His new book is titled “Last Words of the Executed.” It’s a curated chronological collection of the last words of prisoners just before they were put to death. The book is riveting for its disconnectedness. The individuals represented have their execution in common, but the words are different, some scripted, some thoughtful, some angry, some regretful, and some random and casual — as though impending death was no more significant than picking up a pair of socks or buying a sandwich. Just look at these last words and in there somewhere is the measure of these lives. The book has a purity of mission about it that is astounding and seems to say as much about journalism as it does about what it’s like to be on death row.