From the Bookshelf of On The Same Page …

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI

David Grann

Start date: January 1, 2024

Finish date: March 31, 2024

Discussion: 2024 Nonfiction Challenges

Why we're reading this: Poll winner for the nonfiction quarterly read for 1Q24.
[close] Poll winner for the nonfiction quarterly read for 1Q24.

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 10 topics — 124 comments total

2024 Nonfiction Challenges

This topic has been closed to new comments.

* 1Q25 Nonfiction Group Read Nominations
By Jennifer , Moderator · 5 posts · 12 views

last updated Dec 01, 2024 05:03PM

2024 Non Fiction Reader Challenge
By Bill , Moderator · 70 posts · 69 views

last updated Dec 29, 2024 03:12AM

What Members Thought

Oct 17, 2019 Lorna rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: native-americans, bound-together, fifty-books-of-the-west, law, non-fiction, 50-books-of-the-west, oklahoma, history, pinnacle-book-club, federal-bureau-of-investigation

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann was a riveting book about the plight of the Osage people as they were driven from their homeland in Kansas in the late 1800's to the new territory of Oklahoma by the early twentieth century. Interestingly, the author points out that Oklahoma means "red people" in the Choctaw language.

After the discovery of oil on reservation of the Osage people and the assignation of "head rights" to the Osage people, there wa Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann was a riveting book about the plight of the Osage people as they were driven from their homeland in Kansas in the late 1800's to the new territory of Oklahoma by the early twentieth century. Interestingly, the author points out that Oklahoma means "red people" in the Choctaw language.

After the discovery of oil on reservation of the Osage people and the assignation of "head rights" to the Osage people, there was a pattern of untimely and suspicious deaths of many of the Osage and affecting an inordinately large number of families. Ultimately there was a local sheriff that began to take an active interest in some of these deaths determining that it was related to the theft and misdirection of the "head rights" to the oil. It was at this time the new young director of the newly founded Federal Bureau of Investigation, J. Edgar Hoover sent former Texas Ranger and FBI special agent, Tom White, to Oklahoma to begin an intensive investigation into the ultimate question of how many of the suspicious deaths of the Osage people were actually murder. What follows is a gripping account of a true crime story taken from the pages of history. It should be noted that there are many historical photographs included throughout the book which adds to one's understanding and experience of this very tragic time in American history.

"Today our hearts are divided between two worlds. We are strong and courageous, learning to walk in these two worlds, hanging on to the threads of our culture and traditions as we live in a predominantly non-Indian society. Our history, our culture, our heart, and our home will always be stretching our legs across the plains, singing songs in the early morning light, and placing our feet down with the ever beating heart of the drum. We walk in two worlds."

"By the early twentieth century, Bigheart and other Osage knew that they could no longer avoid what the government official called the 'great storm' gathering. The U.S. Government planned to break up Indian Territory and make it a part of a new state called Oklahoma."

The historian Burns once wrote, To believe that the Osages survived intact from their ordeal is a delusion of the mind. What has been possible to salvage has been saved and is dearer to our hearts because it survived. What is gone is treasured because it was what we once were. We gather our past and present into the depths of our being and face tomorrow. We are still Osage. We live and we reach old age for our forefathers." ...more

64 likes · Like · see review

Aug 17, 2022 Kristine rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: challenge-2013-2022-books, non-fiction-crime, audio-books, mysteries-and-thrillers, countries-usa, challenges-books-tome-500, pub-aug, non-fiction-political, award-nominated

Excellent Book that is True, but reads better then the best fiction. This is a riveting tale of the Wild West in Oklahoma and the Osage Indians that were very wealthy because they owned the rights to the oil beneath their land. Then several Osage Indians start becoming ill. Next, Anna Brown goes missing, but her sister Mollie Burkhart is sure something terrible has happened. She has already lost her young sister to a mysterious illness just three years ago. She is right about Anna, too as her de Excellent Book that is True, but reads better then the best fiction. This is a riveting tale of the Wild West in Oklahoma and the Osage Indians that were very wealthy because they owned the rights to the oil beneath their land. Then several Osage Indians start becoming ill. Next, Anna Brown goes missing, but her sister Mollie Burkhart is sure something terrible has happened. She has already lost her young sister to a mysterious illness just three years ago. She is right about Anna, too as her dead body is found and she was shot. Than Mollie’s mother becomes ill and dies. Are these deaths a coincidence or is something much more sinister going on?

Several in the area are loosely Law Enforcement, as people of power basically control the area. Still, one man, a deputy sheriff, Willliam Hale is disturbed by Anna’s death and promises Mollie and her white husband, Ernest Burkhart that he is going to find out who killed Anna. Nothing comes of it though. After this Private Investigators are hired to try to find evidence about Anna’s killing and many possible poisoning to the Osage People. The problem is no one really sees the Indians as having any value except for the millions they make off of oil. They are viewed as Savages and Ignorant. The Indians don’t believe any justice will ever come to murdered Osage Indians when the White Man is in charge. They are frightened constantly about who will die next.

This is when the just emerging FBI, that Edgar Hoover assigns a new agent, Tom White to solve these murders. Tom White is professional, hard working, and dedicated to finally finding out who is killing the Osage, almost certainly due to the money they are making. He and his team must push through a lot of corruption, bribery, and lying to figure this case out. It is amazing that they did and a just trial takes place. Reading this book was just riveting because this is a murder mystery and also it is not considered serious because it is being done to Indians.

I rated it 4* since after the crime was finally solved, there was more with different families and many people possibly involved with their murders. It became too many people to keep track of at that point. Also, there were updates on the current family members and how they were doing. This was interesting, but was too extended and thought these additions were too much of the book.

Overall, highly recommend this book. There is so much factual information to learn and also was fascinating the scene at the time. The difference was this time the Indians actually were the very wealthy people and others became interested in seeing them gone due to greed.

Thank you Debbie and Ann Marie for both suggesting this book to me. I finally got to it and had the Audio, too, making it that much better. ...more

48 likes · Like · see review

Apr 11, 2018 Colleen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: lakeville-book-club, uno-reads-2018

“The blood cries out from the ground.” -God told Cain after he killed Abel.

14 likes · Like · see review

Jul 14, 2018 Tawallah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: award-book, books-i-actually-owe, audiobook, true-crime

This story made me so angry. Nothing at all to do with the writing. How this tribe was abused was awful. And because of prevailing attitude at the time, the Reign of Terror has affected generations to this day. When you think you have reached the bottom, Grann unearths details that leave you gobsmacked and speechless. Often you have to remind yourself that this is a true crime. Just as engaging as In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. A definite must read.

I listened on Audible and enjoyed all the nar ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

Mar 05, 2019 Nanci rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction

This is such an important story and one I had no idea happened to this group of Native Americans. It is a sad, horrific account that normally would have evoked all types of emotions in me, but the writing just didn't get me there. It was annoyingly repetitive and I had to drag myself to finish it. Just way too much telling and not enough showing. It is an important story and I learned a lot, but I would have preferred a different format. ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Aug 17, 2018 Natalie [genreneutralreader] rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This non-fiction book was really interesting. While no one is surprised to hear that the US government treated Native Americans badly from the start, the situation with the Osage was so different and unique that I had literally never heard anything like it. So the US drives the Osage from their homeland in Kansas, gives them what was thought to be a worthless piece of land in Oklahoma, then when it turned out to be rich with oil, the government decided the Osage were too wealthy for their own co ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jul 26, 2018 Kelle rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own-copy, pbs-now-read-this

Rough reading in regards to how the Osage were treated and how their killers were not brought to justice. Hard to believe how depraved and indifferent people were and frankly probably still are towards other human beings. I applaud the author for his research and tireless efforts to bring light to this pitiful part of history. I'm glad I read this, but it left a sick feeling in my soul. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Oct 15, 2017 ✿✿✿May rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks, non-fiction, crimes-mysteries-thrillers, 2017

Just fascinating! Learnt so much about something I had no knowledge of. It was intriguing from beginning to end.

Like · see review

Jan 14, 2020 Steph rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction

The story of the Osage murders is heinous and it's sad that we Americans don't learn about such important parts of our history. I'm thankful to have been introduced to the Osage nation, but the author's dry writing leaves something to be desired ...more

Like · see review