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godofwar's review against another edition
1.0
8/31/20 update: finally getting around to reducing my rating to one star. a few days ago comments were made on this review regarding the inclusion of jacob gray's story and the deceit employed by the author, jon billman. he fabricated conversations and events from the family and did not seek out their permission to actually write this story. a post on the Find Jacob Gray facebook page goes into more detail and verifies the comments on this (and other) reviews. i think this is disgusting and the fact that the publishers never fact-checked to ensure they weren't publishing a lie is astounding to me. i'll be leaving my original review to provide context for the comments but know that i no longer hold this book in such high regard. jon billman is a vulture and jacob gray's family and memory deserves better representation than this.
*****
original review:
What Jon Billman does so well in The Cold Vanish is remind us of a fundamental truth that's occasionally forgotten: the people who go missing are real people. In the distance between us and the cases we read about in the news or on forums or consume in (slightly) sensationalized media like missing411, it's easy to forget that; it's easy to get lost in conspiracy theories and talk of the paranormal, and to forget that there are people who are gone, and that they've left people behind. Billman handles the case of Jacob Gray (and the cases that intersect the narrative) with a professional grace. He humanizes rather than mythologizes, reminding us again and again of the people at the heart of these stories, and each story he recounts is heartbreaking. Sharp writing paired with the fact he never exploits the people he writes about makes for an amazing account of a phenomenon that's terrifying to think about; there's one passage in the book where a woman he'd spoken to points out that we lean into conspiracy theories because it helps our fear of the missing, and that really stuck with me. The book is well-researched and well-organized, flowing seamlessly between accounts of the missing, and always tying back to the central narrative of the search for Jacob incredibly well. There's a lot of nods towards other media on the topics that are now on my radar to consume further, as this is a topic that's recently become of incredible interest to me.
One of my favorite passages was Billman acknowledging how many indigenous women go missing, and how little resources are dedicated to searching for them, and though it was only briefly discussed, I'm glad it was brought into the spotlight at all.
This is emotional, raw yet expertly written, and I'm really grateful to netgalley for providing me with an ARC.
*****
original review:
What Jon Billman does so well in The Cold Vanish is remind us of a fundamental truth that's occasionally forgotten: the people who go missing are real people. In the distance between us and the cases we read about in the news or on forums or consume in (slightly) sensationalized media like missing411, it's easy to forget that; it's easy to get lost in conspiracy theories and talk of the paranormal, and to forget that there are people who are gone, and that they've left people behind. Billman handles the case of Jacob Gray (and the cases that intersect the narrative) with a professional grace. He humanizes rather than mythologizes, reminding us again and again of the people at the heart of these stories, and each story he recounts is heartbreaking. Sharp writing paired with the fact he never exploits the people he writes about makes for an amazing account of a phenomenon that's terrifying to think about; there's one passage in the book where a woman he'd spoken to points out that we lean into conspiracy theories because it helps our fear of the missing, and that really stuck with me. The book is well-researched and well-organized, flowing seamlessly between accounts of the missing, and always tying back to the central narrative of the search for Jacob incredibly well. There's a lot of nods towards other media on the topics that are now on my radar to consume further, as this is a topic that's recently become of incredible interest to me.
One of my favorite passages was Billman acknowledging how many indigenous women go missing, and how little resources are dedicated to searching for them, and though it was only briefly discussed, I'm glad it was brought into the spotlight at all.
This is emotional, raw yet expertly written, and I'm really grateful to netgalley for providing me with an ARC.
alisarae's review against another edition
5.0
Thousands of people have gone missing in the North American wilderness, and there is currently no official reporting system in place to know exactly how many people have vanished in national parks, let alone on other federal lands. Author Jon Billman tags along with Randy Gray as he hikes around the Pacific Northwest in search of his son, Jacob, who went missing in the Olympic National Park, Washington. As different theories as to what might have happened to Jacob are put forward, Billman weighs the likelihood of the theory by recounting cases of other people who went missing under similar circumstances.
This book combines two things that are fascinating to me: missing people and wilderness adventures. There's just so much mystery involved. Recently I saw a map that overlayed missing people with cave systems in N America. It made a good point. Sometimes it seems like people are just swallowed up. Maybe they are.
This book combines two things that are fascinating to me: missing people and wilderness adventures. There's just so much mystery involved. Recently I saw a map that overlayed missing people with cave systems in N America. It made a good point. Sometimes it seems like people are just swallowed up. Maybe they are.
thisroundsonme's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
2.5
The book gets redundant with Randy’s story. I was also incessantly irritated by some of the logic that follows survivors of the missing. Could have used more stories of missing Native American women.
tsumommy's review against another edition
5.0
Compelling, fascinating, touching. Great writing that read like it came directly from the author’s heart.
cleverfoxwithcoffee's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
3.75
kinseyritzu's review
Disjointed structure + the book wasn’t what I wanted it to be. Looking for something about search and rescue that is a little less true crime-y.