How does the parent of a monster feel the day after a tragedy? For Sue Klebold, mother of Dylan Klebold, one of the two killers that attacked and shot over twenty people at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999, the answer is a grief and shame stronger than any other pain in the world. Where did she go wrong as a parent? How could her youngest son commit such an atrocity? How could she not see it?
In A Mother's Reckoning, Klebold recounts the events from her perspective as a loving mother, and examines what may have caused her son to act. Dylan seemed to have no cause for complaints when he accomplished the unthinkable on that fateful day, and every day since Klebold has had to live with the consequences of her son's decisions. She looks at the signs she might have missed, replays several conversations she had with her son over time, and wonders if she could have done anything differently,
More than anything, however, this is a story of hope, where healing is possible and one cannot ultimately be defined by the actions of others. Drawing on journals and other evidence left by her son, Klebold has frank discussions on mental illness and what parents can do to prevent another tragedy like Columbine.
No comments:
Post a Comment