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Reviews tagging 'Genocide'
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann
91 reviews
emma_ekb's review against another edition
3.75
that said, it was a challenge to finish this. i listened on audiobook and the first half was very strong, but once we got to the reveal and the trial i was underwhelmed. i liked the focus more on molly burkhardt and her family. not the authors fault necessarily, im just not used to reading historical accounts.
the story picked back up at the end and the authors realization that the murders were part of a bigger issue was very insightful and needed. overall i think the genre just isn’t my cup of tea but im excited to see the movie
Moderate: Genocide and Murder
kaylurzz's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Racism, and Violence
reallyitsrudi's review
3.5
Graphic: Genocide, Racism, Xenophobia, and Murder
miggyfool's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
vrybs's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Murder, and Colonisation
Moderate: Gun violence
jcbkr's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Murder, and Colonisation
hannxm's review against another edition
5.0
The story goes as follows: white men forced the Osage out of their fertile lands to hilly and rocky land that I assume the white men thought would eventually lead to their deaths from starvation. But in a wonderful twist of fate, the land the Osage had been forcibly moved to was riddled with oil; black gold. With thanks to an Osage chief, they were able to have some level of control over their land and their oil, leading to the Osage becoming extremely wealthy, and, most importantly, their headrights could only be inherited, not bought. Well, you can imagine how pissed off the greedy white settlers were! If murdering them, starving them, controlling them, and moving them off their land over many decades wasn't enough, they now wanted their oil and their riches. Subsequently it led to the murders of countless members of the Osage tribe, with murders believed to have happened years before and after the Reign of Terror is said to have happened (the focus of the book and movie), resulting in a suspected death toll into the hundreds. Many of which were never investigated or not ruled a homicide.
Grann has written this book so wonderfully, I found it really easy to follow as Grann reminds you who people are throughout which I found so helpful. After reading Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, a book full of names and very few (if at all) reminders to help you remember the countless people mentioned, this felt like a breeze to read. I wouldn't recommend listening to this though; you might find yourself having to go back to reread sections at times to fully grasp the craziness.
Sadly, and irritatingly, I'd never heard of the Osage murders or the Reign of Terror as it's sometimes known. I think it's pretty evident as to why that's the case. I love and thank authors that bring these cases to the light of day, defying the powers that once had control over the narrative.
As the mystery unfolded, not knowing who the culprit(s) was, my jaw kept hitting the floor the more things unravelled. It is infuriating and shocking how greedy, heartless and conniving these murderous men were. The main culprit was a self centred cocky bastard right to the very end. Some continued to plot how to get more money whilst already in prison for murder. Like what?!
I'm booked into watch the film soon, finally! But if you've already watched the film, I would still recommend reading this book as Grann includes so many photos, including of Pawhuska and living relatives of the victims. He shares interviews with living relatives and information that hasn't been spoken of before. He discusses a few murders before and after the Reign of Terror and attempts to solve an additional unsolved murder case! He also shares information about what Pawhuska and Fairfax are like now; the remnants of the buildings that are left as well as the masses of graves that paint a grim picture of the past, the Osages current struggles and their views on what happened and how it's affected them.
Grann did a tremendous amount of work for this book. If you were captivated by the film and the story, you'll only get more out of this book.
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gun violence, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Kidnapping
haileyeh's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Racial slurs, Racism, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism
Minor: Child death
bookforthought's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Racism, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, and Gun violence
Minor: Child death and Genocide
kbio's review against another edition
4.0
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Racism, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation
Minor: Child death