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annaleawilson's review against another edition
3.0
This was a tough one to read, but has more detail than anything I’ve ever read or heard about the event. Maybe a bit too long, but packed full of detail.
gregarius's review against another edition
5.0
Dave Cullen was a reporter covering the shootings at Columbine High School during and after the incident. He continued to gather research for the next ten years, which produced this excellent book.
The book covers almost every angle on the story. It recounts the events of that day, but it also provides great insight into everything that led up to it for years before. He gives a strong picture of the killers, but also does a very good job describing the victims, survivors, and families of all. He starkly presents the facts, but also explains how the myths originated and gained hold in the public consciousness.
His writing style is very natural and easy to read. He bounces back and forth through time, which can sometimes be frustrating, but it was also effective. Although the book was clearly researched meticulously, it never feels dry. There are no pictures or 911 transcripts or diagrams in the book. I admit to being a little disappointed by that, but I understand that was not his intention. Including those types of things would have been sensational and exploitative, and that is obviously not the point of the book.
A really fascinating read about a terrible tragedy.
The book covers almost every angle on the story. It recounts the events of that day, but it also provides great insight into everything that led up to it for years before. He gives a strong picture of the killers, but also does a very good job describing the victims, survivors, and families of all. He starkly presents the facts, but also explains how the myths originated and gained hold in the public consciousness.
His writing style is very natural and easy to read. He bounces back and forth through time, which can sometimes be frustrating, but it was also effective. Although the book was clearly researched meticulously, it never feels dry. There are no pictures or 911 transcripts or diagrams in the book. I admit to being a little disappointed by that, but I understand that was not his intention. Including those types of things would have been sensational and exploitative, and that is obviously not the point of the book.
A really fascinating read about a terrible tragedy.
blainthemono's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
4.5
smithical's review against another edition
4.0
Really well-written, and well-researched. A difficult read...
nicoleostrowski's review against another edition
I'll start this review with my deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the twelve students killed: Rachel Scott, Daniel Rohrbough, Kyle Velasquez, Steven Curnow, Cassie Bernall, Isaiah Shoels, Matthew Kechter, Lauren Townsend, John Tomlin, Kelly Fleming, Daniel Mauser, and Corey DePooter; and the one teacher killed, Dave Sanders. To lose them to this crime is devastating beyond my imagination. My thoughts are with the students and faculty who survived this incident, many with serious injuries, who now live with the experience in the years that pass, each in their own ways. And my condolences to the loved ones of Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris; the families endured the unthinkable experience of both the suicides of their sons and coping with the terrible crimes committed by them.
It took me a long time to read this book; it is painful, and I took breaks. I am not sure why I picked it up in the first place- I am not a true crime enjoyer at all. The commodification of pain is often done in ways I find unsettling at best and reprehensible at worst. I took it on faith that Cullen would handle the topic in good taste, and he fortunately lived up to that faith. He treats every subject of this novel with professionalism and empathy. So many true crime works are so focused on the killers that the victims are rendered nameless and forgotten. Cullen dedicates tremendous amounts of pages to the legacies of the victims, the healing of the survivors, and the shared trauma of a community.
The book is incredibly thorough. It details not only the crime itself, but the lives of those touched by it, the litigation in its aftermath, the failures of law enforcement both before and during the crime, and the psychological profiles of the killers. It outlines the attitudes of its survivors and the loved ones of the deceased (some who forgave the killers, and many who did not). It further dispels many widely held and erroneous myths about the event, which, while I did not personally hold as I was very young when this happened, I recognize are the commonplace misunderstanding of many people.
Very well done. I would recommend this book to any non-fiction reader.
It took me a long time to read this book; it is painful, and I took breaks. I am not sure why I picked it up in the first place- I am not a true crime enjoyer at all. The commodification of pain is often done in ways I find unsettling at best and reprehensible at worst. I took it on faith that Cullen would handle the topic in good taste, and he fortunately lived up to that faith. He treats every subject of this novel with professionalism and empathy. So many true crime works are so focused on the killers that the victims are rendered nameless and forgotten. Cullen dedicates tremendous amounts of pages to the legacies of the victims, the healing of the survivors, and the shared trauma of a community.
The book is incredibly thorough. It details not only the crime itself, but the lives of those touched by it, the litigation in its aftermath, the failures of law enforcement both before and during the crime, and the psychological profiles of the killers. It outlines the attitudes of its survivors and the loved ones of the deceased (some who forgave the killers, and many who did not). It further dispels many widely held and erroneous myths about the event, which, while I did not personally hold as I was very young when this happened, I recognize are the commonplace misunderstanding of many people.
Very well done. I would recommend this book to any non-fiction reader.
abeier's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Violence, Mass/school shootings, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gore, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Gaslighting
jonahahaha's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.5
sophie1819's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Blood, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Murder, and Toxic friendship