Killers of the Flower Moon

The Osage tribe has had more than their fair share of difficulties in the past 200 years.  In 1810, the Osage were moved from their ancestral land to a reservation in Oklahoma.  However, they relocated again when settlers began to encroach on their lands, this time buying their new land in allotments.  This move made them one of the first land-owning tribes in the American territories and would become a financial windfall for the members when oil was discovered in the early 1900’s.  Osage county became one of the richest areas in the country as the tribe reaped the benefits of the many oil rigs that sprung to life around them.  But with the good came bad as the tribe was rocked by a series of mysterious deaths.  After prompting from local law enforcement as the body count grew, the Bureau of Investigation stepped in to look for a link between these unexplained deaths.  That investigation would kickstart the careers of many law enforcement stars and would act as the first major case solved by the group who become today’s FBI.

Killers of the Flower Moon is a well-researched and documented investigation into the Osage murders.  David Grann used both primary resources, interviews, and never before published documents to retrace the FBI’s investigation while looking for facts or connections they may not have made a century before.  The depth of his research paints a picture of the conditions in Osage County at the time of these deaths and provides new revelations not contained in the original investigation.

I give Killers of the Flower Moon 4 out of 5 stars.  I appreciate the hard work Grann put in to this novel and the transparency of his investigation as noted in the final section of the book.  I also enjoyed the photos that are peppered throughout the book – the portraits give the story a more human feel.  However, the first section of the book felt slow and I found myself wanting to jump ahead.  I am glad I did push through – that first section had background information that helped make the case for the connections Grann made later on.

Given the topic of violent murder and poisoning, this book may not be suitable for younger audiences under 13.  I would recommend this work for history lovers and those looking to learn more about the American West.  This was not a topic I remember learning about in school and this book is a great resource for learners.

I chose Killers of the Flower Moon for the Booklist Queen Reading Challenge prompt “becoming a movie in 2023”.  There are several great books becoming movies or TV shows this year such as Daisy Jones & the Six and Oppenheimer. Before I came across this book, I wasn’t familiar with the movie – it will release on October 20^th and has an all-star cast including Jesse Plemons as the lead FBI agent Tom White and Robert De Niro as the brains behind the scheme William Hale.  This Martin Scorsese film also includes names like Brendan Frasier, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow, and Leonardo Dicaprio.  I can’t wait for its release!

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What I’m Reading

• Current print book: Banyan Moon, Thao Thai
• Current audio book: The Radium Girls, Kate Moore
• Book I’m most looking forward to: Patriot Games, Tom Clancy