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Separated: Inside an American Tragedy | Jacob Soboroff

Our first #Separated section, it was short, but still very powerful. When he lays out the numbers and the timeline, it‘s still stunning. I had a hard time reading it and a hard time putting it down at the end of our prologue. ⤵️

#Separated
@MallenNC @BarbaraTheBibliophage and anyone else interested in joining in.

Riveted_Reader_Melissa How did you feel about this brief overview, and the author‘s impressions looking back on his first experience stepping into this story and trying to report it? Were you still shocked, or not surprised any more by the raw details? 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage I feel like learning the details is more sad than shocking. And once I started, I just kept listening to the book. I like Soboroff‘s style. 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @BarbaraTheBibliophage I really liked his style too. I‘m reading, not listening, so it‘s a bit different, but he comes off very personable and makes it very relatable. I really liked his story about the memo book, about how the notes might not make sense to anyone else, but brought back vivid details for him. 4y

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Riveted_Reader_Melissa @BarbaraTheBibliophage And for me shocking and sad, I‘m still shocked, not about the details so much anymore, but how we let it get that bad, that fast, and at how quickly such a monumental story seems to have dropped off the radar for most. 4y

MallenNC I went to journalism school (though I work in higher ed PR instead) so I believe in journalism‘s power to bring attention and change when needed. I am always interested in reporter stories. I was really engaged when he was talking about how his reporting started. I watched his reporting of this on MSNBC and have been impressed by how he has remained focused on the border crisis. 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @MallenNC Yes! When he talked about that I thought, yep I was one of those watching that then followed him. 4y

MallenNC The Prologue really showed the danger that families who came to the border were facing. It reinforced what we read in We Are Displaced, that refugees don‘t leave home for frivolous reasons. 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @MallenNC I like those too, journalist stories, they are humans just like us, so being there and seeing it through their eyes is so interesting. And I bit more raw than the end filtered news story. 4y

MallenNC @Riveted_Reader_Melissa I think it has to be terribly difficult to see the kinds of tragedies that many reporters do and share that with the world in ways that can be understood. And they also have to do it under deadline. 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @MallenNC I feel like my focus these last four years on the actions of the Administration has led me to quite a few books by reporters. From the Maddow book about oil to Unbelievable by Katy Tur and now this one ... it's been an education in how stories develop bit by bit. And other slam you over the head. 4y

MallenNC @BarbaraTheBibliophage I read Katy Tur‘s book when it came out and I remember how she thought this was going to be a short term assignment because Trump was such a long shot candidate. And then she spent all that time being yelled at and threatened at rallies. 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @Riveted_Reader_Melissa Definitely - the speed with which this story went from bad to horrific is pretty amazing. I am gutted by these stories he's included from parents about being without their children. They're from the court case he references, I believe. Absolutely criminal. 4y

MallenNC @BarbaraTheBibliophage I‘ve read Rachel Maddow‘s other book about the U.S. and it‘s endless wars, but I haven‘t read the other one yet. 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @MallenNC Yeah, exactly. And now she's parlayed all that investment of time and effort into a permanent afternoon hour on MSNBC. She earned it with her experiences. And I can't imagine being at those rallies in her position. 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @MallenNC Opposite for me. I have Drift on my shelf by got Blowout as an ARC, so I jumped to that first. It's super good. 4y

MallenNC @BarbaraTheBibliophage I know! I couldn‘t take it. I‘m glad she got some reward for her work. Since I‘ve been working from home I‘ve been able to see her more on MSNBC. 4y

MallenNC @BarbaraTheBibliophage It‘s on my list! Rachel Maddow is so smart. (edited) 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @MallenNC OMG yes, she is. 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @MallenNC @BarbaraTheBibliophage I have both Maddow books on my to read list and haven‘t read either yet! I‘ve read a couple of Richard Engel‘s books set in the Middle East and I loved this one by a photojournalist

It's What I Do: A Photographer's Life of Love and War

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @MallenNC @BarbaraTheBibliophage I haven‘t read Katy Tur‘s book, I wasn‘t sure I could handle that much Trump. More power to her for that assignment. 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @Riveted_Reader_Melissa I have one of Engel's books on my list for #readingasia2021 -- and that photojournalist story would be great for our #Booked2021 #bookwithpictures prompt! 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @Riveted_Reader_Melissa @MallenNC Every time I read a book about him, I worry it will be too much. And then I feel like I just need to be “eyes wide open“ even if it's hard. Looking forward to the day when he's not all over the news for something or other. 4y

MallenNC @Riveted_Reader_Melissa @BarbaraTheBibliophage I read Katy Tur early on, which may have helped. I‘ve definitely limited my consumption of Trump books. I do wonder if Katy would‘ve taken that assignment if she‘d been able to see into the future. Maybe. 4y

MallenNC I like Richard Engel as a reporter. I haven‘t read his books. I have read It‘s What I Do. 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @BarbaraTheBibliophage I remember thinking that in 2016, can‘t wait until election day so I stop seeing him everywhere. And it won‘t stop now either, he‘s planning to run in 2024, you know, if he can‘t win this one. I figure if nothing else it‘s one more way for him to raise money, stay in the news, and most importantly make sure his rival in 2024 can‘t investigate him. 🙄 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @BarbaraTheBibliophage I‘m leaning more to “eyes wide open” on the issues he‘s created, and trying to limit the him central books. So yes Separated and Russian Roulette, but I didn‘t read the second Woodward book. 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @MallenNC @Riveted_Reader_Melissa I finally realized what this book reminds me—in style although the content is different—Catch and Kill! 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @BarbaraTheBibliophage I really liked Catch & Kill too, I got Ronan Farrow‘s other book already... to read next year though.

War on Peace: The End of Diplomacy and the Decline of American Influence

BarbaraTheBibliophage @Riveted_Reader_Melissa Yes, I have his other book also. What seems similar is how Ronan and Jacob both talk so much about the process of reporting their stories. At least so far, no one is trying to get Soboroff to stop doing his job like Farrow experienced. Plus, uh, I couldn‘t stop listening once I started. I‘ll be finished in a day or so. 🥸 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage @Riveted_Reader_Melissa Russian Roulette is really good. But I wonder if something written later might tell more of the whole story. I think that came out in 2018. I‘ll have to see what I can suggest. 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @BarbaraTheBibliophage It happens, no worries! I‘m glad you like it. I‘m still working my way through last month‘s #NonfictionNerds Half reading and half audiobook, because a lot of the archival stuff has her reading it.

My Own Words

BarbaraTheBibliophage @Riveted_Reader_Melissa I definitely liked that RBG book better in audio. Her voice makes it all the more inspiring. And reading it seemed so legal mumbo jumbo-ish. At least to me ... 4y

Riveted_Reader_Melissa @BarbaraTheBibliophage Yep. I had the ebook that I had gotten on sale awhile back and ended up stalled until the audiobook finally came up from the library. Some books just work better on audio, some reading, some a combo. 4y

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