What works? What doesn't?

In first year CreComm we had to read Journey For Justice: How Project Angel Cracked the Candace Derksen Case for journalism class. A novel written by Mike McIntyre about the disappearance of a girl walking home from school and the years it took to solve the mystery of her murder.

This year we read the same story, but from Mama's point of view.

Wilma Derksen is Candace's mother. She wrote a book called, "Have You Seen Candace? A Mothers True Story of Coping with the Murder of Her Daughter."

What works in this book?
I think the emotional aspect of this book is what makes it so captivating. What's more real than the raw emotions a mother has to deal with after finding out that her daughter has not only been missing but has been found murdered? Exactly. Nothing more real than that.

What doesn't work? Why?
The only trouble I had with reading this book was that Wilma wrote in a past tense a lot. There was one point in the book where every sentence for two paragraphs had the word, "had."

What effect did reading Wilma's book have on you?
Reading 'Have You Seen Candace?' made me a little more aware of my surroundings. I'm not afraid of Winnipeg or certain areas of the city but I feel like I should be more alert in some of the situations I put myself in. Like when it's dark outside and I'm walking by myself I should pay attention to what's going on around me instead of getting lost in my headphones. It also made me realize how it can happen to anyone. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would know of anyone being murdered. But just last year my own aunty went missing for a month before we found her dead. She too was murdered. There are suspects in custody but trial keeps getting postponed. It's frustrating because I just want justice to be served to the person that killed my beautiful aunty. Reading this book made me realize me and my family aren't alone in a situation like this. There are many people that are in the same boat as us.

How does this book compare to Mike's?
Well quite frankly I enjoyed it a little more than Journey for Justice. Mike basically told Wilma's story again. She had already written her book and he took some excerpts from it. He also bogged his book down with too much doctor terminology from the Grant trial. In one section of the book it was pretty much psychiatrist notes about Grant's mental condition and it was all just too much for my little brain to comprehend. Also at one point of his book there is the exact same paragraph as a previous chapter. It was copy pasted or something. Weird? I think so.

What are your reactions to our discussion with Wilma Derksen?
She is the sweetest, most sincere, soft spoken woman I think I've ever met. How you can talk about something so traumatizing with such calmness is baffling to me. She was so open about everything. I think it takes a really strong person to be like that. She was a nice lady.