The Perfect Father by John Glatt

The Perfect Father: The True Story of Chris Watts, His All-American Family, and a Shocking Murder by John Glatt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you follow true crime even lightly, you’ll have heard Chris Watts’ name. The Perfect Father is the story of Chris Watts and the murder of his family by his hands.

I’m quite picky about the true crime books I read, and I tend to be a harsh critic with them. I don't like Ann Rule's writing because it is just too sensational. I don't need to know how handsome a killer was or how he charmed everyone; I just want to know the real backstory. Why did he (or she) do this? Does he regret it? What was going through his mind?


In fact, I am so picky about true crime that I can list the books I've enjoyed on one hand: The Lost Girls by Robert Kolker, Are You There Alone? by Suzanne O'Malley, and Missoula by Jon Krakauer. John Glatt's Cries in the Desert, about Cindy Vigil Jaramillo's escape from and the subsequent trials of David Parker Ray, Cindy Lea Hendy*, and Jesse Ray*, was just okay. I've read several of Peter Vronsky's books and loved them, but they aren't quite true crime, in my humble opinion. When I read a book about a case, I demand a few things:

• the backgrounds of the killer and victim(s) is important. I want to know who they are, and not just the things we WANT to hear. Imperfect victims are still victims. And I don't want just a demonized version of the killer; I want to know the good and bad. 
• the crime cannot be sensationalized. Murder or any of these heinous things don't need exaggerated details. It's horrific enough all on it's own. 
• the facts have to be correct, and detailed. Lots of information about cases are available online and there are many, many, many true crime podcasters, vloggers, bloggers, and groups who will give you a lot of insanely detailed information. Because of that, a book has got to be both comprehensive and more enjoyable than going through all the research on your own.

Glatt presents the lives of both Chris and Shannan since they were children up until the murders. He gives a very clear picture of their lives together before the murders and I found it fascinating.

Though Shannan is a victim and Glatt’s pretty clear about that, he doesn’t white-wash her history and shows all sides of Shannan, as she was a flawed person just like we all are. Some people were quite offended by his portrayal of Shannan, I found it refreshing. Shannan was real and she deserves a book that highlights her positives and doesn’t ignore her less-than-perfect attributes. Nothing Shannan did could possibly absolve Chris of her murder or the murder of her children, and that doesn’t change when we realize that she was not a perfect woman.

Chris is presented in an equally fair manner. Glatt gives just the facts and evidence, with no sensationalism or opinions. His mistress, Nicole, is also discussed similarly, so you’re free to make your own determination. (I'm not an expert on the case, but I disagree with the majority of Reddit; I do not think she was involved.)

That being said, this book is really just a quick overview. If you already know about both Nic(k)oles, the cocaine addiction, and the bedsheets, this likely isn’t detailed enough for you to learn more. For the people who read true crime, but you don’t know much about this case, this would probably be perfect for you.


Thanks to NetGalley for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

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*Not at all the point of this post, but everyone should know that Cindy Lea Hendy and Glenda Jesse Ray helped kidnap, drug, and rape fellow women. They both got extremely light sentences and do not have to be on sex offender registries. :( Hendy is somewhere in Washington, but as far as I know, nobody knows where Jesse Ray is. David Ray died in prison.