Today, in our book spotlight, we are featuring featuring historical fiction novel "Übermensch" by D.L. Scarpe. If you're searching for your next engaging read that seamlessly blends historical events with compelling storytelling, you won't want to miss this fascinating story. Join us as we explore this intriguing novel and get to know the creative mind behind it. Read on to discover why "Übermensch" deserves a place on your reading list, and find out where you can grab your own copy!
Historical Fiction
Published: 1/15/2025
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murdered boy. Tortoiseshell eyeglasses. A letter written by a young man to another that reads like a lover's spat. One portable Underwood typewriter. Two confessions.
Will Babe and Manny live or die?
It's the early 1920s and arrogant teenagers Noah "Babe" Lieberman and Roman "Manny" Loewe have it all: money, brains, freedom. They reside in the same affluent Chicago neighborhood, come from successful, respectable families, and enjoy privileged lives. Both are intelligent prodigies who graduated high school early. But Roman, an extrovert, is handsome and popular whereas Noah is average-looking and spends most of his time with birds and books. After meeting, they embark on a wild journey of vandalism, burglary, and arson. Their personal relationship escalates, and their criminal acts morph into more sinister behavior as the two flout the laws of the "common" man and live their version of the Übermensch, or "superman" as defined by Friedrich Nietzsche.
One hundred years ago, the world was stunned to learn that Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, two wealthy, brilliant university students, had confessed to kidnapping and murdering fourteen-year-old Bobby Franks. Why did Leopold and Loeb do it? For "pure love of excitement, or the imaginary love of thrills, doing something different," they said.
D.L. Scarpe's Übermensch fictionalizes the Leopold and Loeb case, focusing on the reason why the gifted teenagers' lives took such an unexpected turn, destroyed three families, and captivated the country in what was dubbed at the time as the "crime of the century."
D.L. Scarpe has always had stories rattling around inside her head, locked up tight, only set free on those endless childhood nights spent swapping tales with her best friend. The story-weaving continued into adulthood–her little secret. However, raising a family; managing a household; building retaining walls, patios, or fire pits from stones (rock “jigsaw puzzles”); refinishing oak floors and furniture; or helping her husband on a roof–although she tried to pay attention when on a roof–kept her too busy for that other side of her to come out. So, it remained a secret.
But kids grow up and bodies get too tired for physical labor, and now it’s time to pursue her own passions and dreams. Working on her bucket list, she picked three things that make her happy, and she’s pursuing them all with no apologies:
Writing.
Shoes.
Tattoos.
Connect with the Author
