Have any more people read "A Mother's Reckoning" by now?

[AFwife Claire]

I picked this book up from the library Friday on a whim, because I recognized it from a reading a thread about it here back in February.  (A Mother's Reckoning is by Sue Klebold, the mother of Dylan Klebold, one of the Columbine shooters.)  I finished reading it this afternoon, and wow, was it powerful.  I thought I would never be able to read it because I tend to get very emotionally involved in books, and I thought it would just be too difficult.  Suprisingly, I did not find it hard to get through--in fact, I could hardly put it down.  I did cry a lot, and I felt like the mother's deep despair and regret really jumped off every page, so that was hard. But it wasn't graphic or anything.  She was brutally honest about coming to grips with the fact that her son had freely committed this atrocity, and how deceived she (and many others) had been.

 

I thought the most important part was her research and discussion about teen depression and suicidal tendencies.  I really learned so much, like that teenage boy depression shows up in very different ways than what we typically think of as depression (lethargy and sadness).  It's more like irritibility, self-criticism, frustration, etc.  Those are all very common teenage boy problems, but connecting them, and watching for changes in these areas, might be a way to better recognize depression. 

 

I don't have much experience with depression, suicide, or things like that (certainly not mass murderers!), and I think I had always just sort of blithely held assumptions like she did--my kids are loved, secure, and supported, so they would never get depressed/act on that.  The book was very eye-opening for me, personally. I have one son who has always tended to have a more Eyeore-like personality, tends to think of himself as a victim, more likely to withdraw.  I am hoping that this book will help me be able to engage with him better.

 

Our area (Loudoun County, VA) has had 2 teen suicides in the past year, and it has been subject on a lot of people's minds.  One teen was even seen by a school counselor, but the school and administration never let his parents know he was struggling with suicidal thoughts/depression, which was against protocol. Now the parents are suing the school system to try to get some accountability.   I guess I'm just saying it is still easy to ignore signs, and I am really encouraging all my friends with kids to read this book.  

[Rachel]

I read it recently, it was a powerful book. I appreciated her concern for the other parents and how she still loved her own son despite what happened. I just can't imagine. Hearing her story opened my eyes in a lot of ways.

 

I was sad she and her husband's marriage fell apart after all they went through. I also thought it was neat that Nate stayed in touch with her.