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Anonymous
Posted June 14, 2009
The author's investigative reporting is to be applauded, and should act as a civics lesson. Most every agency involved in the Columbine shootings, from the local Jefferson County Sheriff to the Secret Service, stymied the author's attempts to get information. Kass kept fighting - for about ten years - and ended up with a number of exclusives.
I disagree that the author is boastful about the fights or scoops. Yes, he reprints some of his Freedom of Information Act requests in the back of the book, and yes, he recounts some of the fights. But the stories he recounts are fairly short and drop in nicely. It's clear that the whole book could have been about quest for information, but Kass chooses to follow the journalistic tradition and focus on the main story, not the backstory.
Aside from the government, Kass fought the killers' parents for information. Not only is that in itself an interesting story, but it tells a lot about the character of the parents.
The book is above all well-written and, obviously, thoroughly researched. I would recommend it for any general reader, although it also provides a road map to investigative journalism.
GM Davis
4NSCSYK
Posted June 6, 2009
The book was enlightening in regards to the ins and outs of the murderers, which is why I wanted to read this story. I thought the diary entries were great. I could have done without the author complaining about how difficult the families and their attorneys were to get information from. He didn't need to glorify how hard he worked to get the story. The product should speak for itself.
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Overview
Literary Nonfiction. United States Studies. With a foreword by Douglas Brinkley and cover illustration by Ralph Steadman. Ten years after Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed twelve classmates and a teacher, Columbine remains the world's most iconic school shooting. COLUMBINE: A TRUE CRIME STORY, A VICTIM, THE KILLERS AND THE NATION'S SEARCH FOR ANSWERS is the first book of investigative journalism to tell the complete story of that day, the far-reaching consequences, and the common denominators among school ...