A Keen And Precise Review Of The Book Columbine By David Cullen (Book Review Sample)

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Book Review
The Columbine school shooting of 1999 is a tale of tragedy, one that is detailed best in Dave Cullen's book by the same name. Dave Cullen, a journalist, attached to the New York Times and an author, presents the tale of the massacre orchestrated by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. In this book, Cullen dives into the details, true to his journalism career, explaining the reactions on the ground on the fateful day while detailing the background to the fateful day as well as the events after the occurrence. Columbine becomes the revealing story of a massacre by two students whose psychopathic act still leaves questions to this day.
Columbine, is a tale, a detailed analysis of an event that Dave Cullen explains through numerous excerpts. The story takes the reader on a journey, going through details that may not appear in the media, Columbine gives an in-depth focus on a story that has been told too many times already but which still turns up inconclusive. However, rather than a detailed explanation of every event as it occurs, Cullen uses a jumbled up sequence to detail the occurrences before, during and after the Columbine massacre. In one instance Cullen writes that "Eric and Dylan expected their attack to puzzle the public, so they left an extraordinary cache of material to explain themselves” in the 8th chapter (Cullen, 2009). This portion details the expectations that the boys had about their actions and the outcome of the same and the preemptive measures they took to cement their intent. One would, therefore, expect Cullen to proceed to the occurrence itself after such a description provides background data on why the two boys carried out the massacre. In page 294 however, the book details Eric’s entries into his diary noting that “a late autumn entry suggests the life Eric might have led had Columbine not ended it. He described tricking girls to come to his room, raping them, and then proceeding to the real fun. “I want to tear a throat out with my own teeth like a pop can,” he wrote. “I want to grab some weak little freshman and just tear them apart like a fucking wolf, strangle them, squish their head, rip off their jaw, break their arms in half, show them who is god” (Cullen, 2009). Throughout the book, Cullen does the same, detailing the occurrence while mixing it with accounts from before, during and after the incident. Through this practice the book becomes one continuous news report, examining all angles of the fateful day at Columbine high school while focusing on every detail. Further the story details viewpoints that have yet to be discussed elsewhere, providing an exciting view for the reader. From the reactions of the victims to the focus on the post-traumatic coping of the students and their families, Dave Cullen covers it all in one book, Columbine.
Reading Columbine is an interesting and captivating experience, one which offers beyond the par details to the gruesome ordeal. From the beginning, Cullen captures the interest of the reader with a close examination of the perpetrators, Eric and Dylan. The earlier chapters personify two characters later considered psychopaths with statements like “Eric outdid Dylan with the apologies” and Dylan’s apparent indecision with the event (Cullen, 2009). Besides that, Columbine explains the individual assertions of the perpetrators, bringing to the view a couple of individuals with intent and arguably questioning the essence of police work in the issues that could have led to the death of Coach Davis and a few of the other students. At several intervals, Columbine also details the tell-tale signs that the two were psychopathic and the apparent ignorance of the same. However, arguably the most intriguing section of this read is the consistent addition of facts not mentioned in any other media. Cullen consistently adds data that no reader can dig from elsewhere, like the assertions by the parents of the victims as well as the opinions from local law enforcement. The entire book is filled with Statements such as “He still had the list of the deceased. It had not changed; nor had it been confirmed. The coroner required another twenty-four hours. So he decided to risk it. He informed the families one by one. “I don't know how to tell you this” he told Bob Curnow. “You don't have to,” Curnow said. “It's written on your face” (Cullen, 2009). These revelations expand the already tragic event, detailing the gruesome scenes while explaining how people reacted to the saddening occurrence.
Although the journalist in Dave Cullen dots the book uncontrollably, a complete reading of the 432 pages details the Columbine massacre in an inescapably sensitive way. Cullen, regardless of his fireb...