Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann

BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS
PRINT: © 4/18/2017; 978-0385534246; Doubleday illustrated edition; 352 pages; unabridged. (Hardcover info from Amazon.com)
DIGITAL: © 4/18/2017; 978-0316563789; Vintage; 347 pages; unabridged. (Kindle info from Amazon.com)
*AUDIO: © 4/18/2017; Random House Audio; Duration: 9:04:00; unabridged. (Audio info from Amazon.com)
(FILM: Yes 10/20/2023)

SERIES: No

Major CHARACTERS: (Not Comprehensive)
Mollie Burkhart – Protagonist- Osage Native American with Oil Head Rights.
Lizzie Q – Mollie’s mother - Osage Native American with Oil Head Rights
Anna Brown – Mollie’s sister - Osage Native American with Oil Head Rights
Bryan Burkhart – Mollie’s brother-in-law, Ernest’s brother.
Rita – Mollie’s sister
Henry Roan - Osage Native American with Oil Head Rights
Ernest Burkhart – Mollie’s Caucasian husband
John Wren – Undercover agent
William Hale – Ernest’s Uncle
Tom White – Investigator with the FBI

SUMMARY/ EVALUATION:
SELECTED: When the movie came ‘out, my friend, Isa, mentioned she would be seeing the movie and had read this book twice.
ABOUT: In the 20th century, land (including mineral rights) that had been considered worthless and so had been assigned to the Osage Nation in Oklahoma, was discovered to have oil. The Osage nation, therefor, were supposed to reap the benefits, but Caucasians sought every means possible to take the rights from them. These means included becoming guardians under the auspices that an Osage was not competent (especially with the women), marrying them to share their wealth, murder, contriving fake debts and deeds upon the death of an Osage, and more.
OVERALL OPINION: This book is an interesting and thorough account of the situation and deaths of countless Osage Natives, as well as of many of those involved in the Osage peoples’ deaths, and with the investigations of them.

AUTHOR: David Grann: Excerpts from Wikipedia:
“David Elliot Grann (born March 10, 1967) is an American journalist, a staff writer for The New Yorker, and author.
His first book, The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon, was published by Doubleday in February 2009. After its first week of publication, it debuted on The New York Times bestseller list at #4[1] and later reached #1.[2] Grann's articles have been collected in several anthologies, including What We Saw: The Events of September 11, 2001, The Best American Crime Writing of 2004 and 2005, and The Best American Sports Writing of 2003 and 2006.[3] He has written for The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Weekly Standard.[3]
According to a profile in Slate, Grann has a reputation as a "workhorse reporter", which has made him a popular journalist who "inspires a devotion in readers that can border on the obsessive."[4]
Early life
Grann was born on March 18, 1967, to Phyllis E. Grann and Victor Grann. His mother is the former CEO of Putnam Penguin and the first woman CEO of a major publishing firm.[5] His father is an oncologist and Director of the Bennett Cancer Center in Stamford, Connecticut. Grann has two siblings, Edward and Alison.[6]”

*So which is it, March 10 or March 18 (birth)? I will be looking into his other books either way. ( )

Well researched and written book about the mistreatment of the Osage people. It was an interesting look at the beginnings of the FBI and also the investigative research completed by the author long after the fact. Much better than the movie. ( )

For years Native Americans were forced off their lands and relocated. The Osage Nation wound up in a rocky, infertile area of northeast Oklahoma. That would normally be the end of story, except the land turned out to be rich in oil. Then, one by one, generation after generation of Osage people were systematically killed for their land rights. The majority of murders were never solved, and the few who were found guilty, never served their full sentence. David Grann documents a web of conspiracy spanning decades and killing hundreds.

The book was an eye opener for me, showcasing the prevalence of greed in our society. A shocking example of corruption, depravity, and discrimination on all levels. Crimes that were washed away with time, this is a story that needs be told and lessons learned from it. In the words of a descendant of a victim, "The blood cries out from the ground." ( )

**4.5 Star Rating**

This was such an interesting and eye-opening nonfiction story that help continue to share the narrative that the Native people of the Americas are continuously mistreating in the systems we have built in our country. The narrative is split into three sections that helps readers process the story as they unfolded in history. I appreciated the research and time that went into the story, as well as the nod to generation trauma that still impacts the families involved to this day. Very glad I read this book to open my eyes to historical events that are not talked about enough. ( )

Title: Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI
Author: David Grann
Narrators: Will Patton (Narrator), Ann Marie Lee (Narrator), Danny Campbell (Narrator)
Publisher: Random House Publisher
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Five
Review:
"Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

My Perception:

'Killers of the Flower Moon' was quite a sad read of what happened to the Osage people a hundred years ago. I was left saying, wow... this occurred in the U.S. Can one believe this? Are we finally seeing how there is so much evil and corruption in our American government that happened so long ago still going on in some form, even today? Oh yes, I can. I am an Afro-American, and I know it has happened here in the U.S. not only to my race but to other races, too. Thank you to this author for bringing this story about the Osage people to light.

This author did an excellent job explaining what happened in 'The Reign of Terror and the Osage Murders of Killers of the Flower Moon.' David Grann's research, recordings, documents, and photographs were very well presented, giving the reader quite a good read.

What gets me is how these people [white] got away with this for so long. Oh, no, really, we know why that happened! It was so good to finally see things come to a head, only to find out later that there was still important information that had not been presented. Now, what was left out? This is where you must pick up this read to see what that was and how it was brought out. But was anything done about it? Oh, I know, it was too late; they all were dead by then! Thank God for the wonderful character, Tom White, an FBI agent who cared; I will leave it at that.

This story was an alarming piece of history that some wouldn't want to come to light, but it did! The reader will see how the Osage people were horribly treated by [white] people, which left me .. well, I will stop here. All that is left to say is this has happened not only to the Osage but to many other races. All that is left to say is that this is the America we live in, like it or not. ( )