Books: Police
by rrusczyk, Jul 9, 2009, 4:18 AM
Cop in the Hood: My Year Policing Baltimore's East Side by Peter Moskos
Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon
I was inspired to read these by The Wire, which is one of the very best TV shows I've ever seen (except the 5th season, which was a disappointment for the most part). Simon wrote Homicide years before he would use his experience there to inspire The Wire. Both books were interesting looks at the work of being a police in a tough city. It's been a while since I read them, and I wish I'd written more about them at the time. I don't think I could handle the fuzziness and difficulty of these jobs, particularly homicide, where reaffirming success is rare, and comes from consistent attention to detail, diligence, and a hefty helping of luck. And then the next day, you're confronted with a dead little girl, and you know there's no way you're going to be able to pin it on the person you know did it. Not sure how anyone can handle that over the long haul...
Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon
I was inspired to read these by The Wire, which is one of the very best TV shows I've ever seen (except the 5th season, which was a disappointment for the most part). Simon wrote Homicide years before he would use his experience there to inspire The Wire. Both books were interesting looks at the work of being a police in a tough city. It's been a while since I read them, and I wish I'd written more about them at the time. I don't think I could handle the fuzziness and difficulty of these jobs, particularly homicide, where reaffirming success is rare, and comes from consistent attention to detail, diligence, and a hefty helping of luck. And then the next day, you're confronted with a dead little girl, and you know there's no way you're going to be able to pin it on the person you know did it. Not sure how anyone can handle that over the long haul...
February 2012
January 2012