Entertainment Weekly
June 9, 2006
This is the story of Tom Crosslin, a gay libertarian who owned a Michigan campground called Rainbow Farm where he hosted concerts in support of decriminalizing marijuana…and where, in 2001, he and his lover were shot to death during a five-day standoff with the FBI. Dean Kuipers’ exhaustively researched Burning Rainbow Farm sinks into the skin, thanks especially to his evocative prose — at a local diner, residents were ”stirring the news of the day into their coffee” — and access to those who knew Rainbow Farm best. But too much access isn’t always a good thing: This story of government malfeasance versus tragic human pride is criminally underedited. Grade: B