A review by alisse
Columbine, by Dave Cullen
5.0
There’s a lot I knew about Columbine going into this book. I was 12 when it happened. 7th grade. It shaped every moment of my school experience from then out.
There’s a lot I didn’t know. There are a lot of myths that surround the tragedy (who were Dylan and Eric? Who were the survivors?). This book gently reveals the facts of that day.
There’s a lot I’m walking away with—a better understanding of this first of the worst of modern massacres, a knowledge of who all of the students were, both victims and killers. But I think the thing that strikes me most is how faith is woven in. How the church responded (and, horrifically, capitalizes ok it) is something I’ll be thinking about for some time. In many ways my adolescent church experience was even more formed by Columbine than my schooling.
There’s a Lutheran pastor who appears as a voice of comfort and reason throughout, and he’s someone I wish I knew. Here’s what Cullen writes of him: “Don wasn’t trying to convert me, just trying to help. And he did.... the biggest impact came from simple compassion. Sensing my pain, plucking me from the crowd, letting me know someone cared.”
May we all be like that a bit more.
There’s a lot I didn’t know. There are a lot of myths that surround the tragedy (who were Dylan and Eric? Who were the survivors?). This book gently reveals the facts of that day.
There’s a lot I’m walking away with—a better understanding of this first of the worst of modern massacres, a knowledge of who all of the students were, both victims and killers. But I think the thing that strikes me most is how faith is woven in. How the church responded (and, horrifically, capitalizes ok it) is something I’ll be thinking about for some time. In many ways my adolescent church experience was even more formed by Columbine than my schooling.
There’s a Lutheran pastor who appears as a voice of comfort and reason throughout, and he’s someone I wish I knew. Here’s what Cullen writes of him: “Don wasn’t trying to convert me, just trying to help. And he did.... the biggest impact came from simple compassion. Sensing my pain, plucking me from the crowd, letting me know someone cared.”
May we all be like that a bit more.