具体描述
Early on an April morning, eighteen-year-old Billy Frank Gilley, Jr., killed his sleeping parents. Surprised in the act by his younger sister, Becky, he turned on her as well. Billy then climbed the stairs to the bedroom of his other sister, Jody, and said, “We’re free.”
But is one ever free after an unredeemable act of violence? The Gilley family murders ended a lifetime of physical and mental abuse suffered by Billy and Jody at the hands of their parents. And it required each of the two survivors–one a convicted murderer, the other suddenly an orphan–to create a new identity, a new life.
In this mesmerizing book, bestselling writer Kathryn Harrison brilliantly uncovers the true story behind a shocking and unforgettable crime as she explores the impact of escalating violence and emotional abuse visited on the children of a deeply troubled family. With an artistry that recalls Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood , Norman Mailer’s The Executioner’s Song , and her own The Kiss , Harrison reveals the antecedents of the murders–of a crime of such violence that it had the power to sever past from present–and the consequences for Billy and for Jody. Weaving in meditations on her own experience of parental abuse, Harrison searches out answers to the question of how survivors of violent trauma shape a future when their lives have been divided into Before and After.
Based on interviews with Billy and Jody as well as with friends, police, and social workers involved in the case, While They Slept is Kathryn Harrison’s unflinching inquiry into the dark heart of violence in an American family, and a personal quest to understand how young people go on after tragedy–to examine the extent as well as the limits of psychic resilience. The New York Time s called Kathryn Harrison’s The Kiss “a powerful piece of writing, a testament to evil and hope.” The same could be said about While They Slept .
PRAISE FOR WHILE THEY SLEPT
“Harrison does a magnificent job of sorting through the heartbreak of a family tragedy. By adding insights into her own life, she brings us a little closer to understanding the resilience of the human spirit and the irrevocable damage and unforeseen consequences of child and sexual abuse.”
–USA Today
“The result of Harrison's masterful embellishment is a fascinating and comprehensive examination of the before and after of a brutal triple murder, of the cyclical nature of violence and of the tragic ineffectiveness of our social support systems… While They Slept does not provide the easy answers we hope to discover in ‘just the facts,’ but it offers instead the richer and more enduring illumination of ‘the story.’”
–L.A. Times
“Her telling brings moral clarity to the dark fate of a family: the daylight gaze of narrative itself as a form of empathy.”
–New York Times Book Review, cover review
“A powerful account…This excellent book will be devoured by educators who try to come to grips with the lasting effects of the traumas of childhood.”
–Deseret Morning News
“Harrison offers careful research and obvious concern… While They Slept ’s real horror is in how many potential helpers were aware of the abuse and were unable to help. This is a heartbreaking read.”
–Rocky Mountain News
“Kathryn Harrison pulls the reader through the story of the 1984 triple murder in Medford–our own backyard–with such speed and excitement it feels like you’re watching an episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent …Harrison perfectly paces the revelations of new characters, who add critical information and perspective to the Gilley murder.”
–Willamette Weekly
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翻开这本书，我立刻被一种独特的叙事风格所吸引。作者的文字如同涓涓细流，却又蕴含着一种强大的力量，能够细腻地描绘出人物微妙的情感波动，以及场景的氛围营造。即使是在最平淡的描写中，也能感受到一种暗流涌动，仿佛在平静的水面之下，隐藏着不为人知的波涛。我喜欢这种不动声色的叙述方式，它不像那些直白的、强行灌输的剧情，而是让读者自己去体会、去挖掘。书中的角色仿佛活生生地站在我面前，他们的每一个眼神、每一个动作，都充满了故事。我试图去理解他们的动机，去揣测他们的内心世界，而这种探索的过程本身，就充满了乐趣。我相信，这本书不仅仅是一个简单的故事，更是一次深入人心的旅程，它会带领我思考一些关于人性、关于选择、关于命运的深刻问题。
评分这本书的魅力在于它的留白。作者并没有把所有的事情都说得明明白白，而是留下了许多空间，让读者去想象，去解读。这种开放式的结局，或者说是充满想象空间的叙事，反而让我觉得更加回味无穷。我读完之后，脑海中依然萦绕着书中人物的形象，他们的命运，以及那些未曾完全揭示的谜团。这种感觉就像是在一个阴雨绵绵的日子里，看到远方朦胧的山峦，你无法看清它的全貌，但正是这种朦胧，却让它显得更加神秘而吸引人。我相信，这本书会是一次令人难忘的阅读体验，它不仅仅是一个故事，更是一次关于探索、关于思考、关于感受的奇妙旅程。
评分我一直在思考这本书所传达的某种意境。它似乎探讨着一种普遍存在的、却又常常被我们忽略的“静默”的力量。这种静默，可以是环境的，可以是情感的，也可以是隐藏在社会结构中的。在“他们”沉睡的时候，一些东西得以被看见，一些真相得以被揭示。我感觉作者在用一种非常诗意的方式来讲述一个可能相当严肃的故事。我被书中弥漫的那种氛围所打动，它不像某些作品那样直接的煽情，而是通过一种含蓄、内敛的方式，触动你内心最柔软的部分。这本书让我有机会去审视自己，去思考那些我生活中可能被忽略的“沉睡”的部分，去体会那些在不经意间塑造着我们命运的无形力量。
评分这本书，书名本身就带着一种神秘的暗示，"While They Slept"，仿佛是一个被时间遗忘的角落，一个在沉睡中悄然发生的故事。我拿到这本书的时候，封面设计就吸引了我，一种深沉的、略带忧郁的色调，配合着某种模糊的、难以言喻的意象，让我对接下来的阅读充满了期待。我一直以来都对那些隐藏在表象之下的秘密、那些在不为人知的时刻发生的事件特别感兴趣，而这个书名恰好触及了我内心深处的好奇。我想，这本书或许会带我进入一个充满悬念的世界，在那里，某些真相只会在最意想不到的时刻，或者说，在“他们”沉睡之时，才得以显露。我不知道作者会如何铺陈情节，是惊悚、悬疑，还是更深层次的心理探索，但无论如何，这个标题已经成功地在我脑海中构建了一个引人入胜的场景，让我迫不及待地想去揭开它的面纱。
评分我喜欢这本书的节奏。它不是那种一上来就让你喘不过气来的紧凑情节，而是慢慢铺陈，层层递进，让你在不知不觉中就被卷入其中。这种舒缓却又充满张力的叙事节奏，反而更能激发我的好奇心。我总是在想，接下来会发生什么？那些看似不经意的细节，是否都隐藏着重要的线索？作者就像一位高明的织工，用细密的丝线编织出一张巨大的网，而我，则在这张网中，小心翼翼地寻找着每一个蛛丝马迹。我特别欣赏作者在细节上的处理，无论是环境的描写，还是人物的对话，都显得那么真实而富有深意。这种真实感，让我更容易代入到故事之中，与角色一同经历他们的喜怒哀乐。
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