I enjoy Chuck Klosterman, essayist who anchors a lot of his writing on music and pop culture; currently on a run as The Ethicist for the NYTimes Magazine.
His latest book, I Wear the Black Hat, is ruminations on being a villain, or perceived as a villain, in society. I find it very interesting - but then again, I dig deeply discursive pondering that riffs on Darth Vader, Bruce Springsteen, Bernhard Goetz, and so on.
In one chapter, he discusses how tying a girl to the railroad tracks is the most villainous thing a bad guy to do. And, of course ;), he cites Cecil Adams and the Straight Dope to source the earliest-known references to such diabolical activity…