BOOK REVIEW: KIDNAPPED, A PERSONAL ACCOUNT OF JOHN DOE #2, OKLAHOMA BOMBING-APRIL 19, 1995 – LIGHTEN UP.
The book starts with the author narrating personal accounts in her life. She talks of her family, growing up, and the challenges she faced.
Judith’s story was gloomy; not having a permanent home as the family often moved from one city to another, sometimes one country to another. Her childhood was definitely not the typical childhood normal people experience. Her marriage was another disaster. Her mother and father often quarreled, even separating. Judith was first married when 17, and when she gave birth to her son, her husband left just a year after her son was born. She had to relocate again. Just like her parents’, her marriage was a total failure. She, however, found joy in her son’s birth and described him as the sweetest thing ever.
We are introduced to Carlos, a character who was savage to say the least. His past experiences and life back in El Salvador contributed to his violent nature.Carlos’ interaction with Che Guevara and his fall out with president Lemus of El Salvador are some of the reasons that made the man aggressive.
Later in the book, Carlos and Judith meet in a rather unpleasant manner, as Carlos forcefully takes her to Mexico after sexually abusing her. Their first encounter had been when Judith was in high school, where Carlos was stalking her. Years later, he found her, kidnapped and took her to Mexico, but she managed to escape. The interesting twist comes when Judith flees from San Diego to San Fransisco oblivious that Carlos lives in San Fransisco. The two met again. Carlos was obsessed with Judith.
Her encounter with Carlos Parraga, a man who was obviously dangerous given his past, formed a huge part of the story-line. One day on TV, she saw the images shared of John Doe #2 in regard to the Oklahoma bombing. John Doe #2 was Carlos. How could it be? he had spend so many years with the man. Carlos was among the criminals who were responsible for the 1995 Oklahoma bombing. Here was a terrorist, a dangerous man and a wanted killer, whom Judith had spent a good number of years with. When taken captive, Judith could tell that the man was dangerous. She, however, never foresaw the killings. Judith later helped the FBI arrest Carlos, and changed her identity. Her life was full of movements, having to relocate from one city to another.
Judith’s life was mostly sad, as her experiences almost always had bad endings. I love reading real-life stories and really enjoyed Judith’s story. It is a sad tale. Imagine living your life with a criminal, a radial guerilla, a terrorist.. who finds pleasure in seeing people die. As eventful as her life was, Judith finally lived in peace. I loved how she penned down the scenes, and how I could picture the life she lived. The book is short enough to complete quickly, and detailed enough that you never miss any action.
Hey Nancy, been ages since you last wrote. How have you been?
This is touching; how we don’t know people until they do something terrible and then we are hit with the rock of harsh reality.