Our Guys

Yes as some other reviewers mentioned it is a long book. It needs to be in order to dissect the sickness of this community. In addition to the main storyline, the story of "Ryan's Wreck" also made me sick to my stomach. Who thinks it is OKAY to do such things?! This book delves deeply into "privilege." I live near a community very similar to Glen Ridge. This author is spot on in descriptions of such areas. What floors me is how many of the parents involved had no idea their lovable little moppets were capable of such deeds. And it wasn't just the guys, as Mari Carmen Ferez (sp?) demonstrates. If you have seen the movie, the book does follow closely (the book came first is my guess).

A very good in-depth analysis of a terrible crime that was committed a couple of decades ago by a suburban high school crowd. A group of popular athletes lured a mentally challenged girl to a basement and viciously sexually assaulted her. The book deals with the problem of athletes expecting to get what they want and not be measured by the same standards as the rest of society. A microcosm of that society is analyzed in this very lengthy detailed book. Cultural and economic and racial elements are explored. Parts of the trial, interviews and narrative of actual events as well as photos are included. The book is more than a crime story; it is a sociological study and tale of how society's 'underdogs' are treated and how we ourselves have set this system up early for kids in school- that athletes rule and are popular and are never denied what they want- they are venerated by all members of the school, including staff and the outside world they live in.

This book is eye-opening for sure. Very well written on a difficult subject. The author went step by step in explaining and helping the reader to understand the dynamics of this story and how the trial came to fruition. This is the best book I have read in a long time, highly recommend this book.

Horrifying enough to keep you up nights- if anything like what's in this book ever happens- it means there are monsters everywhere- in the people that commit heinous crimes- and in the people that cover up those crimes because deep down they feel it's ok. Read it with the lights on and door locked.

I had read this book years ago but wanted to read it again, to see its portrait of what happens when teenaged athletes are fawned over until their values are warped and they believe they are untouchable. Lefkowitz's research and storytelling showed me exactly how that happened in this New Jersey town.Yet his examination of a girl being sexually abused, the complexities of how children are raised, the history of these athletes before they even reached high school, the culture of the high school -- all were told in a calm manner, balanced and nuanced. Impressive and frightening, because some of the book's themes -- athletes glorified by peers and adults, governance of a school, public reaction when private matters reach the news media -- go back decades but are as relevant as ever.

This should be required reading for all law enforcement. The tragedy of young privileged men without a touch of a moral compass is a tragedy but the author's writing is amazing. As long as parents refuse to accept the crimes of their childen there will never be an end of these crimes.

This book exposes the dark and frightening underside of a life of supposed tranquility in the lily white and privilged confines of suburbia, and details how "the boys will be boys" mentality led to the awful rape of a retarded girl by high school jocks and how a town that glorified its male, so-so high school athletes, could somehow defend the conduct of the jock-rapists and could blame the victim as a slut and a Lolita seductress. Compelling reading and a real page turner that deserves to be a best seller!

Had to read for a class, but bought to re-read because it's that well-written. Definitely recommend unless you get queasy with true crime.

Infuriating, heart-breaking, nauseating and insightful. Eye-opening and gut-wrenching. Lefkowitz managed to paint an incredibly rich and complex tableau that perfectly describes Glen Ridge and the culture and circumstances that led to the events in questionA splendid read, I absolutely recommend it.

REALLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK . IT GET'S YOU THINKING ABOUT ISSUES AND THAT IS A GOOD THING.

Voici un bon livre qui raconte l histoire d une fille harcelée parce que quelques un à fait courir une rumeur sur elle

Book came with its front and back covers bent. Bottom of the book is filthy, and the spine is starting to tear.