Under the Bridge
The True Story of the Murder of Reena Virk
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On Sale:
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26/08/2005
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Formats:
Hardback
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It has been a long road to justice for Reena Virk, beaten and
murdered at the hands of her teenage peers. Th murder of this girl is one
of the most notorious and heartbreaking cases in Canadian history. Here, for the
first time, acclaimed author Rebecca Godfrey reveals the stunning truth about a
Canadian tragedy that captured international headlines.
Who were the seemingly ordinary suburban teenagers who found
themselves under the bridge in Victoria, BC, on the night of November 14, 1997?
Why would a girl who longed to be their friend be beaten and killed? And how did
so many teenagers keep terrible secrets from parents, teachers and police for
eight days? These are the questions all of us have been asking, and in
Under the Bridge the answers are revealed in a stunning
narrative. Godfrey spent six years researching the case, conducting exclusive
interviews with parents, classmates, police, prosecutors and, perhaps most
importantly, several of the youths, including Warren Glowatski, one of the two
teenagers convicted of murdering Virk. Godfrey also witnessed firsthand the many
trials of Kelly Ellard, also found guilty of killing a girl who just wanted to
fit in.
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Author Extras
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Critical Praise for
Under the Bridge
"Godfrey reconstructs a horrific murder with a vividness found in the finest fiction, without ever sacrificing journalistic integrity...A tour de force of true crime reportage."
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Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Meticulously researched and harrowing to read."
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Publishers Weekly
"Under the Bridge is a compelling crime story told in forensic detail with mature insight and compassion. Rebecca Godfrey achieves, above all else, an extraordinary grasp of adolescent sentiment--the yearning, alienation, vanity and pathos--that underlies the tragedy of teenage violence. This is a distressing story and a splash of icy water for parents and children who are too often complicit in concealing the dark realities of growing up behind glib fantasies of innocence."
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Linden MacIntyre, Host of CBC TV’s the fifth estate
"Under the Bridge is a fine piece of reportage and a shocking rendering of the tragic end of one young life and the dark and sinister beginnings of others. Godfrey writes with stinging insight and an urgency that moves the story from teenage hush and whisper to the reality of the coroner's office and sad, fatigued cops. The principals are all victims—of schools and communities and families that don't care—and perpetrators—harming one another and themselves in this startling fall from innocence."
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Anthony Swofford, author of Jarhead
"Under the Bridge is a prodigiously researched and carefully observed account of a senseless murder and its aftermath. Rebecca Godfrey brings a sympathetic imagination and a finely tuned ear for language to bear on a dark subject, with spectacular results. Under the Bridge is an In Cold Blood for our colder times."
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Evan Cornog, Publisher, Columbia Journalism Review
"A stunning book that manages to terrify and enlighten at the same time. No one understands the teenage mind like Rebecca Godfrey. And no one can penetrate its darkest recesses with such insight and compassion."
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Gary Shteyngart
"A brilliant, compassionate retelling of a horrific murder... Riveting... Under the Bridge is a compelling account of a senseless murder..."
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The Oprah Magazine
"Under the Bridge is a skilled and emotionally compelling investigation into the dark heart of adolescent society... Godfrey...combines a storyteller's skills with a journalist's keen eye for detail to create a complexly interwoven narrative of the events that is at once intimate and detached... Under the Bridge is a keen-edged, heart-rending account of a violence fast becoming endemic to Western society... The importance of Godfrey's work is...in the perspective and context she brings to the events."
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National Post
"Novelist Rebecca Godfrey has written the definitive account of the...night...Reena Virk was beaten and killed... The book's greatest strength lies in the finely etched details of the lives of the teens, including Reena."
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Vancouver Sun
"[Godfrey's] book stands as a beautifully written, meticulously researched, compelling story. It's an intimate walk through the daily diaries of those who either placed themselves under the bridge... or, by circumstance, were dragged there afterwards."
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The Times Colonist
"There have been many attempts to explain this murder... None of these claims can come close to the narrative form of explanation provided by Rebecca Godfrey's stunning new book. Godfrey...accomplishes the difficult task of both humanizing the participants in this very sad event, and speaking clearly about who has and who has not taken moral responsibility for this crime... A homicide is best told as a story, and Rebecca Godfrey's marvelous book makes this very clear."
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The Globe and Mail
"Lipstick, platform shoes, and braces have never felt more menacing. The book reads like a breezy best-seller, but it's Godfrey's in-depth reporting... that gets under your skin."
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GQ
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The Torn Skirt
Sara's world is circa 1984, Victoria, B.C., Canada's prettiest city. But over at Mt. Douglas (a.k.a. Mt.Drug)High, all the girls have feathered hair, and the sweet scent of Love's Baby Soft can't hide the musk of raw teenage anger, apathy and desire. Sara longs to leave her stoner boyfriend and...
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Under the Bridge
The murder of Reena Virk in 1997 is one of the most notorious and heartbreaking cases in Canadian history. In Under the Bridge , acclaimed author Rebecca Godfrey reveals the stunning truth about a Canadian tragedy that captured international headlines. Godfrey spent six years researching the case,...
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