One of Us: The Story of a Massacre in Norway -- and Its Aftermath Paperback – April 12, 2016

"All over the island, sounds were ringing out. The opening notes of a symphony, a Justin Bieber song, the signature tune of The Sopranos , or just standard ringtones. Many of the phones were set to silent, because their owners had been trying to hide and did not want to be given away by their phones. Now their mobiles were lighting up soundlessly in the darkness. Some through a blanket, in a pocket, in a stiffened hand. They were calls that would never be answered."This is a read for those who care to plunge into darkness, who can read on, knowing already the outcome. Not a light read. But a great read. A look into the darkness that stares back at you with cold eyes.Anders Brievek killed 77 people in July of 2011 in Norway. This is the story, excellently told. Is he a madman? Is he just ruthless, misguided, is he evil?  He is all of the above, but he is also "one of us".  As I write this, a gunman has just killed 9 worshippers, African Americans, in a church in Charleston, South Carolina. A young man has just been sentenced to death for being part of a bombing in Boston at the end of the Boston marathon. They call them extremists...terrorists.Thinking about ABB (what most call him to avoid saying his name) certainly brings horror for me. Hearing the story made me sob for all the lives filled with so much promise who were lost. You get to know them, their families, their short lives before they were extinguished.I highly recommend reading this chilling and painful story. Contemplate what creates these people, these monsters who can kill so readily. Follow up the reading with the review of the book by Karl Ove Knausgaard in the New Yorker. Both Norwegian writers covering their countries tragedy.

This is a very vivid and detailed accounting of Anders Breivik and his possible motivations for committing one of the most heinous mass murders of our time. Seierstad does a very scholarly job of piecing together an enthralling tapestry of Breivik's childhood, adolescence and young adulthood, using Breivik's own written thoughts and input from those who know him best. The author also does a very good job of giving us insight into the lives of several of his victims and their immediate families. By doing so, the reader feels more viscerally the horror of the murderous acts that Breivik commits and especially the pain of seeing so many young lives cut short. My only complaint is that sometimes Seierstad gives too much detail of the minutiae in Breivik's life. I felt that many of the themes of his psychological development were plowed over and over. Overall, it is an excellent read.

I'm a bit late in reading Norwegian author Asne Seierstad's book, "One of Us: The Story of Anders Breivik and the Massacre in Norway". This book is a compelling and tragic account of the hunting down and murder of 69 teenagers on an island near Oslo by lone gunman, Anders Behring Breivik, after having murdered seven others in a bomb explosion in the city of Oslo. The day of tragedy happened in 2011 and the "crime" these young people "committed" was being part of a youth group of a Norwegian political party known for it's multiculturalism. The mass murderer was a 32 year old man who was, of course, a "loner", but an adherent of an anti-Islamic sentiments. He decried the way Islamic groups were taking over parts of European society and wanted to rid the Norwegian society of young people of the Workers Youth League, who he saw as perpetuating the policy he hated.Asne Seierstad's book has been chosen by the New York Times as one of their 10 best book for 2015. I hadn't heard of it before reading the article. The book, a long one, is a study of both the murderer, and three of the victims of the shootings. The writing is "spare", but astoundingly complete as Seierstad has taken a complex subject - both political and personal - and brought them together. Some other reviewers point out this "spareness" of writing as a negative, but I simply don't see how she could have told the story in less spare terms. Certainly what Seierstad was writing about had incredible pathos and more florid writing would have gotten in the way of the story.Asne Seierstad's book is a haunting look at a mass murderer and his victims. You won't forget it.

This was a stunning read, richly researched, Cooley but excitingly written, a book very difficult to put down, and once out down impossible to forget. I can hardly remember another book I have read that gripped me so deeply. It raises many crucial questions in this age of terrorism. First, just how is terrorism to be be defined? Was Breivik terrorist or murderer? Second, was he mad or a reasoned political actor, whose actions were murder for a cause? Third, was he only delusional in his notion of being a commander in the Knights Templar movement, of which there seems to be no evidence of its existence, or was a sort of victim of right wing internet absurdities? Much of his trial and conviction revolved around these sorts of questions. He is in prison in Norway because he was found responsible for his actions, but precisely how that responsibility is to be construed is far from clear. This is masterful reporting in every way, and I urgent you to read this extraordinary book. It will haunt me for a long time.

Excelente libro que nos invita a vernos de manera profunda como sociedad. Esta historia no habla solo del victimario si no de Las personas que lo rodean, lo forman y de aquellos que cayeron.

Très bon livre, bcp de recherches par l'auteur -- peut-être un peu trop, à mon goût, au niveau du l'arrière-plan des personnages. Mais bon, elle nous met dans le bain et on ressent toutes les angoisses des concernés. Bon portrait du tueur, nous permettant de suivre son parcours. Ames sensibles s'abstenir...

Not only is the simple eloquence of this book hard to match, the emphasis on the stories of the victims and survivors is interwoven beautifully with the necessary, horrific narrative.It's very rare to find a "true crime" work like this. It is WELL worth the money.NB: all profits from the sales of her book go to a foundation administered by the families of the victims.

Leider nur auf Englisch. Titel: Einer von uns. Direkt aus dem Norwegischen übersetzt.Die Autorin ist eine Journalistin und Kriegsberichterstatterin und beschreibt in diesem Buch minutiös, wie der Terrorangriff auf das Regierungsgebäude in Oslo und das anschließende Massaker auf der Insel Utoya, auf der das jährliche Treffen der Jugendbewegung der norwegischen Arbeiterpartei stattfand, ablief. Demnach war das Motiv des Täters Aufmerksamkeit zu wecken für seine Ansichten, dass die Arbeiterpartei der Islamisierung und damit der Übernahme durch den Islam von Norwegen und Europa Vorschub leistet, indem sie für die Integration von Einwanderern eintritt und Multikulturalismus auf ihre Fahnen schreibt.Die Autorin hat dem Prozess über 2 Monate beigewohnt, alle Prozessunterlagen eingesehen, mit den Hinterbliebenen der Opfer und den Überlebenden und auch mit der Mutter des Täters selbst gesprochen. Sie hat als Journalistin hier ganze Arbeit geleistet.Das Buch wechselt zwischen Schilderungen der bisherigen Leben der jugendlichen Opfer und der Schilderung des Lebens des Täters.Das Leben Anders Behring Brevik's bis zur Tat wird sehr ausführlich dargestellt aufgrund von Aussagen seiner selbst im Prozeß, seinen Mitschülern, Freunden, Kollegen und seiner Mutter. Auch seine Eltern, insbesondere das Leben seiner Mutter werden ebenfalls detailliert dargestellt. Der Vater hat sich anscheinend an der Erziehung wenig beteiligt und lehnte eine Stellungnahme ab.Neben der minutiösen Schilderung der Taten erschreckt die Planlosigkeit und Hilflosigkeit der Polizei und Streitkräfte, die durch Inkompetenz,Fehlentscheidungen, Missverständnisse und fehlende Kommunikation die Zahl der jugendlichen Opfer auf Utoya auf 69 ansteigen ließen.Das Buch ist schwere Kost. Die Autorin stellt alles nebeneinander und bewertet nichts. Die ausführliche Beschreibung der Kommunikation innerhalb der verantwortlichen, aber keine Entscheidungen treffenden Polizistin und nicht stattgefundenen Weitergabe der Täterbeschreibung nach dem Attentat in Oslo an alle norwegischen Polizeidienstellen lässt allerdings darauf schließen, dass die Autorin die Schuldigen an der Zahl der Opfer, natürlich neben dem Täter, präzise benennen möchte.Warum es bis heute keine deutsche Übersetzung gibt, kann man sich nur fragen.

Libro muy bien narrado y excelentemente documentado, imprescindible para interesados en la tragedia. Lástima que no haya encontrado versión en español para que llegue a más personas.