On April 20, 1999, two Colorado teenagers went on a shooting rampage at Columbine High School. That day, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed twelve fellow students and a teacher, as well as wounding twenty-four other people, before they killed themselves. Although there have been other books written about the tragedy, this is the first serious, impartial investigation into the cultural, environmental, and psychological causes of the massacre. Based on first-hand interviews and a thorough reading of the relevant literature, Ralph Larkin examines the complex of factors that led the two young men to plan and carry out their deed. For Harris and Klebold, Larkin concludes, the carnage was an act of revenge against the "jocks" who had harassed and humiliated them, retribution against evangelical students who acted as if they were morally superior, an acting out of the mythology of right-wing paramilitary organization members to "die in a blaze of glory," and a deep desire for notoriety. Rather than simply looking at Columbine as a crucible for all school violence, Larkin places the tragedy in its proper context, and in doing so, examines its causes and meaning.

Table of Contents

Armageddon (Well, Almost) God's Country Culture Wars at Columbine The Peer Structure of Columbine High The Other Columbine Eric and Dylan From Oklahoma City to Columbine Dead Celebrities Give Peace a Chance

Prizes

The definitive book on the school massacre that shocked the world

Reviews

Think you know all there is to know about the Columbine school massacre (4/20/1999)? Think again. Larkin (Suburban Youth in Cultural Crisis) covers known and little-known details, aiming to answer why Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold went on their shooting rampage. One of the primary explanations that arose soon after the shootings was that the boys had been bullied. Larkin discusses "The Predators," a group of jocks who strolled the school hallways looking for victims. Harris, Klebold, and others were constantly taunted with epithets, shoved against and into lockers, and had bottles and other objects thrown at them. According to students Larkin interviewed, several of the athletes who participated in the bullying were "deep Christians," or evangelicals, part of a religious elitism that existed among the student population and outside the school. Larkin also tackles how phenomena such as youth counterculture, "angry white men," and celebrity deaths could have factored into the shootings. Some will say that Columbine doesn't need any more scrutinizing. But after the recent Virginia Tech shootings, people will be looking for more insights into youth who feel ostracized and ways to help them avoid feeling so alienated in the first place. There is an audience for this book, which should be considered by public and academic libraries.-Terry Christner, Hutchinson P.L., KS Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

"Larkin creates a powerful lens to examine the complexities of the socio-cultural and psychopathogical forces which contributed to the Columbine tragedy... he does an excellent job of situating school shootings in the larger cultural landscape of violence in America. Larkin's book is destined to be the definitive work on the Columbine shootings." Raymond Calluori, New Jersey Institute of Technology "This book is not just about Harris & Klebold's motivations . . It is about the influence of social structure on those labeled as outsiders . . about structurally entrenched sources of gendered violence and degradation." Peter Freund, Montclair State University "Think you know all there is to know about the Columbine school massacre (4/20/1999)? Think again. Larkin covers known and little-known details, aiming to answer why Eric Harris and Dylan Keble went on their shooting rampage...Some will say that Columbine doesn't need any more scrutinizing. But after the recent Virginia Tech shootings, people will be looking for more insights into youth who feel ostracized and ways to help them avoid feeling so alienated in the first place. There is an audience for this book, which should be considered by public and academic libraries." Library Journal "Larkin's book is obviously the result of a great deal of research... He provides interesting history and details of both the perpetrators of this horrendous shooting, Harris and Klebold." Metapsychology Online "Larkin has undertaken an important task in this work. He deconstructs the Columbine High School tragedy, attempting to reach an objective understanding of a complicated event that has become tangled in myth and emotion. He presents the events at Columbine carefully before examining the influences that may have contributed to this crisis... The author pulls the reader closer to the situation by including narrative from his interviews, quotes from important sources, and specific examples. The resulting work is well organized and written...The content of this book should be required reading for school administrators, educators, counselors, and others who work regularly with young people" Choice