Sandy Hook
An American Tragedy and the Battle for Truth
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Sandy Hook
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Narrated by:
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Rebecca Lowman
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Elizabeth Williamson
About this listen
Slate, "25 Best Crime Books, Podcasts, and Documentaries of All Time"
Vanity Fair’s “Books We Can't Stop Thinking About”
Carnegie Medal Nonfiction Longlist 2023
The Washington Post Best Non-Fiction Books of 2022
Publishers Weekly Best Books 2022
Kirkus Best Non-Fiction Books of 2022
Slate Best Books 2022
Chicago Tribune Best Books 2022
Los Angeles Times Best Books 2022
Based on hundreds of hours of research, interviews, and access to exclusive sources and materials, Sandy Hook is Elizabeth Williamson’s landmark investigation of the aftermath of a school shooting, the work of Sandy Hook parents who fought to defend themselves, and the truth of their children’s fate against the frenzied distortions of online deniers and conspiracy theorists.
On December 14, 2012, a gunman killed twenty first-graders and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Ten years later, Sandy Hook has become a foundational story of how false conspiracy narratives and malicious misinformation have gained traction in society.
One of the nation’s most devastating mass shootings, Sandy Hook was used to create destructive and painful myths. Driven by ideology or profit, or for no sound reason at all, some people insisted it never occurred, or was staged by the federal government as a pretext for seizing Americans’ firearms. They tormented the victims’ relatives online, accosted them on the street and at memorial events, accusing them of faking their loved ones’ murders. Some family members have been stalked and forced into hiding. A gun was fired into the home of one parent.
Present at the creation of this terrible crusade was Alex Jones’s Infowars, a far-right outlet that aired noxious Sandy Hook theories to millions and raised money for the conspiracy theorists’ quest to “prove” the shooting didn’t happen. Enabled by Facebook, YouTube, and other social media companies’ failure to curb harmful content, the conspiracists’ questions grew into suspicion, suspicion grew into demands for more proof, and unanswered demands turned into rage. This pattern of denial and attack would come to characterize some Americans’ response to almost every major event, from mass shootings to the coronavirus pandemic to the 2020 presidential election, in which President Trump’s false claims of a rigged result prompted the January 6, 2021, assault on a bastion of democracy, the U.S. Capitol.
The Sandy Hook families, led by the father of the youngest victim, refused to accept this. Sandy Hook is the story of their battle to preserve their loved ones’ legacies even in the face of threats to their own lives. Through exhaustive reporting, narrative storytelling, and intimate portraits, Sandy Hook is the definitive book on one of the most shocking cultural ruptures of the internet era.
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Critic reviews
"Disturbing and important . . . A feature writer at The New York Times, Williamson is a compassionate storyteller and a thorough reporter who never loses sight of the larger issues Newtown presents."—NPR
“New York Times reporter Williamson’s searing debut demonstrates that the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol had its roots in the deeply troubling efforts to claim that the 2012 massacre of twenty-six first-graders and staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, was a hoax. . . . Williamson’s years of research includes interviews with survivors of the school shooting, parents, and first responders, as well as analysis of court documents and other records. She has produced the definitive account of this dark chapter of American history.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"It is obvious that Williamson began this book as an act of restitution for the families of the children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., in 2012, subject to the despicable lies and attacks by Alex Jones and Infowars. But in recounting in agonizing detail the lies and their viral spread — the kind of online-driven misinformation that would fuel the rise of Donald Trump and the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 — “Sandy Hook” becomes much more than a book about gun violence. It is an essential read about this country’s terrifying free-fall into fascism." —Los Angeles Times
What listeners say about Sandy Hook
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tim West
- 05-01-24
Truth wins when energised by commitment, strategy, love, and expertise.
Utterly gross dirty lies are drip fed into millions of bored or gullible minds to generate millions of dollars. The primeval pain of those whose loved ones died is ignored. Profit comes before truth. It appears to be miserably hopeless.
But brave committed bereaved parents work steadily away to redeem the memory of their children, and to prove the truth is stronger than lies if we stay the course.
Thank you courageous parents, and all who supported them.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 28-11-23
A harrowing yet hopeful look at tragedy and the monsters that profit from twisting tales
A difficult, often anger inducing listen. Hearing what horrors the children and educators faced almost 11 years ago, the devastation placed upon their family and loved ones. While this book speaks largely of the heinous conspiracy theories about Sandy Hook, what this book is ultimately about is the triumph of truth over deceit, of love over hate and how there will always be hope in a sea of darkness as long as we keep going forward without losing what we have lost.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Katie
- 30-04-22
Extensively researched
This is a very long book and the author has done masses of research. It comes to life when talking about the bereaved parents and their story is obviously heartbreaking. A difficult listen in that hundreds of other people are referenced and it can be a little hard to keep up.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Heather Law
- 06-06-22
Heartbreaking but absolutely vital
Read very well by Rebecca Lowman, this book is a deeply researched investigation into the shooting, and the grifters who hounded the families afterwards.
Not a comfortable read by any means, (indeed I wept multiple times while listening) but a very necessary one, to at least partially explain how the American collective psyche has reached the point where Jan 6th could happen.
A great skewering of Alex Jones and his ilk also. Brava Ms Williamson, brava.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Paul Kosyl
- 30-12-22
very interesting account
This is the account of Sandy Hook families against the conspiracy theorists thst said it didn't happen.
it's heartbreaking, interesting and ultimately a story for our times where fake news is rampant
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- kll
- 23-08-23
Good triumphs over Evil
A superb book detailing the fight of courageous parents against the deluded, deranged and profiteering conspiracy spreaders that use the 1st amendment as cover for hateful bullying. It's encouraging to see that some have been held to account and hopefully that is a strong enough warning enough to deter others
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 18-06-22
Essential Reading
This is a very important book.
Very moving throughout but never mawkish. Great research and great writing.
There are vital lessons here for us all.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 07-05-23
Fascinating Story
I have to say I had no idea before listening to this that it went on for so long... I really do feel for those families, 10 years of it, bloody appalling !
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Conor Loney
- 14-11-22
Tragic
This is one of the hardest books to listen too. I had to take several breaks in just under one hour as the material hit me too hard.
This is what should be shown, should be seen when Americas next avoidable tragedy happens.
I cant imagine any of the work that went into this was easy but thank you for doing it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- @ZennyReadsAlot
- 27-01-23
A tragic story of American gun policy played out
Sandy Hook by @NYTLiz. This story highlights the worst primary school shooting in US history & the appalling gun politics that ensued. The book gives the reader insight into the mind of the suicide killer whilst handling the material care. Well researched 📚 5/5 🌟 #bookreview
Please follow me on Twitter @zennyreadsalot
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