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rkleiman's review against another edition
4.0
Illuminating book about a tragic event. Really well written and researched for different perspectives. I appreciate his call to action to improve screening and treatment of teenage depression. A heavy but important read.
thisotherbookaccount's review against another edition
5.0
In most developed countries of the world, the only things children have to worry about at school are homework, exams and maybe that bully who cannot stop picking on you in between classes. However, the US is not like most developed countries. Here, children also have to worry about gunmen shooting up the school and killing teachers and students. It is a preposterous thing for those living halfway across the world, but that is the reality that American students have to deal with. That is why it is fascinating to read about arguably the most famous school shooting in the history of the United States: the Columbine massacre.
Dave Cullen's book is the definitive book on the events that led up to the infamous school shooting, what went down during the massacre itself, as well as the months and years that followed. And like any good non-fiction book, the tragedy is told from multiple different perspectives, from the students/teachers that were there, the parents of the victims, the parents of the killers, the killers themselves, as well as the local authorities and law enforcement. Everybody gets a point of view in this book, and it is a real deep dive into the horrific event. In fact, the amount of detail in this book is staggering, and you can almost track every pipe bomb made, every gun purchased and every student shot by the second. That is not to say that this book is gratuitous at all. I think it is as violent as it needs to be, because we are talking about a violent event, after all.
As for the gun control debate, as a Singaporean, we don't have that kind of problems here. The only people with guns are law enforcement officers and military personnel. As such, for the longest time, I've always thought it silly for the US to not just ban all guns. I mean, imagine never having to worry about being shot when going to the cinema, or going to school, or going to the supermarket — just like the rest of the world.
However, I think I have come around to the idea that the ship has already sailed for the US. The genie is out of the bottle, and there is no way to ban all guns at this point. Also, reading about the so-called motives for Eric and Dylan, you come to realise that mental health is, in fact, one of the biggest contributors to such massacres. I daresay that every shooter has a history of mental health, and that is the other through line that we can draw between the different cases. Sure, the casualty wouldn't have been as high if they hadn't gotten their hands on the weapons, but I think the more effective intervention method, at this point, is probably more stringent background checks and controls.
Then again, hey, what do I know? It is not a thing that I have to worry about. It is for Americans — especially the survivors of similar shootings — to figure out on their own.
Dave Cullen's book is the definitive book on the events that led up to the infamous school shooting, what went down during the massacre itself, as well as the months and years that followed. And like any good non-fiction book, the tragedy is told from multiple different perspectives, from the students/teachers that were there, the parents of the victims, the parents of the killers, the killers themselves, as well as the local authorities and law enforcement. Everybody gets a point of view in this book, and it is a real deep dive into the horrific event. In fact, the amount of detail in this book is staggering, and you can almost track every pipe bomb made, every gun purchased and every student shot by the second. That is not to say that this book is gratuitous at all. I think it is as violent as it needs to be, because we are talking about a violent event, after all.
As for the gun control debate, as a Singaporean, we don't have that kind of problems here. The only people with guns are law enforcement officers and military personnel. As such, for the longest time, I've always thought it silly for the US to not just ban all guns. I mean, imagine never having to worry about being shot when going to the cinema, or going to school, or going to the supermarket — just like the rest of the world.
However, I think I have come around to the idea that the ship has already sailed for the US. The genie is out of the bottle, and there is no way to ban all guns at this point. Also, reading about the so-called motives for Eric and Dylan, you come to realise that mental health is, in fact, one of the biggest contributors to such massacres. I daresay that every shooter has a history of mental health, and that is the other through line that we can draw between the different cases. Sure, the casualty wouldn't have been as high if they hadn't gotten their hands on the weapons, but I think the more effective intervention method, at this point, is probably more stringent background checks and controls.
Then again, hey, what do I know? It is not a thing that I have to worry about. It is for Americans — especially the survivors of similar shootings — to figure out on their own.
amandasvids's review against another edition
4.0
There really are no words to capture the horror of the tragic events that happened at Columbine in 1999, but the author Dave Cullen took on the task with such insight, research, and detail.
A hard read, but an important one, this book touches on many aspects and accounts before and during the massacre and the aftermath that it left behind.
A hard read, but an important one, this book touches on many aspects and accounts before and during the massacre and the aftermath that it left behind.
wintermute47's review against another edition
4.0
People are pretty despicable. That goes for the teenage psychopaths who build pipe bombs and dream of murdering those they deem inferior. It also goes for a parent of one of the victims who uses his status to insist that the official memorial contain a statement blaming the shooting on godless school districts and legalized abortion. It also goes for evangelical preachers who embrace a lie about martyrdom because it helps them snare lost, desperate people. And it ALSO goes for government officials who screw up, let a dangerous kid run free to murderous effect, and then try to cover it up, rather than admit that mistakes were made.
sailorlawmareads's review against another edition
5.0
I am a non-fiction junkie and I can say that this is one of the best works of non-fiction that I have read. Cullen's attention to detail is impeccable and offers the reader a complete look at what actually happened at Columbine high school ... there was no targeting of jocks, Christians or black kids. Rather, the assault was carried out by two young men, one a psychopath and one a depressed suicidal kid.
Cullen tackles the difficult topics with finesse. Obviously the savage murder-suicide is difficult. But, beyond that, Cullen addresses head-on the controversial issues involving the sheriff's department's botched investigation, the feelings of the parents of the dead and the survivors and the legal ramifications.
As an aside ... and as an insurance lawyer ... I was so surprised to hear that a homeowners policy would cover murder committed by your child. This is where much of the settlement funds paid by the Klebolds and Harrises in the lawsuits came from.
A spectacular book on a dark and haunting topic.
Cullen tackles the difficult topics with finesse. Obviously the savage murder-suicide is difficult. But, beyond that, Cullen addresses head-on the controversial issues involving the sheriff's department's botched investigation, the feelings of the parents of the dead and the survivors and the legal ramifications.
As an aside ... and as an insurance lawyer ... I was so surprised to hear that a homeowners policy would cover murder committed by your child. This is where much of the settlement funds paid by the Klebolds and Harrises in the lawsuits came from.
A spectacular book on a dark and haunting topic.
scottkillen's review against another edition
4.0
This is an objective investigation of what happened at the Columbine Massacre. I felt that the author may have parodied Christians a bit, but this was hard to avoid, given the ridiculous behavior of some of the Christians involved. If you are curious about the events that led to the massacre or why the massacre happened, this book does a good job documenting the facts.
Beware: The book is uncensored and some of the languages and epithets used by the killers may be offensive. There is also a thorough clinical description of the damage done to the injured and the state of the crime scene after the murders.
Beware: The book is uncensored and some of the languages and epithets used by the killers may be offensive. There is also a thorough clinical description of the damage done to the injured and the state of the crime scene after the murders.