Shake the Devil Off, Ethan Brown
Shake the Devil Off, Ethan Brown
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Shake the Devil Off
A True Story of the Murder That Rocked New Orleans

Author: Ethan Brown

Narrator: James Avery

Unabridged: 8 hr 8 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/01/2009

Synopsis

From the war in Iraq to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, this nonfiction account presents a stirring condemnation of America' s failure to adequately address PTSD among its soldiers.After years of military service— including a harrowing stint in Iraq— Zackery Bowen returned to New Orleans to tend bar and deliver groceries. In the weeks before Hurricane Katrina hit, he met Addie Hall, a pretty and high-spirited bartender. Their improvised, hard-partying during and after the storm represented what so many want to believe is the indomitable spirit of New Orleans. But in October 2006, Bowen leaped from the rooftop bar of a French Quarter hotel. A note in his pocket directed the police to the body of Addie— and to one of the most gruesome crimes in New Orleans' history. How had this popular, handsome father of two done this horrible thing? In Shake the Devil Off, Ethan Brown presents a haunting depiction of a town still reeling from natural and political disaster. Brown overlays this with the graphic story of what happened to Zackery Bowen, leading to themes that are still getting front-page attention— the brutality of war, and the failure of government to deal with PTSD and suicide among returning veterans.

About Ethan Brown

Ethan Brown is an investigative journalist, private investigator, and author. He has written for New York magazine, the New York Observer, Wired, Vibe, the Independent, GQ, Mother Jones, the Guardian, Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, Details, and the Village Voice. He has appeared on NPR, WNYC, Court TV, MSNBC, Hot 97, and BET to discuss drug policy, street crime, the music business, life in Louisiana, and other issues. He lives in New Orleans.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Lisa on November 12, 2009

I have a lot of thoughts about this book and I don't know how to even begin to put them into words. This book is so much more than I thought it was going to be. I bought it because I spend a lot of time in New Orleans and was familiar with The murder/suicide of Addie and Zach. I had even met Addie o......more

Goodreads review by Humangirl on May 16, 2010

I just finished reading this book & agree with Doug that this is short stories; (1) the story of the 527 MP Co. in Iraq & Afghanistan (2) Mr. Brown's experiences living in post-Katrina New Orleans, which I have no interest in. Mr. Brown is also very obvious with his sympathies to Zack Bowen. He atte......more

Goodreads review by Danielle on August 12, 2022

I thought this was a great true crime book. I can't believe I'd never heard of this case before but I stumbled across it on and old episode of Murder In America the other night and I couldn't stop thinking about it so I decided to get the book. I know one thing that bothers people is that his friends......more

Goodreads review by Carla on June 03, 2010

The author finally admits, when the book is almost complete, that he is sympathetic to the murderer. He stops shy of this admission, actually, writing that his wife felt he was, to the point of being angry with him. This book is an apology for the murderer, and the author forgot that the murder was......more

Goodreads review by Katrina on October 14, 2009

I found parts of this book interesting and I did finish it, so that says something but overall, this book was underwhelming. However Brown tries to draw a parallel between our military's indifference to many of its veterans and the indifference that our government showed during Katrina. The parallel......more

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