Clockers

Rating:
Summary: An unconventional murder mystery with street credibility
Review: Clockers is a murder mystery, complete with suspense and a twist ending, cloaked in an unconventional, raw street setting. The novel possesses more street-smarts than any other book I've read, fiction or not. The dialogue, internally (i.e., in the characters' own heads) and externally, was tough and vibrant, and employed street vernacular which rang credible without sounding clichéd. Many authors tell tales of drug dealers and ghetto crimes, but rare is the account from a drug-dealer's point of view. A troubled, intelligent, calculating drug-dealer, no less, who considers the repercussions of his every move.

All of Clockers' characters were realistically flawed, able to invoke both sympathy and disgust. Strike, the ulcer-stricken dealer, was in constant turmoil as he struggled between trying to earn enough from his illicit trade to get out of it, and attempting to help others avoid being dragged into the same web. Rocco, the homicide detective and delinquent family-man, had a love-hate relationship with his work, and sought a mission through which to justify his continued involvement in the force. Victor (Strike's brother) was an honest, hard working black man who had risen above the allure of the street life around him, but wrestled with his own demons and internal sense of justice. Everyone's paths met with the murder of a lesser character, at which point the cat and mouse game was afoot.

Lesser, but no less interesting plot lines abound: Strike's education of his would-be apprentice, Tyrone; Strike's efforts to free himself from an unhealthily dependent relationship with drug kingpin Rodney; and Rocco's schoolboy interest in being shadowed by a cocksure filmmaker with an interest in a police picture. Also fascinating and seemingly credible were the lessons in police and ghetto-civilian dealings: crooked cops being paid for protection; dealers ratting on one another to escape arrest; and unlikely, yet highly effective, working relationships between cops and dealers born from years of coexistence. Lastly, the issues broached by Clockers are current by today's standards, including AIDS, the questionable efficacy of drug busts, and the shiftlessness of ghetto kids who turn to pushing in the absence of concerned adults.

Rating:
Summary: An unconventional murder mystery with street credibility
Review: Clockers is a murder mystery, complete with suspense and a twist ending, cloaked in an unconventional, raw street setting. The novel possesses more street-smarts than any other book I've read, fiction or not. The dialogue, internally (i.e., in the characters' own heads) and externally, was tough and vibrant, and employed street vernacular which rang credible without sounding clichéd. Many authors tell tales of drug dealers and ghetto crimes, but rare is the account from a drug-dealer's point of view. A troubled, intelligent, calculating drug-dealer, no less, who considers the repercussions of his every move.

All of Clockers' characters were realistically flawed, able to invoke both sympathy and disgust. Strike, the ulcer-stricken dealer, was in constant turmoil as he struggled between trying to earn enough from his illicit trade to get out of it, and attempting to help others avoid being dragged into the same web. Rocco, the homicide detective and delinquent family-man, had a love-hate relationship with his work, and sought a mission through which to justify his continued involvement in the force. Victor (Strike's brother) was an honest, hard working black man who had risen above the allure of the street life around him, but wrestled with his own demons and internal sense of justice. Everyone's paths met with the murder of a lesser character, at which point the cat and mouse game was afoot.

Lesser, but no less interesting plot lines abound: Strike's education of his would-be apprentice, Tyrone; Strike's efforts to free himself from an unhealthily dependent relationship with drug kingpin Rodney; and Rocco's schoolboy interest in being shadowed by a cocksure filmmaker with an interest in a police picture. Also fascinating and seemingly credible were the lessons in police and ghetto-civilian dealings: crooked cops being paid for protection; dealers ratting on one another to escape arrest; and unlikely, yet highly effective, working relationships between cops and dealers born from years of coexistence. Lastly, the issues broached by Clockers are current by today's standards, including AIDS, the questionable efficacy of drug busts, and the shiftlessness of ghetto kids who turn to pushing in the absence of concerned adults.

Rating:
Summary: A great American novel
Review: Clockers is both a gripping exercise in storytelling and very well-written book. It does whata novel is ultimately supposed to do, which is tell us the truth about what lies in human hearts. This is one of the finest books of the decade.

Rating:
Summary: Waiting for more ...
Review: Clockers is certainly Richard Price's most highly-touted work, although it falls slightly short of The Breaks, in my opinion. I thought CLOCKERS WAS GREAT, though, and I have been waiting for Price to take a break from screenplays and get a new novel out soon. In fact, he has been generally been pulled from most chain bookstores by now. I looked last week to see if he had written anything new, and all I found was Reynolds Price. SINCE PRICE IS SUCH A MOVIE HOUND, I'll comment on the Spike Lee movie of Clockers: surprisingly excellent, almost as good as the book. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title

Rating:
Summary: Go Get This Book Now
Review: Great book, it is not often that an author can come up with such a comprehensive book as this on his first try. This had it all, a great story, good characters, wonderful action and a quick pace. This is an exciting book that at its heart is a murder mystery. I think this is just a Powerful book, I just got in the head of the main character - the writing is just that good. ... I will add that I loved the location descriptions and characters. I doubt you will be able to put it down; the story is just so well put together.

Rating:
Summary: Go Get This Book Now
Review: Great book, it is not often that an author can come up with such a comprehensive book as this on his first try. This had it all, a great story, good characters, wonderful action and a quick pace. This is an exciting book that at its heart is a murder mystery. I think this is just a Powerful book, I just got in the head of the main character - the writing is just that good. ... I will add that I loved the location descriptions and characters. I doubt you will be able to put it down; the story is just so well put together.

Rating:
Summary: Not good
Review: I didn't like it. The book is boring. As I read it, I felt like I was running without leaving the same spot. Had to put it down. Maybe the movie is better, but it hardly is

Rating:
Summary: "Crime and Punishment," ca. 1992.
Review: I first stumbled onto Richard Price with a fifty-cent used copy of "Ladies' Man." It was engaging and fun, kind of like an unusually smart episode of Seinfeld with an NC-17 rating. It convinced me to give "Blood Brothers" a try and after that, forget it. I went forward to "Samaritan," back to "The Wanderers," and tracked down copies of his screenplays in between. I couldn't read enough of this guy.

However, Clockers remains Price's grand achievement to date. It's a crime novel of unusual depth that bears more in common with Dostoevsky than Elmore Leonard. Some reviewers have said Clockers fails as a mystery. I'll be the first to agree: as a genre mystery, Clockers does fail. But it's not a genre mystery. It's a map of the landscape, both urban and personal. It's a novel of morals and it's a tragedy. Price follows the drug-dealing Strike and detective Klein as their stories head inevitably towards collision. Both men are working to do the right thing, but are put directly at odds by forces out of their control. This is tragic to the capital T. Price accomplishes many astonishing feats here, not the least of which include making the world of Demsey real enough to touch and developing deep sympathy and understanding for both Strike and Klein without ever trading his gritty style for schmaltz. Price has incredible powers of observation, his eye for character and ear for dialogue, doubtless honed by his time working in housing project administration.

I absolutely disagree with the reviewer who claims that Price falls short of Lethem, Gibson, and Leonard. Perhaps, if you evaluate a book solely by slickness and cleverness, he doesn't measure up, but Clockers has more heart than Jake LaMotta and Price has an eye for detail that would put the Splendid Splinterer himself to shame. Don't get me wrong: I really loved Motherless Brooklyn, Out of Sight, and Virtual Light, but those books are empty in comparison.

Finally, I think Spike Lee's film adaptation was deeply flawed and does not do the novel justice, primarily because there's too much in Clockers to fit into a feature film. This problem was only exacerbated by the fact that Lee fragmented the film by bringing in his own soapbox issues (violence in video games, the need for strong parental figures) to crowd out more important plot elements. Even if you didn't like the movie, give the book a chance. And then go watch "Sea of Love," a Price screenplay that was done well.

Rating:
Summary: "Crime and Punishment," ca. 1992.
Review: I first stumbled onto Richard Price with a fifty-cent used copy of "Ladies' Man." It was engaging and fun, kind of like an unusually smart episode of Seinfeld with an NC-17 rating. It convinced me to give "Blood Brothers" a try and after that, forget it. I went forward to "Samaritan," back to "The Wanderers," and tracked down copies of his screenplays in between. I couldn't read enough of this guy.

However, Clockers remains Price's grand achievement to date. It's a crime novel of unusual depth that bears more in common with Dostoevsky than Elmore Leonard. Some reviewers have said Clockers fails as a mystery. I'll be the first to agree: as a genre mystery, Clockers does fail. But it's not a genre mystery. It's a map of the landscape, both urban and personal. It's a novel of morals and it's a tragedy. Price follows the drug-dealing Strike and detective Klein as their stories head inevitably towards collision. Both men are working to do the right thing, but are put directly at odds by forces out of their control. This is tragic to the capital T. Price accomplishes many astonishing feats here, not the least of which include making the world of Demsey real enough to touch and developing deep sympathy and understanding for both Strike and Klein without ever trading his gritty style for schmaltz. Price has incredible powers of observation, his eye for character and ear for dialogue, doubtless honed by his time working in housing project administration.

I absolutely disagree with the reviewer who claims that Price falls short of Lethem, Gibson, and Leonard. Perhaps, if you evaluate a book solely by slickness and cleverness, he doesn't measure up, but Clockers has more heart than Jake LaMotta and Price has an eye for detail that would put the Splendid Splinterer himself to shame. Don't get me wrong: I really loved Motherless Brooklyn, Out of Sight, and Virtual Light, but those books are empty in comparison.

Finally, I think Spike Lee's film adaptation was deeply flawed and does not do the novel justice, primarily because there's too much in Clockers to fit into a feature film. This problem was only exacerbated by the fact that Lee fragmented the film by bringing in his own soapbox issues (violence in video games, the need for strong parental figures) to crowd out more important plot elements. Even if you didn't like the movie, give the book a chance. And then go watch "Sea of Love," a Price screenplay that was done well.

Rating:
Summary: Utterly brilliant
Review: I normally read the likes of Dale Brown, Tom Clancy, Clive Cussler and so on; this was something totally different. It was superb and highly engrossing; Richard Price has obviously done his research well. I loved the movie, but the book is much better. The main difference here is that Rocco Klein, the hardworking hassled cop is the good guy and Strike is the protagonist. As the mystery unfolds as to why Victor Dunham confessed to a drug-related murder the cop thinks Strike committed, the ending will surprise you no end. Well done Richard Price; this is a classic book by anyone`s standards.