Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town in Our Shared Shelf

May 26, 2015 Maeve rated it it was amazing

Shelves: non-fiction

This book is thoroughly researched, dispassionately presented, cogent, and fantastically put together. Honestly I expect no less from Jon Krakauer at this point. I highly recommend everyone, men and women, read this book with an open mind since it addresses systems we are all a part of which contribute to the epidemic that is wider than just in Missoula. The author's note at the end about his own impetus to research and write the book, after his last book where he spent time with soldiers suffer ...more

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Jul 08, 2015 Ashley rated it really liked it

Shelves: women-s-studies, work-public-health

What a difficult, infuriating book to read. After the fiasco that was the "Rolling Stone" article, I went into "Missoula" unsure of how Krakauer would report the story, what his policy would be on pseudonyms, and how much detail he would provide about individual cases. While he's helped by the fact that at least some of these cases went to trial and have public records, many of the people he spoke with are given pseudonyms and provide essentially unverifiable information. The book does NOT suffe What a difficult, infuriating book to read. After the fiasco that was the "Rolling Stone" article, I went into "Missoula" unsure of how Krakauer would report the story, what his policy would be on pseudonyms, and how much detail he would provide about individual cases. While he's helped by the fact that at least some of these cases went to trial and have public records, many of the people he spoke with are given pseudonyms and provide essentially unverifiable information. The book does NOT suffer from this, however. Krakauer is clear about facts and policy. His writing doesn't shy away from the horror of these crimes or the complexity of proving rape in court v. a college disciplinary hearing. I'm giving it 4 instead of 5 stars because, at times, Krakauer quotes extensively from passages of newspaper articles, research papers, testimony, and other items. There were so many block quotes that it was, at times, distracting. It's a style issue but I found that it actually broke up the power of his prose and argument.

I left this book infuriated with the justice system, the education system, rape culture, and football culture. I finished this book amazed that, as a people, we doubt what women say about rape. I also feel like there's a special place in hell for women who don't help other women... You'll know who I'm talking about when you've read "Missoula." That said, I think the book also does a great job outlining why using Title IX to adjudicate rape claims in an educational context is deeply problematic. While I don't have an alternative, I do worry about systems of punishment shrouded in secrecy and without representation. Not worried enough to suggest we ought to get rid of Title IX, but sympathetic to arguments about how Title IX is woefully inappropriate for this kind of thing.

In all, I'm glad I read "Missoula." It's a book that, obviously, should have all the trigger warnings attached to it. Still, it's an important investigation into rape, rape culture, and justice in the United States. It's also an important corrective to the "Rolling Stone" piece.
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