You may remember Dennis Lehane's 2001 novel Mystic River from the award-winning 2003 film of the same name. What elevates this murder mystery from other crime procedurals is its attention to human detail, its exploration of our collective moral failings and how they intersect.

LISTENER BEWARE: We do spoil the heck out of the ending so that we can get into a conversation about youth violence and the American cultural conversation about guns. Unless you're just DYING to read it, we think you should press ahead and enjoy the episode. We even have fun talking about Mystic Pizza and Boston!

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