Tomomi Hanamure, a Japanese citizen who loved exploring the wilderness of the American West, was killed on her birthday May 8, 2006. She was stabbed 29 times as she hiked to Havasu Falls on the Havasupai Indian Reservation at the bottom of Grand Canyon. Her killer was a distressed 18-year-old Havasupai youth. Pure Land is the story of this tragedy. But it is also the story of how McGivney’s quest to understand Hanamure’s life and death wound up guiding the author through her own life-threatening crisis. On this journey stretching from the southern tip of Japan to the bottom of Grand Canyon, and into the ugliest aspects of human behavior, Pure Land offers proof of the healing power of nature and the resiliency of the human spirit.

I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway. I'm planning to read it on a cruise in January.

I finished reading the book yesterday.

It is fascinating, how the author weaves the stories of the three people together.
It feels like Tomomi's life is honored by the story of how she ended up at Havasu Falls, her passion for nature (especially the beautiful wide landscapes like that of the Grand Canyon) and the people connected to that land. We even meet her friends and family in Japan.
The exploration of the life of her killer even contributes to that. The author is not satisfied with labeling him a monster or a sociopath. She describes the hard conditions on the reservation and Randy's circumstances in particular without excusing his actions. He's given a voice as human that points to ways of avoiding tragic outcomes like this murder for others stuck in similar situations.
While we get glimpses of the author's life while she's doing her research as a journalist, following leads, visiting people who met Tomomi, etc., it becomes clear in the end what has given her the drive to dig so deep into this story.

The book looks at some fascinating as well as difficult topics such as the love of nature, Japanese culture, Native American culture and history, violent crime and its origins, and even trauma recovery. If you are interested in any of these topics, or how the lives of two courageous women intersect without them ever having a chance to meet each other, read this book.

I gave this book to my friend to read three days ago. She's already half way through and enjoys it.

My friend is done reading the book. She enjoyed it to the end.

I’m releasing this book into the Nonfiction Bookbox #2.

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I hope you enjoy the book. Happy reading!

Received back in my NonFiction BookBox #2.

I will release this book elsewhere.

Released on the patio. Please enjoy!