Forever Changed: Remembering Oklahoma City, April 19, 1995

Marsha Kight, who lost her 23-year-old daughter in the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995, has compiled scores of essays, including testimony from survivors of the bombing as well as recollections of the relatives and friends of those who perished. The stories provide a comprehensive look at how a routine day at the office turned into a living hell for hundreds, and their power derives from the mundane details and the understated manner in which people who have suffered much recall the colossal blast and its aftermath. Some survivors talk of having to attend dozens of funerals in the weeks immediately after the bombing, while others recall having to go through endless surgical procedures. Family members of those who perished recount the emotional trauma, which never seems to cease. --Robert McNamara