I don’t generally read crime books, that’s more my wife’s bag. But there is a creepy fascination to be had in the tale of the Columbine school shooting. The fact that these two boys Erik Harris and Dylan Klebold advertised their intent so obviously, the way that Jefferson County law enforcement had ample warning that they were up to no good and the awful loss that resulted from those 20 minutes of teen anger. I came away from this book actually feeling a little sorry for Dylan. He didn’t seem like the killer type, evidenced by his very low bullet count compared to Erik and by his journaling which didn’t show a psychopath like Erik but rather a suicidal teen without enough drive to get himself out of an evil once he had committed to it.
Erik, on the other hand, was the primary character driving this whole thing, his plan, his bombs and his agenda. Nasty little piece of shit if you ask me. Without Erik Dylan would most likely have just been another teen suicide. Without Dylan Erik would still have gone to school and killed.
The way the book was structured, with a recounting of the killings coming early and then a series of flashbacks over the previous year laying out how the whole thing was constructed, it made it interesting and provoked me to consume the damn thing in less than a weekend. I regret buying this book from Walmart, but I do not regret buying this book 
Update: The author, Dave Cullen, commented on this sort-of-review and seemed like a funny bloke with redeeming value extending beyond his ability to write a good book. So in an effort to move the Internet zeitgeist a little further to the left I offer this link, Columbine, in order to help his Google page rank.
Tags: Books
May 26, 2009 at 2:01 pm |
Thanks, Dude. (OK, that’s the first time I ever said that with the D capitalized.)
I appreciate the comments, and help spreading the word on my book.
I’m glad you noticed/mentioned the structure, because in terms of the writing, that was the toughest nut to crack. It literally took me years to figure that out.
May 26, 2009 at 5:21 pm |
Dave
I was most surprised to see your comment on my blog this morning. I see vanity searches are not dead on Google yet
Yes, Dude is a nom-de-plume since I use an awful lot of bad language on my blog at times and since I intend to both keep my current job and get through the next HR interview I am fairly careful with my online reputation.
Look the book was actually a great read. I am pretty demanding in what I use my time up on and have been known to stop partway into a book and feed it into a wood chipper (yes I am talking to you Brad Thor http://ikilledamaninreno.wordpress.com/2008/08/19/book-reviewed-blowback-by-brad-thor ).
Your book was an accidental pickup at Walmart (I know, please shoot me) before a long weekend at camp. I had two other books in my bag and thought your one would do as a backup in case the others proved too hard to read under lamp light. As it was I opened yours first and basically got drawn right in and burned through it in a day and a half. I really enjoyed that structural choice of yours, it worked really well. And I liked the voice that you used, I found myself actually reading the book and being drawn along the remorselessly dreadful path that it described. Plus I always enjoy a little education with my narrative so the psychology 5-minute-apprenticeship worked out well.
Let me know when you get something else out and I will join your Mum in buying a copy.
Cheers
Dude