Too Many Times: How to End Gun Violence in a Divided America

by Jacinda Ardern (Editor), Paul M. Barrett, Pamela Coloff

Guns in America have a history. The violence they cause came about from a series of decisions. To reverse them there is a series of solutions. This is your guide to them.

Gun violence is a problem with many faces, but seemingly no solution. From mass shootings to deadly domestic abuse to police officers opening fire, it permeates American life. And yet it feels impossible to address. The lines are firmly drawn and the federal government has not passed any legislation to reduce gun ownership in over twenty-five years.

That’s why it’s time to look at the issue differently. In this revelatory collection, gun violence in America is addressed from three angles: how gun violence affects us today, how we have gotten to this juncture legally and socially, and finally, what we can do to reduce and end gun violence in America.

Too many lives are lost by gun fire—around 15,000 a year—but we do have the tools to address this crisis. Top journalists, organizations, and anti-gun-violence advocacy groups are represented here—from Pamela Coloff to Ibram X. Kendi to Everytown for Gun Violence and the Giffords Organization—to collect the most comprehensive, thoughtful and practical guide on gun violence in America. There are no deadlocks and no excuses—we have the tools to stop gun violence now.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sociology, Politics, Essays

208 pages, Paperback

First published October 13, 2020

About the author

The Right Honourable Dame Jacinda Ardern was elected the 40th Prime Minister of New Zealand at the age of thirty-seven, becoming the country’s youngest Prime Minister in more than 150 years. Since leaving office, Ardern has established the Field Fellowship on empathetic leadership. She is a Senior Fellow at Harvard University, continues to work on climate action, and is the Patron of the Christchurch Call to Action to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. Ardern also works on a number of projects that support women and girls, but considers her greatest roles to be those she will hold for life, including that of mum and proud New Zealander.

Reviews

[Richard Propes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've wrestled over the last couple of days with how to rate and review "Too Many Times: How to End Gun Violence in a Divided America," primarily because I am the choir to which the collective of educated and well-informed authors preach yet I can't help but feel like the book falls at least a little bit short of its lofty vision.

The voices represented here are familiar ones in the discussion around violence ranging from Moms Demand Action founder Shannon Watts to Everytown for Gun Safety's Director of Research Sarah Burd-Sharps to National Coalition Against Domestic Violence's Public Policy Director Rachel Graber and quite a few others.

"Too Many Times" is a collection of writings, some historical and familiar and others lesser known and/or original. The collection is essentially divided into three particular talking points around the issue of gun violence - 1) How gun violence impacts us today, 2) How we have gotten to this juncture legally and socially, and 3) What we can do to reduce and end gun violence in America today.

For those already involved in the issues around gun violence, there's no question that the book's final talking point addressing what we can actually do is easily the most vital and informative.

The essays around gun violence's current impact are for the most part familiar ideas gathered together as a collective, while those essays essentially drawing from legal and social history are, indeed, familiar discussions that serve as critical knowledge for anyone approaching the issue of gun violence and, most especially, anyone daring to enter the heavily politicized and partisan political arena.

However, it's the third collective of essays that feels vital and fresh and inspiring. It was from this collection, speaking as someone who's been involved in issues around violence and children for 30 years, that left me better informed and significantly more inspired.

At times, however, "too many times" doesn't quite go far enough in addressing the "divided America" part of its title. My argument, essentially, would be that without addressing America's divisions any effort to end gun violence will be short-term in impact.

"Too Many Times" kicks off in riveting fashion, though. "96 Minutes," an article first run in Texas Monthly in 2006, recounts what many consider to be the first true awareness of gun violence as a growing concern with its story of Charles Whitman's mass shooting at the University of Texas-Austin in 1966. While far outshone by the recent documentary "Tower," this piece still vividly brings to life the events of that day and in many ways ties the books three main objectives together.

"I Dream About It Every Night" and "A Lynch Mob of One" are both important discussions, while Justice John Paul Stevens's dissenting opinion in the Heller case is a must read for those involved in the gun control issue even if it is also likely to be incredibly familiar to those same advocates. Stevens long cited the Heller case as one of the Supreme Court's worst decisions of his tenure.

Those who appreciated New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's response to the Christchurch mass shooting will even more appreciate her words recounted here, while a a 2020 NBC News Report on "How Police Justify Shootings" may very well help give tangible meaning to current affairs.

My personal favorite essay closes the book. Frank Serpico's "The Police Are Still Out of Control" is riveting reading and the kind of reading that will invest you in its subject matter while also having you look up that movie "Serpico" that you always intended to watch.

It's a terrific film, by the way.

I will confess that as I wound down my time with "Too Many Times" that I found myself just a wee bit disappointed as I had, perhaps, expected more in the way of fresh material rather than a collective that also included essays previously published. While they remain vital in the discussion around gun violence, as someone who has long been familiar with this issue they were familiar reading and a tad remedial.

However, as a collective of writings it is impossible to gather such respected voices as Shannon Watts, Ibram X. Kendi, Frank Serpico, John Paul Stevens, and others without being in awe of the wisdom and rather taken by their insights. For those early in the journey of exploring issues around gun violence, "Too Many Times" is a must read. For those wishing to gather multiple valuable resources as one, this also remains a vital resource. For experienced advocates and activists, this may not be the collection we always turn to but it may very well be the collection to which we point others as they become advocates and allies.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

Learned a lot and got angry a lot, but ultimately am glad to have read this as I feel much more aware of the details around gun violence issues in America. It's a complex issue but this collection was a great primer on a variety of gun violence impacts. Highly recommend!

[Becki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a topic that I have a lot of interest in- I'm a gun owner who believes in common sense gun control- and I looked forward to reading this group of essays on gun violence. How did we get here, and what can we do now?

The essays are written by different authors, for differing purposes, and in differing styles. There is an eye witness report of a mass shooting that happened 50 years ago. There is information about police shootings, and civil rights shootings. There is an essay on the NRA and one on the pushback against the NRA. One essay advises us to vote, another advises us to pass "extreme risk" laws. One lengthy essay contains the text of a dissenting opinion on a supreme court case.

I found nearly every essay to be very interesting and informative, but the grouping of essays was not cohesive and well ordered. The essays felt somewhat scattered and lacked the impact that they could have had.

I am appreciative to the author, publisher and #NetGalley, who allowed me to read an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. #TooManyTimes

[Ietrio · Rating 1 out of 5]

The solution is the biggest, most lovable Big Brother whom you'll ever need. And, like so many times in history, when things don't turn out the way the leeches promised, it's never the fault with them. And like always, it's for your own good.

[abi · Rating 2 out of 5]

sorry but i was not a fan of how this was edited at all. it felt like they just put some pre-written speeches/articles together in a random order (as opposed to works being commissioned/written specifically for this.

also not this book having people be somewhat sympathetic towards cops. no thanks.

[Gemini · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is really worth reading, so much insight! There are stories that are shared which are simply astonishing. You simply can't believe the things that happened in their lives. Whether discussing social justice like BLM, or domestic violence it's all important to know & realize how these things have become such an issue. More mass shootings than ever before which is the norm for the US now. Horrifying that more hasn't been done. There are people who share their stories of trauma & how they kept fighting & overcame all the barriers they faced although some are still fighting the same battles. So yes read this & share & have conversations about it.

[Victor Soupene · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provides a nice introduction to firearm topics but I was sorely disappointed by the lack of discussion around the largest burden of firearm death: suicide. The book relies heavily on popularized firearm topics including mass shootings, police brutality cases, and NRA political involvement (which granted are all important). I also appreciated the variety of authors in the book but would rather have the book focus on one of the topics through the lens of one perspective given the complexity of each topic. Hence, I look forward to reading more detailed texts on firearm violence work.

[Michael Lindgren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology of essays about gun violence in the United States collects the writings of a wide group of writers to show and discuss the true horror of runaway gun murders in the U. S. We are all familiar with the statistics and the horror stories but this collection really brings the point home. Features a very diverse and interesting lineup -- not the usual suspects, at all.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.