Published : 2021 || Format : print || Location : Colombia ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ What was it about the country that kept everyone hostage to its fantasy? The previous month, on its own soil, an American man went to his job at a plant and gunned down fourteen coworkers, and last spring alone there were four different school shootings. A nation at war with itself, yet people still spoke of it as some kind of paradise.. Thoughts : Infinite Country follows two characters - young Talia, who at the beginning of this book, escapes a girl’s reform school in North Colombia so that she can make her previously booked flight to the US. Before she can do that, she needs to travel many miles to reach her father and get her ticket to the rest of her family. As we follow Talia’s treacherous journey south, we learn about how she ended up in the reform school in the first place and why half her family resides in the US. Infinite Country tells the story of her family through the other protagonist, El
Something that has disturbed me so much (something I never wanted to write down but think it's important) was how when someone asks me which school I went to and I say Virginia Tech, the first remark I get back, most of the time with a smirk, is "Oh that's where the shooting happened". I'm guessing many others have got back the same response too. I must have missed the point when this shooting transformed from a massacre to a joking matter. Or I must be too thick that I can't even smile to that.
At VT now, there are more students who weren't there when the shooting happened than who were. That doesn't make the date any less emotional for most. Everyday, any student or teacher passing by the campus is reminded of the event by the memorial set up in front of Buruss Hall. A few weeks back, when I visited Tech with my family, I was again struck by how senseless it was, and how many lives were lost.
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| April 16 memorial |
Last year, I read April 16th: Virginia Tech Remembers, a narrative account of the events that happened as they unfolded on the day, compiled from various eyewitness accounts by Roland Lazenby, a VT faculty member. The events felt too real for me and the book did a great job of constructing the day. I certainly recommend this book if you wish to know more about how the tragedy unfolded. You can also check this link on the VT website for more information on the victims and the memorial events.
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