Missoula

I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, the topic of rape is extremely important and should be discussed. On the other hand, I think the emphasis here is wrong. Krakauer bashes lawyers in general for their tactics in both prosecutorial choices and defense tactics, but I think that comes from a common misunderstanding of the our legal system. In fact, Krakauer's logic suggests that he is opposed to our “innocent until proven guilty” standard, at least when it comes to rape. Because he insists that the allegations of rape must be believed until disproven, the result is the opposite: the alleged rapist is guilty until proven innocent. And I'm very uncomfortable with that.

Instead, it seems to me, we should focus our attention on rape prevention. How do we ensure that rape doesn't happen? That's the real challenge of our time, not reforming the legal system.

This is a powerful book and one that is–and should be–hard to read. There are a lot of graphic, detailed descriptions of rape in this. Which isn't surprising, given the subject matter, but just, you know, heads up. I had to stop reading it before bedtime and move it to daylight hours only reading.

Anyway. Jon Krakauer is fantastic at spinning nonfiction narrative out of exhaustive research, and this is no exception. He's done a great job at connecting all the disparate threads of rape in Missoula (campus police, academic deans, local police, DOJ, victims, rapists, etc etc etc) into both a big-picture story for Missoula and also a microcosm for rape culture on college campuses and towns across the US.

Krakauer admits up front that he was shocked to hear a friend had been raped and has been embarrassed to realize how much he didn't know about rape culture. So, some of the things that are shocking to Krakauer are things that I (and let's be real, most women with internet connections) were already aware of? But his research and narrative arc here are still compelling, and honestly, I think it's great that an Important White Man has written a book like this. I hope men will read it.

Jon Krakauer pored through stacks of court transcripts, recordings, police reports and otherwise dry documentation and manages to pull together a compelling, readable story. It's just the facts and the facts are hair pullingly frustrating. The legal system is stacked against sexual assault victims, and in college towns where sports teams can take on an almost mythic import, it's hard not feel a hopeless sense of injustice at how these things play out on an all too frequent basis.

Do not read Jon Krakauer's Missoula when you are having a good day.

Actually, strike that. A good day is precisely when you should read the book, because it will make you angry. It will make you furious, sad, despondent, and irate. It will ruin your good day — and it should. Everything about rape culture and how our justice system deals with sexual assault is infuriating; Krakauer's exposé only serves to remind us of how horrible the situation is, and how important it is for us to be jarred from our good days and reminded that everything isn't okay.

Missoula is ostensibly about a rash of sexual assaults at the University of Montana and the town where it is located, but it is more than just that. It is a look at how insidiously vicious rape culture is, and how the entire justice system—from the police to prosecutors—is inherently re-victimizing victims of sexual assault repeatedly, all while failing to put away the real offenders. It will make you, rightfully, sad and angry at the same time, and you will wonder how we ever let it get this bad.

Sure, the book has its flaws. It lacks a coherent narrative or effective synthesis, presents a mostly-one-dimensional study of each character, relies mostly on the verbatim quoting of court transcripts, and doesn't delve deeper into the cultural and social constructs that make rape culture so insidious. It is, however, important. It is important in reminding us that most victims of sexual assault will never report the crime because the system is inherently stacked against them, and that when they do report, they are victimized over and over, again and again, by everyone in the system.

Read Missoula and let it ruin your mood on a good day. Important discussions like this deserve to have that strong of an impact.

(Originally published on I Tell Stories.)