Non fiction is one of those genres that I read occasionally, but I don’t often seek out. For this reason this book fits the “Not in my Wheelhouse” square of my bingo card.
So, here’s what I knew about Oklahoma before starting this book: 1- I drove through it once on a cross-country trip with my dad when we moved from New Mexico to Maryland. It was very flat and I don’t remember much more. 2- It is where the wind comes sweeping down the plains, and the waving wheat can sure smell sweet when the wind comes right behind the rain. 3-In 1995 a homegrown terrorist blew up a government building and killed multiple people, and my friend’s mom took her rescue dog down there to help with the rescuing. 4- It is where Ree Drummond, of Pioneer Woman fame, lives.
And that’s pretty much it. It’s about four more things then I know about some states, for example Arkansas, but it isn’t a whole lot all things considered. And it’s especially enraging considering it was home to one of the largest killing sprees at the turn of the 20th century, and that fact has been almost completely erased from our national history. So yes, right around the time of the oil boom of the early 20th century a ton of oil was found under the Osage reservation. This made the Osage people very, very rich and so, because they weren’t WHITE rich people they became targets for some absurdly enraging policies. Oh, and they were murdered by people who wanted to get their hands on the rich oil rights. Grann tells this story, and how the Hoover used the publicity of these murders to build a national police force in the FBI. But even with the FBI involvement, Grann points out that so many murders happened and are just unsolved. It’s enraging. And it should be enraging.
I don’t often say that a book should be required reading, but good lord does this book make a strong case for being required reading. I mean, HOW did this shameful event just kind of disappear into the annals of history? I know the answer to that.
I definitely need to read more about this topic! Usually when Oklahoma and shameful, forgotten racial history comes to mind, the Tulsa massacre pops into my head, but I am not very well read on that one either (one of the character’s in Denis Lehane’s The Given Day left Tulsa and went to Boston after the riot so I appreciated how he incorporated a less well known part of history into his Boston set novel).
It’s an interesting topic, and one of the saddest things that Grann notes near the end of the novel is that we’ll never really have a full accounting of just how many Osage were murdered for their land rights, because it was just kind of swept under the rug and if it could be passed of as an accidental death, it was.
I love David Grann’s writing, and I’ve had this on my TBR since it was published, but there are just SO MANY books. I really need to read it soon, though. I’ve heard nothing but good things, including this review.
YES, MOVE IT UP YOUR LIST. Ahem, I mean I would highly suggest this book as your next one. It’s very good.
I JUST read this. (I will wait a tiny smidge before posting my own review,) but you are 100% right in your review. Required reading for students of History. In fact, I’d wager it’d be way better than most of what is required reading in schools today.
Not just history students. I’m leaning towards putting it on high school summer reading lists throughout the country.
I’ve been girding my loins to read this one for a while. I have my suspicions based on some old family stories that this book is relevant to my family history.
That’s interesting. But I can see why it might take some girding up to do. There are some rather despicable people in those pages.
Oh man, my mom read and recommended this one! I’ve got it on my library wait list, but I’ll bump it up to holds next, thanks!