Jackson native and businessman, Alan Lange, recently spoke with Greater Jackson Business magazine about his book as a follow-up to our online review. Publisher Jack Criss asked the questions…

GJB: Your first book, “Kings Of Tort,” was released just a few months ago. What was the first real surprise or shock for you? Holding the actual copy for the first time, reading your first review or watching someone purchase it?

Lange: The biggest surprise for me was the reactions that we got at our signings. I have had literally dozens of people at signings come up and express how much this narrative was needed to bring some closure and perspective to a very complicated series of events. People at these signings regularly relayed to me their experiences that they’ve had with people mentioned in the book that will likely never see the light of day. That confirmed to us that these weren’t just isolated series of events. It’s even more clear to me now that these people featured in the book cut a pretty wide swath across the business, political and legal landscape of Mississippi and have left a lot of damage in their wake.

GJB: Did you tone down any of your personal political convictions to make the book more objective?

Lange: This was not a political work to begin with. We reached out to every single person of any importance in this book and asked them to participate with an interview without any preconditions. With over 200 factual assertions and over a 30 page reference section, my co-author and I made every attempt to lay out what happened as factually as possible. When you do that, you really don’t leave much room to play it any other way than straight down the middle. In the last chapter of the book, we did make an attempt to connect the dots and explain what we thought the narrative actually means, but ultimately, we left it to the readers to decide.

GJB: Most people in Mississippi claim to know the story of Dickie Scruggs, his accomplices and their downfall—why, then, did you deem the book necessary to write in the first place?

Lange: My co-author and I were shocked at the amount of misinformation that was in the public domain throughout the reporting of the story as it happened. The story was simply to complicated to tell in a 90 second TV package or a few column inches of newsprint. A long narrative form was the only way the story could be adequately told. There will be other attempts to tell this story, but we were both convinced that no one would tell the story in a factual way. My only hope is that they follow our example of putting all the information in the public domain and letting the chips fall where they may.

GJB: Is there a particular section or part of the book that you are most proud of or carries the strongest message?

Lange: Believe it or not, I think the reference section of the book carries the strongest message. There are scores of links to information that has long been in the public domain. Though there is a lot of value in the narrative itself, the collection of data carries the strongest message of all. And the message has national implications as a cautionary tale so that people in law and politics nationwide can recognize the warning signs.

GJB: Did Scruggs, Balducci or any of the other players involved ever try to contact you? Do you know any of them personally? Have their family members reacted to the book?

Lange: We spent a great deal of time interviewing those involved in the story, and enjoyed a surprising amount of success in getting people involved to spend time with us and help us craft the narrative. Ultimately, we were not successful in getting Dickie Scruggs, Paul Minor, Attorney General Jim Hood and former Attorney General Mike Moore to interview, but we gave them every opportunity to participate. The reaction to the book has been incredibly positive. However, corruption usually dies a loud death and I don’t think we’ve heard the last from these folks. These actions were a way of life for them. The folks that scream the loudest about the book will be shown to have the most to lose.

GJB: Is the story of “Kings Of Tort” over? Will we see more fallout and/or indictments in your opinion?

Lange: That’s hard to say. Our information is no better than anyone else’s at this point. If you believe what you read in the media, there are ongoing reports that more indictments may be handed down and that the investigation is ongoing, but we don’t have any special knowledge of what future events in the case may hold.

GJB: The book is selling extremely well. Tell us about the signings you’ve done and the reaction you’ve gotten from readers at the events. Have you had a favorite signing?

Lange: The reaction that we have received has been overwhelming. Kings of Tort is consistently among the top books sold in independent and national booksellers in Mississippi since we have launched. Lemuria Books here in Jackson has enjoyed the greatest amount of success with the book and they have gone “all in” to help us at every point and have sold a ton of our books. They are a fantastic example of a local business adding value for customers.

GJB: Have you gotten any national coverage yet for the book? Cable news seems a perfect fit.

Lange: Our efforts to sell and promote the book have initially focused on Mississippi. This was the most natural place to start for us. Based on that success here, we are receiving national press inquiries from folks that have covered these stories over the years and I think in early-mid 2010, people will see more exposure for the book on a national basis.