Anne

In Columbine, Dave Cullen tells the story of a uniquely American mass murder. On April 20th, 1999 two disaffected young men began a killing spree in their high school that killed thirteen and wounded twenty-one more. Cullen, a reporter who responded to the emergency calls, reconstructs the events. Columbine challenges the narrative that emerged in the aftermath of the massacre (including the fate of “the martyr of Columbine,” Cassie Bernall) and analyzes the media’s fascination with the murders’ comfortable, middleclass backgrounds. Cullen then turns to the inevitable question of why these particular boys committed this horrible crime. The more he delves into the minds of the killers, the more one comes to realize these children were an aberration, a psychopath who gave warning signals and his depressed follower. Cullen’s sharp and incisive reportage makes Columbine an addictive and cautionary read.

In The Gap Series, Stephen R. Donaldson combines hi-tech space travel, interplanetary war and economic brinksmanship between civilizations that span entire galaxies. Like Frank Herbert’s Dune, The Gap is a rich, complicated and tightly woven story told through the eyes of a small cast of characters. Unlike Dune, The Gap is harsh, gritty and violent. Enjoy the ride as you follow the exploits of the deeply scarred yet sexy Cpt. Nick Succorso, his nemesis, the warped Angus Thermopylae and the glorious but broken Lt. Morn Hyland. The “Real Story” emerges in the precarious balance between huge corporations, high-stakes politics, alien invasion and the fate of man’s very humanity.

Ed Viesturs is the most respected climber in the world, the Zelig of contemporary mountaineering. In the books and documentaries on Everest, K2, Aconcagua and other mountains of the Greater Ranges, one always notices Viesturs in the corner, watching, commenting and climbing with the best of the best. Viesturs focuses more on the history of K2 than his own treacherous 1992 ascent. Yet his exposition is infused with guts, humor and wisdom borne of personal experience. K2 is well worth close attention.