Anatomy of a Murder (1958)

Inspired by real events, Robert Traver's 1958 novel was the first of its kind - a true "courtroom thriller". Showcasing the genial narrative perspective of every-man defense attorney, Paul Biegler, "Anatomy" couldn't be better named as it guides readers through the crooks and crevices of the legal corpus of a murder trial. Groundbreaking and controversial in equal measure for its detailing and confrontation of sexual assault, Traver's story was immediately adapted for the screen by Hollywood legend Otto Preminger, where it gathered further acclaim and social traction. As fiction, "Anatomy" holds up well and, propelled by its warmth and wisdom, offered us a mill's worth of grist for conversational grind.