What do you think?
Rate this book
Halfway Heaven: Diary of a Harvard Murder
In May, 1995, a photograph and an anonymous note arrived at The Harvard Crimson : "Keep this picture. There will soon be a very juicy story involving this woman." Soon afterwards, Sinedu Tadesse stabbed her roommate, Trang Phuong Ho, to death, and then hanged herself.
This riveting book recounts the stories of these women, whose admission to Harvard was "halfway heaven," a bridge to the American dream after lives of hardship. Sinedu grew up under communist tyranny in Ethiopia, while Trang was born in a Vietnamese forced labor camp, and fled the country with her father and sister to end up on welfare in Boston. Despite their similarities, the two were never friends; Trang was friendly and outgoing, while Sinedu, awkward and shy, had trouble adjusting to a culture vastly different from her own. Drawing upon her astonishing diaries, New York Times bestselling author Thernstrom, a Harvard graduate herself, reconstructs Sinedu's inner life to reveal a girl struggling against isolation and depression. The book reveals Harvard as an institution ill-equipped to deal with mental illness on campus that apparently cared more for its reputation than for its student body.
A brilliant synthesis of cultural analysis, psychological study, and first-rate investigative journalism, Halfway Heaven is a haunting exploration of the power of profound loneliness and an expose of one of America's most distinguished universities.
This riveting book recounts the stories of these women, whose admission to Harvard was "halfway heaven," a bridge to the American dream after lives of hardship. Sinedu grew up under communist tyranny in Ethiopia, while Trang was born in a Vietnamese forced labor camp, and fled the country with her father and sister to end up on welfare in Boston. Despite their similarities, the two were never friends; Trang was friendly and outgoing, while Sinedu, awkward and shy, had trouble adjusting to a culture vastly different from her own. Drawing upon her astonishing diaries, New York Times bestselling author Thernstrom, a Harvard graduate herself, reconstructs Sinedu's inner life to reveal a girl struggling against isolation and depression. The book reveals Harvard as an institution ill-equipped to deal with mental illness on campus that apparently cared more for its reputation than for its student body.
A brilliant synthesis of cultural analysis, psychological study, and first-rate investigative journalism, Halfway Heaven is a haunting exploration of the power of profound loneliness and an expose of one of America's most distinguished universities.
240 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
9 people are currently reading
565 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
August 26, 2010
Why does evil exist? That is one question central to the mystery surrounding the stabbing death of Trang Phuang Ho by her Harvard roommate Sinedu Tasdesse, who then hanged herself. Both girls were entering their senior year, both had been high school valedictorians, both immigrants from countries that had been ravaged by war, both were pre-med, and both very intelligent. Everyone wanted to know why this tragedy occurred. What was Sinedu's motivation?
The author had known Sinedu briefly when she taught English at Harvard, and she was persuaded by The New Yorker to write a piece about the girls' tragedy. To discover the truth, Thernstrom traveled to Ethiopia, where she discovered a culture rooted in traditions very different from those Sinedu would encounter at Harvard. She was a quiet, unassuming, bright child, but unable to make close friends. She was obsessed with perfection. There were numerous signs that a II was not well, but th ey were overlooked. Merely the fact that she skipped a final exam should have been a clue, for she never missed any commitment.
Ethiopians faced an enormous cultural gulf coming to the United States. We have a cult of individualism from which we gain our identity. In Ethiopia, self-identity derives from one's place in the community. Campus African-American organizations could not help because they didn't share language or culture any more than residents of New York share culture with people from Mexico City even though all live on the same continent. Ethiopians did not view themselves as Africans but as Ethiopians. Racial identity was thrust on them in the United States. It was a foreign concept to be considered "black" They th ought of themselves as Amharic, Tigrayan or Oromo, not as a particular color. "The longer you're in the U.S., the more your sense of color consciousness tends to develop . . .. African Americans would talk about how we were brothers, but our cultures are totally opposite. . . . At first I felt pressure to hang around with black students and join the Black Students society, and then I realized I fit in there even less than I did with other students." So writes an Ethiopian student at Columbia University.
Social disparity became another cultural barrier. Most Harvard students come from very wealthy backgrounds. Those few who do not are appalled by the ostentatious display of wealth: students rewarded with cars and ski trips for good grades. One poor Hispanic student didn't know how to tie a tie because he had never owned one. He was asked not to attend one social event because he did not have a jacket and tie, increasing his sense of social isolation.
Harvard did little to decrease the isolation - the idea was assimilation, after all. "Harvard is very complacent, very arrogant - there is this attitude: we're the best university on earth and yo u should be happy here. For someone with a fragile sense of self - I can see how it could destroy you." Shugu Iman, daughter of a prominent Pakistani family.
Sinedu left a series of extraordinary diaries - all written in English, perhaps because many English words like "depression" have no Amharic equivalent. They record her desperate attempt to understand and fit into a vastly different culture and her losing battle to maintain her mental health. Many of the terms she used to describe her isolation are common to social outcasts. Sylvia Plath referred to herself as being in a bell jar "stewing in my own sour air" Despite Sinedu's conscious efforts to "put on a mask" and to fake social skills, she failed (in her mind) because people respond to gestures and facial expressions that are culturally ingrained. "The problem of isolation is one that - by definition - cannot be solved alone."
Spin control has become big business at Harvard. Their PR vice-president, James Rowe, was hired in 1994 at a salary of $200,000. The murder/suicide occurred at a time when Harvard was in the midst of a $2.1 billion endowment campaign that required them to raise $1 million per day. Stonewalling became the rule. Staff were ordered to refer all questions to the central PR office, where no answers were forthcoming. Even the Cambridge police department often failed to learn of a problem on campus until notified by the coroner's office. "The fact that the university has sent the word out not to talk to anyone is precisely the problem. The outrage is that they're more interested in preserving the reputation of the university when their real interest should be in getting people to talk about it as much as possible to figure out what went wrong," says Harvey Silvergate, a Harvard affiliate and Boston trial lawyer. "The administrators have taken over the university. Consequently various humane and educational values such as self-criticism and truth-telling - are subordinated to protecting the university's reputation"
Thernstrom has sought out the truth and it's not pleasant. Clearly, both deaths - and perhaps some of the other suicides she discusses - could have been prevented with a little attention from a university less arrogant and narcissistic.
The author had known Sinedu briefly when she taught English at Harvard, and she was persuaded by The New Yorker to write a piece about the girls' tragedy. To discover the truth, Thernstrom traveled to Ethiopia, where she discovered a culture rooted in traditions very different from those Sinedu would encounter at Harvard. She was a quiet, unassuming, bright child, but unable to make close friends. She was obsessed with perfection. There were numerous signs that a II was not well, but th ey were overlooked. Merely the fact that she skipped a final exam should have been a clue, for she never missed any commitment.
Ethiopians faced an enormous cultural gulf coming to the United States. We have a cult of individualism from which we gain our identity. In Ethiopia, self-identity derives from one's place in the community. Campus African-American organizations could not help because they didn't share language or culture any more than residents of New York share culture with people from Mexico City even though all live on the same continent. Ethiopians did not view themselves as Africans but as Ethiopians. Racial identity was thrust on them in the United States. It was a foreign concept to be considered "black" They th ought of themselves as Amharic, Tigrayan or Oromo, not as a particular color. "The longer you're in the U.S., the more your sense of color consciousness tends to develop . . .. African Americans would talk about how we were brothers, but our cultures are totally opposite. . . . At first I felt pressure to hang around with black students and join the Black Students society, and then I realized I fit in there even less than I did with other students." So writes an Ethiopian student at Columbia University.
Social disparity became another cultural barrier. Most Harvard students come from very wealthy backgrounds. Those few who do not are appalled by the ostentatious display of wealth: students rewarded with cars and ski trips for good grades. One poor Hispanic student didn't know how to tie a tie because he had never owned one. He was asked not to attend one social event because he did not have a jacket and tie, increasing his sense of social isolation.
Harvard did little to decrease the isolation - the idea was assimilation, after all. "Harvard is very complacent, very arrogant - there is this attitude: we're the best university on earth and yo u should be happy here. For someone with a fragile sense of self - I can see how it could destroy you." Shugu Iman, daughter of a prominent Pakistani family.
Sinedu left a series of extraordinary diaries - all written in English, perhaps because many English words like "depression" have no Amharic equivalent. They record her desperate attempt to understand and fit into a vastly different culture and her losing battle to maintain her mental health. Many of the terms she used to describe her isolation are common to social outcasts. Sylvia Plath referred to herself as being in a bell jar "stewing in my own sour air" Despite Sinedu's conscious efforts to "put on a mask" and to fake social skills, she failed (in her mind) because people respond to gestures and facial expressions that are culturally ingrained. "The problem of isolation is one that - by definition - cannot be solved alone."
Spin control has become big business at Harvard. Their PR vice-president, James Rowe, was hired in 1994 at a salary of $200,000. The murder/suicide occurred at a time when Harvard was in the midst of a $2.1 billion endowment campaign that required them to raise $1 million per day. Stonewalling became the rule. Staff were ordered to refer all questions to the central PR office, where no answers were forthcoming. Even the Cambridge police department often failed to learn of a problem on campus until notified by the coroner's office. "The fact that the university has sent the word out not to talk to anyone is precisely the problem. The outrage is that they're more interested in preserving the reputation of the university when their real interest should be in getting people to talk about it as much as possible to figure out what went wrong," says Harvey Silvergate, a Harvard affiliate and Boston trial lawyer. "The administrators have taken over the university. Consequently various humane and educational values such as self-criticism and truth-telling - are subordinated to protecting the university's reputation"
Thernstrom has sought out the truth and it's not pleasant. Clearly, both deaths - and perhaps some of the other suicides she discusses - could have been prevented with a little attention from a university less arrogant and narcissistic.
December 27, 2011
Melanie Thernstrom writes about the murder of a Vietnamese Harvard student by her Ethiopian roommate, who subsequently commits suicide. Ms. Thernstrom has access to the troubled student's diaries and friends. Yet she produces a book that is more a reflection on her own privelege, and how troubled her relationship with her alma mater, Harvard, becomes, as a result of engaging in investigative journalism. For every element of investigation, she documents her questions about the ethics of her behavior (do I fly to Ethiopia and drop in on the student's family unannounced?) then does it anyway. Did she mention she went to Harvard? and learned to write there? and thrived there? (they sent her to Ireland) and that her entire family went there? But oh, there are students who are unhappy there, students who haven't come up the ranks of privelege. That's kind of sad. Let's be sad for a little while because we're deep. Let's probe the cultural ramifications of this crime, then ignore them to veer off into diagnosing the killer with every personality disorder in the DSM. Ms. Thernstrom did have the taste to consult Paul McHugh, a Hopkins psychiatrist known for his common sense, whose comments on evil were well worth reading. Did Ms. Thernstrom mention she went to Harvard?
December 6, 2019
This book turned out to be different and more thoughtful than I had imagined. Instead of considering this a true crime book, it is much more a true psychology book that is underpinned by crime. Thernstrom writes for the New Yorker, and had attended Harvard, which enabled her to bring a unique perspective to the story of a murder - suicide on campus. By the end, the book’s focus is much more on how mental illness is ineffectively dealt with on college campuses (which serve as a microcosm of the outside world), and how difficult it is for all students, especially foreign students, to find and get the help they need. This is an exceptionally sad read because I don’t think anything has really changed for mentally ill students between the time the book was written and now. Despite our national Mental Health Parity Act, we lag far behind in treating diseases of the mind as we would treat diseases of the body.
August 4, 2017
This was a heartbreaking read about a Harvard premed student's steep decline into mental illness, the university's complete failure to notice or do anything meaningful to help, and the disastrous events that followed. The author, who has studied and taught at that school and even lived in the dorm where the murder-suicide occurred, was able to tell us a great deal about the people involved, and the role of Harvard itself in the events. This book is a powerful statement about the destructive power of isolation, the ways pain can destroy a person's life or make it more powerful, and the different ways people deal with the unbearable. This story will stay with me a very long time.
February 15, 2011
Overall, a good story about loneliness and mental illness and what happens when the latter goes untreated. Here we are, 15 years after the events of the book, and I don't think we're much better at supporting those who suffer from diseases of the brain.
A few things about this book bugged. First, I'm reading it because I'm interested in what happened to these two women, not because I care about the author's emotional journey in writing it, or how her "relationship with Harvard" is damaged along the way. Eye roll. Secondly, quotes from Vietnamese immigrants that are rendered grammatically correct in the original New Yorker piece (where the story first ran) become broken English in the book. It may be fine to do that in a personal essay or memoir (I don't know) but the book presents itself as a piece of reporting, and the journalism rule is you correct for imperfect English.
A few things about this book bugged. First, I'm reading it because I'm interested in what happened to these two women, not because I care about the author's emotional journey in writing it, or how her "relationship with Harvard" is damaged along the way. Eye roll. Secondly, quotes from Vietnamese immigrants that are rendered grammatically correct in the original New Yorker piece (where the story first ran) become broken English in the book. It may be fine to do that in a personal essay or memoir (I don't know) but the book presents itself as a piece of reporting, and the journalism rule is you correct for imperfect English.
November 16, 2023
I think this book fulfilled the purpose of giving us insight into Sinedu and Trang’s relationship and most importantly why Sinedu felt compelled to commit this crime. However I found some of the language and analysis to be culturally insensitive, which maybe more of a reflection of the time when this book was written. I also found it a bit odd that the author wrote about her personal relationship to Harvard and the journey of writing this book. I think she was attempting to explain some of the difficulties with collecting evidence/reveal the nature of secrecy at these well-known institutions, but it just felt misplaced and distracted from the story.
Read
November 21, 2024Read this with Zoe over the course of 3 days in a shared library book- I would have the copy from 5 AM to 4 PM, and she would read it from 4 PM to 5 AM.
- not believing in the Church, because a God who is so punitive cannot exist, to be punitive is to be human
- obscuring praise “gold” in “waxen” brutish statements. Obscuring scornful condemnation in blunt praise
- refusing or being unable to define individual identity, allowing the connective fibers of relationship to be the whole of your substance. What happens when those fibers change or dissolved (interacted well with Art by Réza)
- revenging every slight at all costs, to the full extent of human revenge. Being afraid of your own punitive nature but compelled by it so strongly
- using loneliness to control, entrap, manipulate.
- the social world as a realm of magic, dominated by sorcerous charmers
-unfathomable loss being conflated with unfathomable motives, which we cannot allow ourselves to accept as an answer. Do not accept the mystery, destroy or change harvard
- harvard yard as a golden green treasure trove, an institution designed solely to hoard wealth, any scholarship and generosity is incidental
- not believing in the Church, because a God who is so punitive cannot exist, to be punitive is to be human
- obscuring praise “gold” in “waxen” brutish statements. Obscuring scornful condemnation in blunt praise
- refusing or being unable to define individual identity, allowing the connective fibers of relationship to be the whole of your substance. What happens when those fibers change or dissolved (interacted well with Art by Réza)
- revenging every slight at all costs, to the full extent of human revenge. Being afraid of your own punitive nature but compelled by it so strongly
- using loneliness to control, entrap, manipulate.
- the social world as a realm of magic, dominated by sorcerous charmers
-unfathomable loss being conflated with unfathomable motives, which we cannot allow ourselves to accept as an answer. Do not accept the mystery, destroy or change harvard
- harvard yard as a golden green treasure trove, an institution designed solely to hoard wealth, any scholarship and generosity is incidental
June 9, 2018
I read this book for a course in Critical Readings for Higher Education. At the surface level, it does not really seem overt in why we were asked to read this book; it's about a murder-suicide at Harvard in the 1990s and looked like it would focus on true crime and psychology. However, as the context was given and the foundation set, it became clear that the message of this book was one critical of Harvard and of mental health services in general on college campuses. Overall, it was a good read and I would definitely recommend if you are interested in psychology, true crime, and/or if you are a Higher Ed. professional.
November 23, 2020
Absolutely fascinating investigative reporting of this murder suicide at Harvard. It fully examines the "in house solidarity" of this institution and all of their secrets.
May 21, 2011
My first experience with Melanie Thernstrom's writing was The Dead Girl, her debut, which was a moving tribute to her best friend's murder. When Halfway Heaven followed in 1997, I grabbed it immediately, assuming that with Thernstrom's insider knowledge of Harvard (she'd been both a student and an instructor there), her version of events would be riveting.
::: The Murder/Suicide :::
The murder/suicide of two of Harvard's foreign students was huge news back in 1995. Sinedue Tadesse, an Ethiopian national, stabbed her roommate Trang Ho, a Vietnamese immigrant, 45 times, then hung herself. Ho's friend, Thao Nguyen, was there at the time of the attack, and attempted to stop it, but was attacked herself, and locked out of the room as she ran for help.
The crime itself was shocking enough: both girls were good, if not outstanding students; both were pre-med students; and they had been roommates for two years. Students who knew both girls claimed to have seen no signs of the impending tragedy, and no one who knew them could see any reason for Sinedu's attack to have occurred. Police had enough evidence to be sure of what had happened (locked windows with untouched dust, a door blocked after Nguyen's exit, the suicide), but no motive. Compounding the lack of information was the reticence of Harvard administration to share the findings of their own internal investigation, gag orders placed on faculty and staff by the administration, and the reluctance of two families to talk to reporters. Ho's mother spoke no English, and Tadesse's family lived in Ethiopia.
Thernstrom, on assignment from The New Yorker interviewed everyone she possibly could, from members of the school's tutoring staff (which, best as I can determine, are a combination resident advisor and student advisor) to former students of Harvard, to Tadesse's family and others in Ethiopia. Halfway Heaven is a compendium of the information about the case itself, as well as on the state of mental health care available on college campuses.
::: The First Person :::
Where Halfway Heaven fails is in its similarities to The Dead Girl. Thernstrom wrote The Dead Girl as half-friend/half-reporter. The insertion of her own thoughts and feelings made perfect sense there, as it was her friend who was murdered. She participated in the search. She went to the funeral. When she does the same with Halfway Heaven, it becomes annoying.
What could have been a decent investigative report on the murder/suicide becomes a personal mission for Thernstrom. The tragedy of two very bright girls becomes a vehicle for Thernstrom to share her own feelings, from her reluctance to pester the family in Ethiopia, to reflections on her own friend's murder, to a brief encouter she had with Tadesse while teaching a course at Harvard that is given far too much significance in her mind.
The beginnings of the book show definite promise as Thernstrom attempts to look at the reasons why the murder/suicide happened, and what part, if any, the college's environment created the situation that led to it. However, from her first decision to stay in a student meeting with administration because she just "didn't think to leave" smacks of a smarmy "Harvard insider" mentality. Any good investigative journalist will obviously use any tool possible to get the story, but an incident like the one in which Thernstrom attempts to interview the head of the house the girls live in is just annoying and superfluous. When she asks the receptionist for a copy of the house phone book, she is denied, and takes a perverse pleasure in getting the same information out of another copy in a central location, while admitting she could have gotten the same information from the campus operator. Her "Hah! I showed them! I KNEW where else to find it because I LIVED HERE." did nothing but detract from my opinion of her as an impartial reporter. Every time Thernstrom was denied access or information by someone at Harvard, it became more and more like a child stomping her foot saying "I'll show them."
The first half of the book is a fascinating look into some of the dynamics that may have played into the tragedy, but the second half is more of a petulant whine at being denied additional access based on what she perceives to be her insider status that puts her in a different position than the rest of the press. Halfway Heaven had a great deal of potential at exposing not only possible motives for the murder/suicide and any responsibility the college may have had in its occurrence, but is reduced to more of an adolescent rant including interviews with students who feel the mental-health care system at Harvard failed them, but otherwise have nothing to do with the crime whatsoever.
This review previously published at Epinions: http://www.epinions.com/review/Halfwa...
::: The Murder/Suicide :::
The murder/suicide of two of Harvard's foreign students was huge news back in 1995. Sinedue Tadesse, an Ethiopian national, stabbed her roommate Trang Ho, a Vietnamese immigrant, 45 times, then hung herself. Ho's friend, Thao Nguyen, was there at the time of the attack, and attempted to stop it, but was attacked herself, and locked out of the room as she ran for help.
The crime itself was shocking enough: both girls were good, if not outstanding students; both were pre-med students; and they had been roommates for two years. Students who knew both girls claimed to have seen no signs of the impending tragedy, and no one who knew them could see any reason for Sinedu's attack to have occurred. Police had enough evidence to be sure of what had happened (locked windows with untouched dust, a door blocked after Nguyen's exit, the suicide), but no motive. Compounding the lack of information was the reticence of Harvard administration to share the findings of their own internal investigation, gag orders placed on faculty and staff by the administration, and the reluctance of two families to talk to reporters. Ho's mother spoke no English, and Tadesse's family lived in Ethiopia.
Thernstrom, on assignment from The New Yorker interviewed everyone she possibly could, from members of the school's tutoring staff (which, best as I can determine, are a combination resident advisor and student advisor) to former students of Harvard, to Tadesse's family and others in Ethiopia. Halfway Heaven is a compendium of the information about the case itself, as well as on the state of mental health care available on college campuses.
::: The First Person :::
Where Halfway Heaven fails is in its similarities to The Dead Girl. Thernstrom wrote The Dead Girl as half-friend/half-reporter. The insertion of her own thoughts and feelings made perfect sense there, as it was her friend who was murdered. She participated in the search. She went to the funeral. When she does the same with Halfway Heaven, it becomes annoying.
What could have been a decent investigative report on the murder/suicide becomes a personal mission for Thernstrom. The tragedy of two very bright girls becomes a vehicle for Thernstrom to share her own feelings, from her reluctance to pester the family in Ethiopia, to reflections on her own friend's murder, to a brief encouter she had with Tadesse while teaching a course at Harvard that is given far too much significance in her mind.
The beginnings of the book show definite promise as Thernstrom attempts to look at the reasons why the murder/suicide happened, and what part, if any, the college's environment created the situation that led to it. However, from her first decision to stay in a student meeting with administration because she just "didn't think to leave" smacks of a smarmy "Harvard insider" mentality. Any good investigative journalist will obviously use any tool possible to get the story, but an incident like the one in which Thernstrom attempts to interview the head of the house the girls live in is just annoying and superfluous. When she asks the receptionist for a copy of the house phone book, she is denied, and takes a perverse pleasure in getting the same information out of another copy in a central location, while admitting she could have gotten the same information from the campus operator. Her "Hah! I showed them! I KNEW where else to find it because I LIVED HERE." did nothing but detract from my opinion of her as an impartial reporter. Every time Thernstrom was denied access or information by someone at Harvard, it became more and more like a child stomping her foot saying "I'll show them."
The first half of the book is a fascinating look into some of the dynamics that may have played into the tragedy, but the second half is more of a petulant whine at being denied additional access based on what she perceives to be her insider status that puts her in a different position than the rest of the press. Halfway Heaven had a great deal of potential at exposing not only possible motives for the murder/suicide and any responsibility the college may have had in its occurrence, but is reduced to more of an adolescent rant including interviews with students who feel the mental-health care system at Harvard failed them, but otherwise have nothing to do with the crime whatsoever.
This review previously published at Epinions: http://www.epinions.com/review/Halfwa...
April 21, 2013
The book by Melanie Thernstrom details the 1994 murder-suicide between two Harvard students Sinedu and Trang: one of Ethiopian descent and the other from Vietnam. They were high achieving students seeking to make their families proud and to achieve the American dream of success and well-being. Sinedu was an awkward girl who found great difficulty making friends and adapting to the Harvard culture while Trang was an easy going student who easily made friends and excelled in all she did. Sinedu displayed signs of disturbance which was not picked up by the administration or her own brother who attended a nearby university. Sinedu was so lonely that she took up writing to strangers she had randomly selected from the phone book detailing her depression and frustrations. When Trang came into her life as a roommate, she projected all of her hopes for a friendship onto Trang only to be bitterly disappointed at Trang's rejection due to Sinedu's neediness. Sinedu's frustration at her bitter loneliness and her perceived rejection by Trang led her to murder Trang and then to commit suicide. The author does somewhat of a good job providing the biographical and sociological backgrounds of the students which does help shed light on the crime. However, the bulk of the book is a scathing indictment of the Harvard culture which, according to the author, a Harvard alumnus herself, failed to cater and timely notice the mental deterioration of Sinedu. Most of the book is a criticism of the lack of mental facilities and professional counselors in Harvard and how Harvard failed the students in this regard. My opinion is that colleges do not serve as surrogate parents and it is not their responsibility to hand hold and concentrate on mental health issues. However, my main complaint is that the bulk of the book was simply an indictment of Harvard's failure to provide mental services for their students. I would have liked to have seen more of a biographical and sociological examination of these two girls. I don't recommend the book at all unless the reader has an innate interest in the workings of Harvard culture.
February 20, 2020
Ethiopian student Sinedu Tadesse brutally murdered her Harvard college room mate Vietnamese Trang Ho. Why? Because that was her "good solution" as opposed to her "bad solution" for dealing with her loneliness at the same time as getting revenge for her perceived mis-treatment by her peers, especially Trang. This is a story of mental illness including extreme paranoia and social retardation and also evil. It is a tragic story about two brilliant students who's paths crossed to the devastation of many. I really enjoyed reading this book, Melanie Thernstrom is obviously a talented writer as well as a diligent reporter. I found it very informative regarding Ethiopian culture and was able to make a emotional connection with both victim and perpetrator. Was a little bit of an anti climax when it came to the chapter where she describes the actual murder, could've been written with more suspense and I felt that bit was kind of rushed. Miss Thernstrom also said she had gained access to Sinedu's diaries before writing the book but there were very few excerpts, really wanted more of the diary entries which really should chronicle Sinedu's mental health deteriorating. Overall this is a fascinating book to read, well written and spooky. More of the meditation of evil that is promised in the synopsis would have been good but still I will continue to recommend this book which should be a true crime classic!
August 6, 2016
I admit, I had very little faith in this book after the first part (and I'm still annoyed with the argument of "evil"), but overall it could have been worse. The book starts with Thernstrom un-ironically talking about her privilege--and at length--which is extremely irritating. Once she delves into the investigative part of this book, though Thernstrom is able to present evidence in an interesting and (mostly) respectable way. I really appreciate that she doesn't lay blame on Sinedu, the woman who murdered her roommate before killing herself, but rather presented us with some depiction of her Ethiopian background and culture, as well as her own journals which indicate a mental illness and/or personality disorder. She didn't once try and point: "There! That's the reason she's a killer! I've figured it out!" but I'm afraid that some more casual readers might. I'm grateful that she didn't try and oversimplify mental illness, but also brought into question the responsibility of an institution to its students. The best parts for me were the times she used past students' stories about their own struggles with illness and how schools handled them, I just wish she would have gone a little further.
May 7, 2024
On exploring book genres I have never tried before— true crime was an option. This book was about a Vietnamese Harvard student murdered by her Ethiopian roommate who then committed suicide.
Through an objective lens, the investigative journalism was careful and clever, at least on the first part. Thernstrom examined the cultural and psychological aspects in search of the answer to her main thesis: Where does the evil lie? She knew the right questions to throw to the right people at the right time, even if they were in expense of putting her ‘beloved’ alma mater under a bad light. (But that part where she described how Harvard meant to her felt unnecessary and privileged-sounding.) As I sank further into the story, it revealed less about the main plot and more about how Harvard denied its students the access to proper mental health services. It seemed as if it was a good material on the university’s crooked system and the murder/suicide was just a subsequent effect, among many others. Did she find the answer to her thesis question? It was undefined. But maybe it was for the readers to judge. 2.5/5
Through an objective lens, the investigative journalism was careful and clever, at least on the first part. Thernstrom examined the cultural and psychological aspects in search of the answer to her main thesis: Where does the evil lie? She knew the right questions to throw to the right people at the right time, even if they were in expense of putting her ‘beloved’ alma mater under a bad light. (But that part where she described how Harvard meant to her felt unnecessary and privileged-sounding.) As I sank further into the story, it revealed less about the main plot and more about how Harvard denied its students the access to proper mental health services. It seemed as if it was a good material on the university’s crooked system and the murder/suicide was just a subsequent effect, among many others. Did she find the answer to her thesis question? It was undefined. But maybe it was for the readers to judge. 2.5/5
August 27, 2011
My neighbor sent this book over, knowing that I read true crime. Seems like I remember the incident happening just yesterday but I see it occurred in 1995. A very sad story, starting with the two girls' childhood experiences growing up in Ethiopia and Vietnam. The author provided insight into their family customs, some much different than the ones they would encounter in Boston at Harvard, making the adjustment to college life more difficult. The shocking murder and suicide in their college dorm brings up questions of how much responsibility does Harvard own, looking back at the circumstances leading up to the tragedy. The description of the killer's diaries and the author's explanation of the different types of psychiatric diagnoses makes you realize just how important it is to receive a professional evaluation, therapy, and medication. Comparisons are made between how Harvard and other universities, such as MIT, handle their students' needs and cries for help. It's a difficult situation.
May 27, 2023
Sinedu was an immigrant from Ethiopia whose family had survived civil strife in their home country and her roommate at Harvard, Trang , had also overcome similar horrendous circumstances in Vietnam.
Culture shock was immediate to both as they attempted to blend in with the overwhelmingly American student body. Trang was able to assimilate more easily than her fellow premed classmate.
The pair were compatible at first but in their second year Sinedu fell deeper and deeper into depression. Her diaries showed a complex young lady with severe emotional issues.
An inner anger turned outward as Sinedu lost it when Trang decided to move out of their dorm room. After stabbing Trang forty five times, Sinedu hanged herself from a curtain rod.
The university has an internal security force and the local police and author found the school uncooperative and indifferent. Thernstrom was a graduate of the university but was frustrated by the constant roadblocks.
Halfway Heaven is well written but, in the end, a frustrating read with too many unanswered questions.
Culture shock was immediate to both as they attempted to blend in with the overwhelmingly American student body. Trang was able to assimilate more easily than her fellow premed classmate.
The pair were compatible at first but in their second year Sinedu fell deeper and deeper into depression. Her diaries showed a complex young lady with severe emotional issues.
An inner anger turned outward as Sinedu lost it when Trang decided to move out of their dorm room. After stabbing Trang forty five times, Sinedu hanged herself from a curtain rod.
The university has an internal security force and the local police and author found the school uncooperative and indifferent. Thernstrom was a graduate of the university but was frustrated by the constant roadblocks.
Halfway Heaven is well written but, in the end, a frustrating read with too many unanswered questions.
November 17, 2013
I almost didn't read this, thinking, due to the subtitle, it might involve a sensationalistic treatment. It's far from that, though: it includes cultural and psychological insights, careful critiques of mental health care policies and procedures, as well as a healthy examination of power structures in elite, ivy league universities. I especially enjoyed the insights into Amharic culture and language and the statistical analyses regarding mental health issues in college students. The author comes off as genuine, persistent, and dedicated to exploring and teasing apart complex truths, even if it means standing up to powerful institutions she has personal connections with. These are the qualities that so many contemporary American journalists lack, making this book even more appreciable.
June 19, 2015
It was a terrible thing to happen to both families. We didn't have to be walked through evidence or a trial like in other true crimes because there wasn't much to be gathered and there was no trial. Actual material seemed to be thin, most was about her ins and outs with the campus herself. And she makes no qualms about trumpeting her time spent there as a student even as she is berating their attitude. It is a deplorable situation, that they care more about their reputation than actually helping students, but that isn't a shock. It reminds me of those venerable families that lock away their troubled members rather than admit they need help. If you don't mind reading about a lot of personal waffling about intrusion by the author, then by all means. Otherwise, I'd pass it by.
September 15, 2016
A fascinating look at an inexplicable and grisly crime and the college roommates who were victim and perpetrator. The author introduces us to these two foreign students, showing us the girls' unique backgrounds and immersing us in the singular culture of Harvard. I enjoyed how the author was both objective journalist and curious participant in the investigation. This book is better than a memoir or a true crime book.
July 5, 2007
Working in higher education, this book provided a startling view into how the bureaucracy of a university can fail its students. This haunting true story of the relationship between roommates, the transition to a new culture, and the darkest places of the human mind stays long after the book has ended.
June 19, 2012
An interesting study of mental illness and the sick culture of Harvard. Instead of investing in the help students need with their depression, etc., the university hires lawyers to cover up and spin any occurrence that might lead to bad PR.The author reveals the murders and suicides that have taken place and the lack of care that surrounds them.
August 19, 2009
Had to read for a class, but could not put it down. Learned more about psychology from this book than from any other. Astonishing.
August 22, 2015
Pretty interesting true-crime story. More depressing than I thought it would be. Thernstrom has a beautiful writing style that flows well.
May 6, 2016
Interesting study of a murder case, but another author enamored with the words "that" and "had." It makes the writing bulky.
March 19, 2021
Starting when we already know the "whodunnit" of a savage knifing of a college student, Thernstrom tries to tell us the "why" of it. Do the answers lie in events in Africa or Vietnam, in Harvard's attempt to keep its perfect image, in clitoridectomy, or in repressed sexual urges? Thernstrom finds some explanations traveling to Ethiopia, talking with foreign students, reading the Ethiopian murderer's diary, etc., but at the end she has to throw up her hands and talk about "evil." An engrossing, quick reading account in which the author tries to use her background as a Harvard alumna and teacher to understand why her beloved alma mater let murderer and victim down, and what could be done in the future. I have requested her first book about the murder of her best friend, to try to find out in turn what she does when events are not so cut-and-dried, events which obviously led her to the true crime genre.
November 1, 2022
Melanie Thernstrom writes true crime in a far different way: she writes with both an investigative mindset for facts and stats, while also delving into the psychological / social pressures on both the victim and the perpetrator.
Halfway Heaven chronicles the childhood and college years of two Harvard students: one from Ethiopia and one an immigrant from Vietnam. The two become roommates. They have achieved their personal dream of attending Harvard while also establishing their place in their families' history as a "success story."
It's not that easy. While both are intellectually capable of success in academics, only one of the two has the social skills college demands.
The tragedy of the murder-suicide is amplified by Harvard's "no press" policies and the obfuscation of officials at Harvard, who would prefer the story to simply go away. Harvard may be the pinnacle of academia, but in 1996 at least, this institution came in woefully short on people skills.
Halfway Heaven chronicles the childhood and college years of two Harvard students: one from Ethiopia and one an immigrant from Vietnam. The two become roommates. They have achieved their personal dream of attending Harvard while also establishing their place in their families' history as a "success story."
It's not that easy. While both are intellectually capable of success in academics, only one of the two has the social skills college demands.
The tragedy of the murder-suicide is amplified by Harvard's "no press" policies and the obfuscation of officials at Harvard, who would prefer the story to simply go away. Harvard may be the pinnacle of academia, but in 1996 at least, this institution came in woefully short on people skills.
March 24, 2024
Well-researched, well-written investegative journalism. Tragic story, infuriating incompetence and then malfeasance by Harvard College. Particularly interesting for a Harvard College alum to read - it’s horrifying, but not surprising. Even for folks like the author (or myself) who enjoyed and are grateful for their time at the school. Illuminating portrayal of immigrant challenges, and mental health challenges in our society.
Some of the reviews here criticize the author for going to Harvard and having a “good time there”. Firstly, the author is open about that in the book. Secondly, I don’t know why that affects one’s reading of it. The author hardly defends Harvard, and really puts herself out there in her criticism and in obtaining the facts she does. Frankly, I think it’s her privilege that gave her the ability / confident to write this expose against the behemoth, and it’s a good thing she did.
Some of the reviews here criticize the author for going to Harvard and having a “good time there”. Firstly, the author is open about that in the book. Secondly, I don’t know why that affects one’s reading of it. The author hardly defends Harvard, and really puts herself out there in her criticism and in obtaining the facts she does. Frankly, I think it’s her privilege that gave her the ability / confident to write this expose against the behemoth, and it’s a good thing she did.
July 4, 2020
If you are looking for a true crime gritty bloody details...this is not the book you are looking for. Far more insightful with regards to the mental instability and suffering of those we assume to have charmed lives simply because they have made it to a school such as Harvard.
September 21, 2025
gripping true crime investigative journalism. Incredibly heartfelt especially when exploring the international student’s plight to assimilate and combat loneliness. however subtracted one star because the author mentions Harvard way too much
December 23, 2017
Decent story but really not enough interesting information to be a whole book.
More a statement on the lack of mental health care at Harvard than a look into the whys of a crime.
More a statement on the lack of mental health care at Harvard than a look into the whys of a crime.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews