Book Review: Columbine
Book: Columbine
Author: Dave Cullen
Genre: Nonfiction/True Crime
Summary: On April 20, 1999, two boys went to their high school with bombs and guns. Their goal was to leave "a lasting impression on the world." The horror they inflicted left an indelible stamp on the American psyche. Now in this definitive account, Dave Cullen presents a compelling and utterly human profile of teenage killers. With a keen investigative eye and psychological acumen, he draws on hundreds of interviews, thousands of pages of police files, FBI psychologists, and the boys' tapes and diaries. This close-up portrait of violence, a community rendered helpless, and police blunders and cover-ups is an unforgettable cautionary tale for our time. In the tradition of Helter Skelter and In Cold Blood, Columbine is a revelatory work destined to be a classic. -Twelve, 2009.
Columbine was not a part of my memory when it happened. I didn't even know it had happened until my high school hosted a Columbine survivor talking about Rachel's Challenge. I don't know if it was Craig Scott or just someone who was a part of the group that was traveling across the nation, but our school had a presentation about Columbine and Rachel Scott. Ever since then, I was fascinated, in a psychological sense, by the tragedy and how it happened.
I saw this book multiple times when I was working at Barnes & Noble, but I didn't pick it up for a while because I wasn't sure if I should. I didn't know what I would find if I read it. Finally, I decided to pick it up and read it. Funnily enough, I decided to listen to the audio book first. I'm glad I did so because I was able to process things on an emotional level first.
The book is very thorough. It focuses not only on the event, the before, and the after, but the fallout and the many different players within the tragedy. It's hard and frustrating to read as hindsight makes everything so obvious. It's difficult to not get angry with police, the psychiatrists, and the families of the murderers.
Cullen documents and recounts the movements of both the killers and the community. He uses both his firsthand experiences as a journalist covering the shooting and primary documents from the psychiatrists studying the mental state of the shooters as well as from law enforcement. It's a very thorough documentation and his work on the story is clearly deep and intense. I think it's a good compilation of information and investigative journalism.
For as much as I compliment the book, however. I still want to insist on reading with an open mind. A former friend of the killers has issues with Cullen's book and, as someone who interacted with them directly, he may have some credence that Cullen may not have discussed. For example, Cullen argues that the killers weren't bullied, while the friend disputes that in a book of his own. Rather than take a side, I would suggest reading both and making your own conclusions.
Cullen has a very good book and I think it is a good foundation for anyone who wants to learn more about what happened. I would just be prepared for the emotional experience that could come with it.
I give Columbine an A+.
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Thanks for reading!
