Customer Reviews

Kent State: What Happened and Why

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This book paints a portrait of the Kent State campus at the time of the shootings in May 1970. Tom Bates' book Rads is a good companion volume, which describes the Madison bombing which occurred three months later. Either book describes how irresponsible activism and reaction led to senseless violence and innocent people getting killed or wounded. Michener clearly chose sides when writing his account, but he gives a pretty complete picture of what happened, when, where and why. Some details of the National Guard's conduct were not available to him when he wrote the book. The Kent State incident was one of the turning points for the public perception of the war and of and for those who opposed it.

I enjoyed Michener's narrative. However, it was written so soon after the tragedy that it does not adequately cover the totality of the event or put it in a historical perspective. Also, he treats the early investigations inconsequentially. I do not understand how the Scranton Commission could conclude that the shootings were "unnecessary, unwarranted and inexcusable." Yet, Michener had a tendency to rationalize and find excuses for the conduct of the National Guard. He was much too forgiving.

I have read several of the major books on Kent State and I think that William A. Gordon's "Four Dead in Ohio" is the most comprehensive and rewarding. Gordon provides perspective and logical arguments, even if some of the questions cannot be completely answered.

I just finished this book, and I don't know what book some of the other reviewers on this page were reading, but Michener certainly doesn't exonerate the National Guard, as Ohio law did, nor does he make a case for or against the war in Vietnam, other than to quote those who do (or don't). His negative stance on the radical SDS is based on the actions of the organization itself, which at its best was irresponsible, at its worst was criminal.
This book was fascinating. How Michener and his staff managed to do such detailed and intricate research, and compose and have published a 500-page book barely a year after the event, is nothing short of incredible. It's only drawback, as others have mentioned, is that it was written so close to the incident that there is no real "distance" perspective, and it made me want to read more current books on the subject.
I was six years old when the Kent State incident occured. I always knew of it, of course, but knew only the barest details. I'm a conservative guy, and I have nothing but the utmost respect and admiration for the brave men and women in the military, especially those in harm's way defending OUR freedoms. But after reading this book, even I was saying, "why did these guys open fire?" There certainly didn't seem to be any need to. Some students were throwing rocks and tear-gas cannisters back at the Guard, but most evidence shows that they weren't any closer than 40 or 50 yards away at the most. I concluded (as does Michener) that those who fired into the crowd were mostly scared, poorly trained kids, most that had never seen any kind of combat, and that thought they were in more danger than they actually were. Some Guardsmen in the book are quoted as saying that they were firing at a particular student who was about to throw something at them, and Michener leaves the decision about whether to believe them up to the reader. In any event, this was an absolutely tragic mistake, and four people died because of it, and this should never have happened.
Of course, there are factions in this country that will disparage and dismiss any article, book, or similar publication that concludes anything but that the Ohio National Guard were cold-blooded killers, or that the students on the campus that day were anything but flower-toting, non-violent, peace-loving angels. If you are intelligent enough to see past these easy generalizations, then read this book. It will not disappoint.

When I read the reviews of this book I became curious. Several reviewers, who claimed to have been there, stated they did not want me to read this book. I began thinking, 'What do they not want me to know? What are they trying to hide?' So I took a gamble and read it. All the other books I have read on the subject were completely biased toward the students, but Michener interviewed students, friends and family of those students killed, the guardsmen, local politicians, faculty, police, firefighters, business owners, citizens of Kent and Ravenna, etc. I was surprised he didn't ask the janitor what he thought. When all the opposing points of view came together, I got a much clearer picture of the situation, and the circumstances, which led to the tragedy. If you want a biased book that ignores any facts that do not support their case, (e.g., Ohio law relieves the National Guard of liability for any injuries or deaths incurred while combating a riot) I recommend, I.F. Stone's 'How Murder Went Unpunished at Kent State.' But if you want a book that is unbiased, and lets the reader draw his or her own conclusions, this is the book. Or better yet, read them both and determine for yourself, as I did, who you believe is telling the truth. But in my opinion, James Michener's dedication to uncovering the truth made him one of the greatest writers in American history. And as for I.F. Stone, who the heck is he?

I first read this book in 1972, only two years after the shootings. I had been a previous fan of James Michener for his careful research and descriptive prose. I remember reading this book in the front yard of my rented house and weeping. Very powerful, very emotional. It is recommended especially for any younger people who would like to have a better idea what it was like to live in these turbulent times.

James Michener, better known as a historical novelist, did an outstanding job of researching the events that led to the tragedy of the shooting of four students at Kent State by the Ohio National Guard. Michener describes in detail the events leading to the shootings, including the deliberate infiltration of the Kent State student body by "red diaper" babies, bent on pushing their revolutionary views, even if it meant shutting down the campus, depriving many working class students of the opportunity of receiving an education. Michener accurately portrays the lives of the four victims, and the tragedy that resulted when they were caught in a power struggle between violent revolutionaries and an inexperienced and incompetent National Guard Company Commander.

With the 30th Anniversary of this tragedy approaching I read this book with great interest. It's an immediate take on the incident, literally written at the time. But Michener does say it would be interesting to look back to see how the incident affected the lives of those present in the longer run. That got me reading Gary Drake's Silent Bell, a good novel about two students who borke up the day of the shootings and meet up again at the 25th Anniversary. It deals with how the incident affected them over the 25 years. I recommend reading both books---together!

"Kent State: What Happened And Why" is a thoroughly researched account of the events at Kent State University, culminating with the tragic killing of four students by National Guardsmen on May 4, 1970. It is valuable because there are not many in-print books on the topic, and Michener and/or his researchers clearly did their homework. The one major flaw, a compelling one, is that Michener does not hide his antipathy for the left, SDS, etc. Despite this, it's worth reading.

As someone who lived through and participated in the events Michener described I was deeply upset by his book which I feel is nothing less than a falsification of history. Clearly Michener, who was on friendly terms with Nixon and his crowd, had a hidden agenda in trying to discredit radical student activism and the movement against the War in Vietnam, a war which Michener supported. Anyone interested in getting both sides of this story should read I.F. Stone's book, "How Murder Went Unpunished at Kent State." Stone's view is diametrically opposed to that of Michener whom he denounced in person as a shameless propagandist for the Nixon Administration on NBC's Today Show in 1971

What strikes me most about this book is the vast, almost unimaginable, difference between the public reaction to the Kent State shootings and reaction to contemporary campus tragedies such as Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University.
Even allowing for the difference in the nature of these incidents (students being shot by National Guardsmen vs. students being shot by lone psycho gunmen) it still boggles my mind to think that, as Michener asserts, the dead students and the survivors received almost ZERO public sympathy or support...regardless of whether or not they participated in the demonstrations... even if they were indeed just innocent bystanders. Many surviving students were repeatedly told "you all deserved to be shot." There was little if any concern about their emotional well-being or even the logistics of helping students finish the academic year (some professors seem to have gone quite a few extra miles in this regard, without benefit of e-mail or the internet as we have today)
Most of the students who survived this incident would now be in their late 50s -- more than old enough to be parents of today's victims of a very different kind of campus violence. It would be interesting to find out their take on what's happening today. I would recommend reading this book right now simply to get an idea of how far we have come in dealing with the aftermath of such tragedies.