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Tag: cop in the hood

  • “Vivid”

    Rachel DiCarlo Currie writes a very nice review of Cop in the Hood in The American.

    The most encouraging aspect of this book is its portrait of the police officers themselves. Moskos holds his former colleagues in the highest esteem, and he takes offense at claims that urban cops are crooked and racist. There will always be bad apples, but the officers he met were honorable, if a bit hard around the edges. (“We’re not social workers with guns,” one cop joked.) Ultimately, readers ofCop in the Hoodare left with a renewed appreciation for the men in blue.

  • “A real treat”

    The latest issue of Drug War Chronicle has an excellent reviewof Cop in the Hood.

    “As revelatory as it is sometimes disturbing…. Engaging, even riveting”

  • Courthouse Confessions

    Evidently I’m going to meet Steven Hirsch on Thursday at the Non-Motivational Speakers Series. His blog, Courthouse Confessions, is fascinating. Too much for me to read right now…. There’s an interview with him here.

  • Cop in the Classroom

    Gelf Magazine has an excellent interview with me in advance of me being part of the Non-Motivational Speakers Series this coming Thursday.

    It’s always a little scary to read what you said. Because sometimes you didn’t say it. Other times you did say it, but it’s not what you meant.

    In this case, I said it, I meant it, and damn if I don’t sound downright clever at times. My compliments to Michael Gluckstadt who interviewed me and wrote it up.

  • New Yorkers:

    New Yorkers:

    Mark your calenders for next Thursday, October 23. I’ll be entertaining the crowd with discussions about policing, the war on drugs, and Cop in the Hood. All this at the wonderfully titled “Non-Motivational Speakers Series.” Tell your friends.

    Best yet, this event is at a bar. No, none of that stuffy academic pretension (no pipes or tweed jackets with arm patches). And it’s free.

    You’ll love it. And even if you don’t, what’s it matter? You can drink yourself silly. That’s certainly myplan.

    Happy Ending Lounge
    302 Broome St.
    (between Forsyth and Eldridge)
    212-334-9676
    J/M/Z/F to Delancey
    B/D to Grand Street
    Look for the hot-pink awning with the words “Health Club” on it.
    Doors open at 7:30.
    Event starts at 8 sharp.
    FREE!


    Gelf Magazine

    “This monthly event features an above-average lineup of decidedly non-motivating authorities, each presenting views alternative and overlooked on a veritable goody bag of topics. A different theme is tackled clothesline-style each month, including comedy, culture jamming, religion, amateur pornography, and other such matters of head-scratching import.”

  • Back on Leonard Lopate Monday

    Apparently I’m going to be on the radio again Monday. But this time I can actually listen to what I say. It’s a rerun.

  • Oh, Baltimore

    I always leave Baltimore loving it more than ever. This time was no exception. Except I was really wet. Man did it rain.

    A shame, considering the Book Fest was outdoors. Yeah, they had tents. But it was wet. Man did it rain.

    I got in on Friday night and went out drinking with my Palin-loving friends.

    Saturday I had lunch at Icarus (they make good crab cakes) and got to chat with Xenophone, whom I haven’t seen in years. Then I walked to the Highlandtown Library in the rain.

    Thanks to an influx of Mexicans and other from south of the border, Greektown and Highlandtown are very different than I remember. There are taquerias in Highlandtown! A lot of them. It’s hard to imagine. And property values are up. I’ll tell you what, Eastern Ave looks a lot better than it did when I left in 2001.

    The library talk went well. It was a small turnout, about 20 people, but a very good discussion. Some very good Greeks (and non Greeks) were there. I was actually quite deeply moved. Senator Sarbanes and the Maroudas family and John Gavrilis. If it weren’t for them, I never would have gone to Baltimore.

    Yes, Senator Paul Sarbanes and his wife were there. Sarbanes knew my father. Sarbanes is a very good man. He gives me faith in both politics and politicians. Seriously. He’s so low key. And so nice and caring. Nobody turns their head. But they all know who he is. I didn’t even recognize him at first. Like the Senator is always at the Enoch Pratt Free Library, Southeast Anchor branch. Maybe he is. I’m proud to have voted for him. Too bad I can’t vote for his son.

    Then I got a ride to the book fest and a nice little tour of the growth of Southeast Baltimore. But the book fest was basically a washout. I talked twice. And I thank anybody and everybody who showed up in the rain.

    Afterward, I went with friends to the Owl Bar in the Belvedere. Classy. I had never been there before. And then on the 10:45 train back to NYC.

    29 hours in Baltimore. Such a fine city. And I think it’s finally on the rebound. Too bad it rained. Man did it rain.

  • Buy Cop in the Hood

    Buy Cop in the Hood

    It’s a great book. And I’m not the only one who says so.

    “Riveting…. An unsparing boys-in-blue procedural that succeeds on its own plentiful—and wonderfully sympathetic—merits.”
    —The Atlantic

    “Never mind ‘The Wire.’ Here is the real thing.”
    —The Wall Street Journal

    “[A] riveting tale of policing…. A must read.”
    —Sudhir Venkatesh

    “Hard-edged sociological analysis…. A devastating critique of America’s failed war on drugs.”
    —Orlando Patterson

    “[An] adrenaline-accelerating night ride that reveals the stark realities of law enforcement.”
    —Publishers Weekly

    “Just garbage! … Who does he think he is telling me what to do?”
    —My former boss, former Baltimore Police Commissioner (and convicted felon) Ed Norris

    Read all the reviews here.

    Go to your book store or Amazon.com to buy Cop in the Hood.

  • Amazon Sales Rank

    If you’re a published author, maybe you check Amazon.com sales rank (gosh, of course *I* never do).

    You can read this, this, or this.

    My book topped out at 500 (that’s pretty good) and is currently hovering around 15,000 [update: 50,000]. That means there are 14,999 books selling better than Cop in the Hoodat Amazon.com.

    What does that mean? Hard to say for sure. But the best guess is that a ranking of 15,000 through the world’s biggest book retailer means I’m probably selling about a book a day. And Amazon is perhaps about 1/3 – 1/2 of all sales. In terms of royalties, that’s about $2 day.

    One way to tell for sure is when Amazon gets low on stock. For instance, Amazon.UK (England) currently has one book for sale. They have had one for a while (or so I’ve noticed). When it sells, they’ll have no books for a day or two. So I can be sure I know the next time I sell a book in Europe. …It may be a few days.

    Doesn’t anybody read anymore?

    Have youboughtmy book? If not, please do. It’s cheap. And good.

  • Cop in the Hood now on Amazon Kindle

    Hey, my book is now available through Amazon’s Kindle. I’m not exactly certain what that means. But I do know it makes me slightly hipper and more likely to be read by tech geeks commuting by train.