vachss, as published in the September 24, 2006, issue of Parade. (Updated 09-27-06) | ||
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| "Mask Market is a gypsy cab ride down the streets of New York at their most gritty. Andrew Vachss brings pathos and irony to the table, served up by bad guys who are really the good guys, seeking reparations from the vermin disguised as solid citizens." Click here to read the entirety of JC Patterson's review of the latest Burke novel. Published September 7, 2006, by The Madison County Herald. (Updated 09-27-06) | ||
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| The Mask Market Tour has ended, but autographed copies of the book may still be available at these stores. (Updated 09-20-06) | ||
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| If you've been reading Mask Market and are anxious to hear some of the music Burke's listening to, iTunes is offering the antidote! Click here to be sent to the iTunes page that offers the Mask Market soundtrack. And we find it's best to listen to the Mask Market soundtrack while wearing a Mama's Restaurant T-shirt. Click here to order yours now! (Updated 09-08-06) | ||
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| "Embedded in Mask Market ... is a political book of surprising sophistication. ... Throughout, Burke implicates just about every complicit sector of society, including the media, cops, feds and the well-to-do. That Vachss pulls this off in a pulpy, mass-appeal crime series is perhaps his greatest trick." Read Jonathan Messinger's entire review of Mask Market, as published August 31, 2006, in Time Out Chicago. (Updated 09-06-06) | ||
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| It's another first for Burke! Hot on the heels of the release of the first Burke audiobook, we're proud to announce that Mask Market will be released in a large-print edition. The large-print edition will be published in hardcover by Thorndike Press around February 1, 2007. Check back here for updates! (Updated 09-05-06) | ||
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| "I'm an American, I know what's required for Americans to take action. They need to get angry. The books are vehicles to make people angry." Click here to read the entirety of Peter Pavia's interview with Andrew Vachss, as published August 13, 2006, by the New York Post. (Updated 08-23-06) | ||
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| "Gets cold enough in this town, people die. Some freeze to death waiting for the landlord to get heat back into their building. Some use their ovens for warmth, and wake up in flames. Some don't have buildings to die in." The 16th Burke novel, Mask Market, is in stores now. Click here for more information! (Updated 08-15-06) | ||
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| Attention iPod owners! If you've always wanted to hear a real performance of a Burke novel, this is your chance. David Joe Wirth has performed the entirety of Andrew Vachss' latest Burke novel, Mask Market, as an audiobook, and the publisher, Brilliance, has made it available as an mp3 CD. Purchase the disc here, and get ready to load Burke onto your
iPod! (Updated 08-15-06) | ||
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| PROTECT's 2006 legislative victory in New York state began with a very influential Op-Ed article in the New York Times by Andrew Vachss. So PROTECT asked Mr. Vachss to write an article about the final passage of this landmark reform. To read Mr. Vachss' thoughts and reactions on this victory and what it means for children, click here! (Updated 07-31-06) | ||
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| "City people call winter the Hawk. Not because of the way it swoops down, but because it hunts. Gets cold enough in this town, people die. Some freeze to death waiting for the landlord to get heat back into their building. Some use their ovens for warmth, and wake up in flames. Some don't have buildings to die in." Click here to read an excerpt from Mask Market, the 16th book in Andrew Vachss' Burke series, due in bookstores everywhere this August. (Updated 07-26-06) | ||
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| Congratulations to Geofrey Darrow, who was just awarded the 2006 Eisner Award for Best Writer/Artist of a comics series for his work on The Shaolin Cowboy! Mr. Darrow—like Mr. Vachss—is also on the advisory board for Protect. Click here to see the wonderful endorsement Mr. Darrow developed for inclusion in The Shaolin Cowboy! (Updated 07-26-06) | ||
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| Join us in welcoming Sadee, Missee Mae and Trixee to the Zero's Backup Pack! Click here to read about Lyn Marker's pack of beautiful beasts. (Updated 07-12-06) | ||
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| Last month, The New York Times ran an Op-Ed piece supporting the notion that sex offenders should receive treatment after being released back into the community. Frequent Zero contributor Joel Dvoskin agrees, but not for the flawed reasons published in the Times, and he points out those flaws in "Sex Offender Commitment Laws: A response to LaFond and Winick." Click here to read Dr. Dvoskin's article! (Updated 06-30-06) | ||
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| Kirkus Reviews called it "dark, violent, blood-drenched, page-turning." The Wall Street Journal called it "gripping." If you missed Two Trains Running in hardcover, you'll have your chance to read Andrew Vachss' novel about two weeks in 1959 that changed the course of history when it's released in trade paperback on June 6. (Updated 06-02-06) | ||
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| A month ago we gave you the scoop on the Brilliance Audio release of the first-ever Burke audiobook. Now we're giving you a taste. Click here to listen to an excerpt from Mask Market! (Updated 05-31-06) | ||
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| For years, Andrew Vachss has described the disastrous effects of the infamous "incest loophole"—state laws that allow child rapists who are related to their victims to escape serving serious time in prison. Now law professor Ruby Andrew has written a research paper that gives you the A to Z on the incest loophole. She examines the legal history behind the incest laws and their collision with the developing law on child sexual abuse. The paper details the multiple types of special, preferential treatment that state criminal codes give to child rapists who "grow their own victims." She includes a bill specifically drafted to end the remaining preferential treatment in California, but also offers a blueprint for writing legislation to close incest loopholes in any state. Professor Andrew's paper will be published in the University of California Davis Law Review late in June, but you can download the full article now at the Social Science Research Network (free registration required). (Updated 05-31-06) | ||
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| Not only is the next Burke novel scheduled for release, but also, we have a special treat for fans: the first-ever Burke audiobook! Brilliance Audio will release both an abridged and an unabridged audiobook adaptation of Mask Market, both of which will be performed by Andrew Vachss' hand-picked actor, David Joe Wirth. The Mask Market audiobooks will be released in August, at the same time as the hardcover novel. Check back for more information soon! (Updated 04-26-06) | ||
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| Burke is back—stalking the dark alleys of his past in search of a vanished woman …
and some truths about himself. Andrew Vachss' forthcoming novel, Mask Market, will be released August 2006! Click here to view the cover and read more about the book. (Updated 04-19-06) | ||
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| When pit bulls are banned, we predict a great increase in the number of Taurus Uniquos who are licensed. Confused? Take a look here. (Updated 04-05-06) | ||
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| "Investigative journalism is, in my view, all that protects American democracy, and I believe it to be at risk. I speak to audiences all the time, and when you speak to audiences of young people and you say, 'Name a famous journalist,' you get Jason Blair, you get Stephen Glass. And when you say to them, 'For crying out loud, why do you see these people as famous icons?,' [the answer you get is,] 'Well, they made movies about them, didn't they? I mean, they wrote books, didn't they? They're actual celebrities, aren't they?' If anybody else had so grossly betrayed the credo of their profession, you wouldn't think they'd be lionized. But journalism? Hey.… So blogging, for example, which, because it's unregulated, is supposedly the antidote to 'government-controlled journalism'—and by unregulated, I don't mean the government's not involved but [that] there are no standards for it—this one's fantasy and this one's truth are indistinguishable by the blind consumer at the other end of the computer." Click here to listen to Patty Satalia's entire 30-minute interview with Andrew Vachss, originally broadcast on Take Note, November 20, 2005, on WPSU-FM, the public broadcasting station out of Penn State University. (Updated 03-30-06) | ||
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| Of all the response to Andrew Vachss' recent PARADE article, the overwhelming majority had to do with the public's disbelief that "real-time" child pornography was happening on the Internet. News out of the U.S. Department of Justice on March 15, 2006, corroborates exactly this. Click here to read that news, and an accounting of the warning. (Updated 03-16-06) | ||
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| "A 'people's' encyclopedia sounds like an egalitarian endeavor offering a degree of power to those of us without the access to influence culture and disseminate information." But the reality of Wikipedia is, in fact, ugly. Zak Mucha lays out the facts in "Expert Opinions," a guest dispatch that's an exclusive to The Zero. Click here to read the article. (Updated 03-09-06) | ||
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| Andrew Vachss' dear friend, the infamous Kelly Justice, has a treat for Zero visitors this week: a piece of art she commissioned that redefines the concept of the Dogs of the Zero. Check it out! (Updated 03-02-06) | ||
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| "[I]f we are to wage war [against child pornographers], we must know our enemy. We need to know more about those who create this unspeakable 'product,' why they do it and the various ways it is used ... The question then becomes: What can we do?" Read Andrew Vachss' latest cover feature for PARADE—and get all the information you need to take action now—by clicking here. (Updated 02-26-06) | ||
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| To read past updates, click here. | ||
"The work of Bruce Perry—healer, discoverer, teacher—has been revered by those in the child protective field, from social work to law enforcement, for many years. He has been a laser of justice in the darkness of child maltreatment, a smasher of myths, and, perhaps most important of all, a giver of hope. Bruce Perry's work has not just crossed a new frontier; it has established a unique outpost to which acolytes from all over the world travel to learn how to decode childhood trauma … not from some self-appointed guru with a new "program," but from a man of science, a compassionate genius who can prove how the human brain develops around its experiences, and that "destiny" is a lie. For all of this, The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog is Bruce Perry's finest achievement, because it gives us all the opportunity to unlock the deepest mystery of our species: Why do some children "turn out" to be heroes, and others to be predatory sociopaths. This book is nothing less than the Rosetta stone of childhood trauma. Although presented in clear, accessible language, this is not one of those ubiquitous "self-help" books. You won't find slogans or stories here; you will find truth. Anyone who wants to understand childhood trauma (and its multi-faceted consequences) must read this book. Any parent, professional, or politician who does not read The Boy Who Was Raised As A Dog is volunteering to be ignorant. And, when it comes to our own children, such ignorance could be a fatal mistake." —Andrew Vachss
