The School

"The School"
C.J. Chivers
03/14/2007
Esquire

This article is a re-telling of the events that happened inside a school in Chechnya, when the building was taken over by terrorists. The article starts mid-way through the situation, with a man trying to secretly disarm one of the bombs hanging over his head, and then starts at the beginning of the day. The carnage of the event is detailed through the experiences of a number of different hostages. The article ends with the Russian soldiers taking control of the school, and an epilogue detailing the fates of the hostages covered.

ANALYSIS:

A powerfully written story, that takes all the great elements of writing generally reserved for the most compelling Tom Clancy novels, and uses it to document a horrifying tragedy. The multiple viewpoints in the story help to give a full-scale sense, rather than limiting it to the viewpoint of one individual. Chivers also doesn't bog down the story with too many names, deciding to stick to a select few, and continuously revisit them.

The writing is descriptive without being overdone, and the sentences are long enough to convey the info, but short enough to keep the narrative moving. The overall effect is engrossing and makes the reader feel as if they were really there along side the captives.