One of Us

Recently someone recommended to me "One of Us" by Asne Seierstad so I downloaded it to my Kindle to read on holiday. I knew that it was about the killings in Norway by Anders Breivik; we had seen the damage preserved at the bus shelter beside the government building when we were in Oslo two years ago. However I hadn't realised that I would happen to be reading the book five years to the day after the murders on 22nd July 2011. Seventy-seven people were killed that day; eight in Oslo by the bomb and sixty-nine on the island of Utøya by shooting. It was almost unbelievable how Breivik was able to drive the 25 miles from Oslo and then take the ferry across to the island, undetected by security forces who had of course been taken by surprise by events. Then, disguised as a policeman, he had been able to walk around Utøya for more than an hour, slaughtering people as he went. It was a very disturbing read, but a very well written account of the background, the massacre itself and the aftermath. The story of the young people who died and their families was movingly told. The killer's self-importance and self-justification has been well documented by his writings and in court and this was conveyed in detail as well, resulting in a comprehensive record of events which is all the more chilling by its lack of rhetoric.

Although this was a very uncomfortable book to read, I thought it was very important to read it out of respect for those killed. And then the news reports came through that on Friday a lone killer had gone on a shooting spree at a shopping centre in Munich, killing nine people and injuring many others. Apparently he was obsessed with mass shootings, had pictures if Breivik on his computer, and may well have chosen the anniversary of the Norway shootings deliberately for his attacks. The delusion and evil goes on.