Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is a non-fiction novel by John Berendt. The book, Berendt's first, was published in 1994 and follows the story of Jim Williams, an antiques dealer on trial for the shooting death of Danny Hansford. Subtitled A Savannah Story, with an initial printing of 25,000 copies,[1] the book became a New York Times Best-Seller for 216 weeks following its debut and remains one of the longest-standing New York Times Best-Sellers.[2]
Berendt combined self-witnessed experiences during his time living in Savannah (roughly four years after the shooting) with stories from the preceding years recounted to him by locals; he catches up with proceedings around the book's mid-point. Williams was a free man during Berendt's five years in Savannah. The author, who created the fictional author John Kelso to represent himself, took some liberties with his writing, including creating a relationship between Joe Odom and Nancy Hillis. Furthermore, Odom died over two years before the book's publication.
The character Serena Dawes was based on silent-film actress and heiress Helen Avis Drexel, while voodoo priestess Valerie Boles was the inspiration for Minerva.
The book was adapted for Clint Eastwood's 1997 film, with several characters' names changed to protect their privacy.
