Monday, August 6, 2018

Book Review - Killers of the Flower Moon


Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann is a non-fiction work of literary journalism that reads like a mystery.  It concerns the Osage murders and the birth of the FBI.

Cover blurb – In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma. Oil was discovered beneath their land and the money poured out of the earth into a life of mansions and cars.

Then the murders began. We see the story from the viewpoint of Mollie Burkhart as her sisters became prime targets and relatives were shot and poisoned. Others in the Osage nation died under mysterious circumstances, and even those doing investigations ended up dead. The death toll rose and the overall case was taken up by the new FBI and young director, J. Edgar Hoover. Hoover turned to Tom White, a former Texas Ranger. He in turn used an undercover team that included a Native American agent. They infiltrated this last remnant of the Wild West, and together with the Osage began to expose one of the most chilling conspiracies in American history.

Gann’s research is thorough and his writing is clean. You meet the characters, learn the backgrounds, and are invested in the Osage and their families. Not everyone is clean and pure, but the cold hearted deaths are inexcusable. This book shoots straight in its presentation, and the words will pierce your heart.  Killers of the Flower Moon is an enlightening read.



14 comments:

  1. Sounds like an enlightening one indeed. Greed sure brings forth the evil of man.

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    1. sadly yes. I feel very bad about what the white man did to the Osage (and so many other nations)

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  2. That's a story I've never heard about. A hundred years now for the FBI, huh?

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    1. yes - and they did a good job in ferreting out the bad guys in this situation

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  3. Hi Joanne - this sounds like a fascinating read ... with some horrific outcomes. I may well get it ... thanks for the great write up - cheers Hilary

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    1. this is right up your alley. Trust me - well written. Plus you'll want to learn more - I have no doubt you'll be looking up stuff.

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    2. Hi Joanne - I've read it now ... and was horrified by what was hidden, and still is, from an investigative point of view. I've noted the Allotment Act and the manner the Osage's fought for their headrights and land-mineral holdings ... it has made interesting reading for me - thanks. It's a good resource to have read, noted and absorbed into the little grey cells!

      Now way too many other things to read up about and look at ... but thanks for the recommendation ... it's opened my eyes to a few things - cheers Hilary

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  4. Greed is not a very nice thing to have in your life.
    Loved thee review Joanne.

    Yvonne.

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    1. thanks. Indeed, the crimes here were quite egregious

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  5. This sounds like a very interesting book! Thanks for the review.

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  6. Wow - I'd never heard of the Osage murders. This sounds chilling.

    Happy Tuesday, Joanne.

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  7. Sounds like a fascinating story. Thanks for the review!

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