Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town

An Amazon Best Book of April 2015: Toward the end of this powerful, absorbing book, best-selling author Jon Krakauer quotes a jury member as she sums up popular assumptions about sexual assault: “(1) A stranger jumps out from the bushes; (2) There is no (assault) unless the woman puts up a fight, to the death if necessary.” The truth is much different—assaults by acquaintances are by far the most common form of the crime. In Missoula, Krakauer examines one community’s struggle with such accusations, shining a bright light on a problem that frequently goes underreported and is all-too-easy to sweep under the rug. Not only must victims contend with the after-effects of the crime, they must often face doubting police, antagonistic lawyers, and the whims of popular opinion. Some of the reported assaults in Krakauer’s book involved members of the University of Montana’s beloved Grizzly football team. Using facts and documentation balanced by interviews and courtroom drama, he builds a gem of narrative nonfiction that will educate and incite. As the story builds, culminating in two different trials with two different outcomes, readers will find themselves consumed by the factual and emotional complexities of the subject. No page turner this year will be more incendiary than Missoula. – Chris Schluep