Book Summary and Reviews of The Fairbanks Four by Brian Patrick O’Donoghue

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Dan W. (Fort Myers, FL)

Unexpected Story
When I started reading this book I didn't have a clue as to the subject matter, but I quickly began reading at a fast pace. In fact, after reading about 100 pages, I started reading the book again at a slower pace to better comprehend the details surrounding this event. I was intrigued from the start to the finish of the book as quickly as I could, but maintaining a comprehension of the compelling subject matter.

I have no idea of how the author kept such detailed notes to write such a comprehensive story from start to finish. I only imagine the relief and happiness to the four individuals initially convicted and sent to prison for a crime they were falsely accused of.

It's a credit to the author to write such an elaborate retelling of an hideous event that unjustly sent innocent boys to jail and for it not to be reconciled before they had become men. The author should be credited in writing an award winning book that will capture the interest of its readers!

Sara S. (Belmont, MA)

Justice on Trial
Anyone who believes that our American justice system provides fairness to the disenfranchised among us will find quite a different story here. Writer Brian Patrick O'Donoghue has provided us with a meticulous insider's view of the journalistic equivalent of Sir Ernest Shackleton's Endurance Expedition.

Full of egregious examples of how the legal system let down four young alleged "perpetrators" and the teen-aged victim and their families, this tale should be required reading for every high school graduate. That student participation under O'Donoghue's professorial eye kept the fight for justice going lends much needed inspiration.

The timing of its publishing coincides nicely with an announced damages settlement of $11.5 million for the last of the "Fairbanks Four" victims whose questionable conviction and prolonged incarceration can never be compensated for adequately.

Kathleen Q. (Quincy, MA)

Lessons of wrongful convictions
Overall I found the book to be extremely interesting and loaded with information. I previously had not heard about this case, even though I consume lots of true crime both in print and in podcasts. One of the things that stands out is that it really points out how witnesses testimony/memories can be very biased and based in what they firmly believe, be it the truth or not, and in the end lead to devastating outcomes. And there are times that these outcomes must be reversed in the name of justice. The road is often very long and difficult.

There were times, however, that I felt the book was a little difficult to follow, especially because chapters were broken down even further, and I would have to go back to reread something to make sense of what I was reading, so that made it take longer to read. There were other times where the author went off on a tangent that would confuse things.

With respect to the factual aspect of the material, it was definitely very thorough from the arrest right up to the overturning of the convictions. Overall, I thought the book was a really good read and would recommend it to any other true crime consumer.

Robin G. (Tallahassee, FL)

Evidence of Hope
As a journalist, Brian Patrick O'Donoghue knew how to track thin threads of evidence to yield a larger picture of the truth. As a teacher at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), he ignited in his Investigative Reporting students devotion to pursuing the facts. Together, they helped to bring freedom to four young men convicted of murder.

The investigative trail from arrest to release unfolded over several years and involved an ever-larger cast of characters. The students, who changed every semester, propelled the investigation with their varied skills and interests. The detectives were essential characters. Witnesses and family members led the investigating students to still others who might have information. When O'Donoghue and his students interested the Alaska Innocence Project, the story turned and unfolded like a legal thriller, with many lawyers taking center stage. At times, I was tempted to take notes to keep the characters straight. Yet, in the end, I saw that all the characters, both those who inhibited justice and those who pursued it, deserved to be named.

With all the characters and all the information uncovered, the story still moves along at a good pace. O'Donoghue offers a few unnecessary backstories but keeps the reader engaged with the next morsel of information and then the next right to the end of the book.

Taken as a whole, the book offers three interwoven themes. First, the need for equal justice under the law. This is closely tied to a second theme revolving around prejudice. Local Athabascan people testified to slights and injuries replicating those of Blacks or Mexicans in the lower forty-eight. Finally, it takes power to enforce unequal and prejudiced treatment. The powers vested in elected and appointed officials can be augmented by the forces of fear and prejudice present in almost any community.

"The Fairbanks Four: Murder, Injustice, and the Birth of a Movement" isn't just a book about the power applied for unjust ends. It's also a story infused with hope. It reminds us that wherever injustice is found, there can also be people who will work tirelessly and in concert with others to right the scales of justice again.

Cindy C. (Withee, WI)

Important story to tell
I didn't really like the author's writing style, but this was an important story that needed to be told. Not just the author and his students, but so many others worked to free four young men wrongfully convicted of murder. The process and the years that it took to free them provided an interesting look at how our legal system works or doesn't. It is also a story of racial bias. I also felt that Fairbanks, AK seems to be an area where at least at the point the story started, there was a lot of drug abuse, alcoholism and violence among young people in the area. This book has lessons to be learned for all of us.

Lynne B. (Somersworth, NH)

Investigative Journalism at It's Finest
Professor Brian O'Donoghue, a former reporter with the local Fairbanks newspaper, notes the crime of a murder of a young white Alaskan boy in 1997. Initially he finds flaws in the prosecution's case but four Native Alaskan men are convicted of the crime. Once Professor Donoghue begins teaching at the University of Alaska he enlists his journalism students to examine all aspects of the crime and research every document that can be found as well as conducting interviews with all possible witnesses.

The book details their years of extensive research for all information in the case that could reveal the poor conduct and discrimination of the Fairbanks police and state prosecutors. They work to present their findings to the public to force a retrial of the victims. This book details the intensive techniques of investigative journalism and brings in history of discrimination against Alaskan natives. For those who enjoy a true crime story this is highly recommended.

Also a somewhat similar story to Killers of the Flower Moon. If you are interested in justice for the Native Americans in our country still fighting for recognition today then this is an important book to read.

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