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parenthesis_enjoyer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Gun violence, Death, and Alcohol
Minor: Racial slurs, Classism, Racism, and Police brutality
isabelsophiex's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Gun violence
bookishevy's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
1971 - Crime in the city is at an all-time high, and the Black Liberation Army is giving the NYPD a run for their money. Ray Carney has been out of the moving goods around business and is trying to keep is head down while running his furniture store until his teen daughter May asks for Jackson 5 tickets that are hard to come by. So, Carney contacts his old friend, crooked cop Munson. Of course, Munson wants Carney to do him a little favor for the tickets. And just like that, Carney is back in the game.
1973 - Pepper, Carney's violent friend, gets a side job as a security guard on a Blaxploitation movie shoot in Harlem because putting together a crew for various felonies is getting harder. On top of the usual thieves and murderers, Pepper finds himself in the company of actors, comedians , and celebrity drug dealers, all of whom try his patience to their regret.
1976 - Harlem is literally on fire while the country prepares for its Bicentennial celebrations. Carney is trying to come up with a good July 4th ad. His wife Elizabeth is campaigning for her childhood friend Alexander Oakes, a shady former D.A. and rising politician Carney can't stand. When one of Carney's tenants is severely burned in a fire, he hires Pepper to find out who set it. Carney has his suspicions.
This is the second book in Whitehead's Harlem Trilogy, and, just like the first, the stories are fast-paced, and the characters are colorful. I can tell that Whitehead is a fan of caper movies just by the language. The men in these stories are so on the down low that it's almost like they're speaking in code to one another. A manifesto this is because there are a lot of flashbacks to jobs being done and with, or to whom. It really made me wonder about all the vice that go down in a city that us regular folks have no idea about. It was great having an inside look at the violence and corruption.
Moderate: Gun violence and Violence
franklola's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Confinement, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
hmetwade's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, Gun violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Violence, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Death of parent, and Medical content
theoceanrose's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Murder, Gun violence, Death, and Violence
erinmz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Murder, Racism, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Alcohol
joannalouise's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Murder, Police brutality, and Torture
smemmott's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Violence and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Murder and Gun violence