Killers of the Flower Moon
In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, the Osage rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe. Then, one by one, the Osage began to be killed off. The family of an Osage woman, Mollie Burkhart, became a prime target. One of her relatives was shot. Another was poisoned. And it was just the beginning, as more and more Osage were dying under mysterious circumstances, and many of those who dared to investigate the killings were themselves murdered. As the death toll rose, the newly created FBI took up the case, and the young director, J. Edgar Hoover, turned to a former Texas Ranger named Tom White to try to unravel the mystery. White put together an undercover team, including a Native American agent who infiltrated the region, and together with the Osage began to expose one of the most chilling conspiracies in American history.
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What you might want to know about Killers of the Flower Moon
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
After oil was found under their reservation, the Osage Nation became some of the wealthiest people in the world. Then they started dying. David Grann reconstructs the murders and the cover-up that took decades to unravel.
Yes. Killers of the Flower Moon is David Grann's nonfiction account of the 1920s Osage murders, in which dozens of Osage Nation members were killed for their oil rights. The investigation became one of the FBI's first major cases under J. Edgar Hoover.
Yes. Martin Scorsese directed a 2023 film adaptation starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, and Lily Gladstone. The film was nominated for 10 Academy Awards.
Killers of the Flower Moon was written by David Grann, published in 2017 by Vintage.
Killers of the Flower Moon is 350 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Killers of the Flower Moon takes most readers 5 to 8 hours to finish.
Killers of the Flower Moon is a standalone novel by David Grann, not part of a series.
Killers of the Flower Moon is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
