The Trigger

This "provocative . . . maddening . . . riveting" look at the complex realities behind gun violence in America is now in paperback.

The Trigger steps into the shoes of perpetrators of American gun violence, giving readers a unique, eye-opening window into an issue that plagues our country. Author Daniel J. Patinkin exhaustively interviewed six shooters about their life experiences and the circumstances that compelled them to use a firearm against another person. The subjects include a crack dealer from South Carolina, a Chicago cop, an abused teenage girl from Tennessee, a working man from Albuquerque, a California college football standout, and a troubled Navy veteran from Michigan. The result is a series of profound narratives that explore the cultural, racial, economic, and psychological issues underlying the scourge of gun violence in the United States.

In 2017, more than 15,600 people were killed-the most in fifty years-and more than 31,000 were injured in acts of gun violence. Another 23,000-plus committed suicide with firearms. Faced with these desensitizing statistics, one easily forgets that each incident is perpetrated by a real human being who has walked a complicated path through life. Unsettling and enlightening, the narratives in The Trigger provide "a welcome, thoughtful and thought-provoking contribution to the present national dialogue over the role of guns in our contemporary American society" (Midwest Book Review).