Columbine Paperback – 17 April 2009

This is a fascinating description of an horrific act which has become a byword for spree killings at schools and colleges. The author describes exactly what happened and brings together all the information from various sources including interviews with some of those involved. Although he points to a few explanations and possible causes you won't finish this book with an understanding of exactly why these two young men did what they did - it does seem very much as though there is no real explanation because their motivation and thought processes are having to be reconstructed from what they left behind.What happened at Columbine could have been much worse. The perpetrators actually planned to set off bombs that would have destroyed the whole school and all those within it. The fact that this failed meant that those who dies were limited to those who were shot - that doesn't make it any better. The book works chronologically through the story and tells it through a number of eyes - mainly those where the author has had interview evidence. This does mean that he has had to choose which parts of the story to tell and naturally he has had to impose a narrative on the events so if you were studying this event you would need more sources but for the casual reader like myself it feels comprehensive and I certainly felt that I understood what had happened even if I didn't understand why. The author also mentions some shady work by law enforcement to hide what might have been inadequacies in the investigation as well as hinting about possible collusion from others which was never proved (I suspect he is being very careful here because of possible legal action taken against him).I can't say that I enjoyed this book but I found it compelling reading. Following through the series of events building up to the massacre and then its aftermath made the book easy to grasp and I thought that the author did a good job of showing us where the evidence came from for his view on events. For a British reader the thing which is hardest to grasp here is how these young men could have had access to to firearms and explosives so easily and why gun control is so opposed in the USA following this sort of event. For me, I found this a horrifying insight into actions that I don't think I will ever understand.

It's hard to put into words the experience of reading this book; I think the whole world knows what happened at Columbine but this book opened my eyes to so much information that I didn't know. And it was hard to read. Dave Cullen spent over 10 years looking into the events of Columbine, being one of the first reporters arriving at the school and needing to understand why, just why did two seemingly normal kids decide and plan for over a year to do this.This was such a heart-breaking read, to really understand what the people of Columbine School went through on this day and the long-term impact on those there that day, the families, and the professionals involved with the families. Certain moments of this book really got to me, and it's hard not to be emotionally affected by this book. It's an event that is wholly unimaginable unless you've lived it and Columbine was one of the first school shootings of this level and so the response was chaotic and shock.Cullen really explores the events of what happened and the police response; it is absolutely horrifying to see how many years the police force tried to bury evidence and reports about what happened and the lead up events that could have maybe shown what the killers were going to do. I can't even imagine the betrayal and anger the families must have felt, finding out all this information up to a decade after the shooting. Cullen sheds light on the families, the friends, and the events leading up and after the shooting - how those injured and the families have tried to move on and reclaim their lives. What really came across was the importance of not letting their lives be defined by this one event; they would be forever changed by it but they wouldn't let it stop them living their lives.Reading this book, initially published in 2009, and yet thinking how relevant everything he writes to America today, is just mind-blowing. Have the politicians learned nothing?This book was a powerful and insightful read and one that will stay with me; I think it is one that everyone needs to read.

I’ve been wanting to read this book for a while after picking up Dave Cullen’s Parkland at my local library. Although I did not enjoy Parkland that much - it focused mainly on the movement that the kids started after the Parkland shooting and not the shooting itself - I thought Columbine was a great read. It described the lives of the shooters, the events leading up to the shooting, what happened on the day and the aftermath of the tragedy. I enjoyed every minute of it and I felt that the author managed to bust the myths surrounding this shooting, such as the shooters being goths and loners, etc. I would definitely recommend this book!

This book arrived this morning and ime already on Chapter 18 ime not even quarter way through but i cant put it down Dave Cullens made an excellent job of shooting down the myths like they were bullied and girls didnt like them completly untrue i had no idea actually just how popular eric and dylan was til i read this book and also shooting down a conspiracy theory about multiple shooters simply explained by dave they started the shooting in a trench coat then took them off this would give the illusion that there was more than 2 shooters when simply it was a coat being removed but anyway i wont ruin it this is a must buy 10/10