Absolutely brilliantly written story. I have recommended this book over and over again. I wish it wasn't out of print, because people I have talked to about it have found it hard to obtain. It not only chronicles an amazing story, but also shows the "underside" that exists in many of the larger, industrial towns in Iowa--something that most people don't know about and don't believe exists if they haven't spent a lot of time in the state. A real page turner, and while it's hard to sympathize with criminals, one has to have a grudging admiration for Grandstaff and Weir. Theft was their chosen profession and they were good at it.