For the better part of two years, from 1995 to 1997, veteran journalist Schulman (T.J.'s Story;
etc.) was granted unfettered access to New York's 23rd Precinct in East Harlem—just above the wealthy and powerful Upper East Side—where she shadowed police officers of all ranks, from patrolmen to captains. The setting is indeed dramatic, a place where "women beat each other up, their daughters did the same" and "a natural death was a drug overdose." But such pithy remarks are rare, and Schulman rarely grounds the dialogue she transcribes at length in narrative. As a result, while she captures the salt-and-pepper tone of police conversation, the reality is blurred, the various voices and strands of dialogue blending into one another without creating distinctive characters. This problem is exacerbated by the fact that the dialogue is regularly attributed to an unnamed "cop" or "sergeant." Schulman addresses a host of critical issues: women on the force, alcohol and drug abuse, corruption and community relations among them. To her credit, she garners views on the precinct from East Harlem residents, be they drug dealers or community activists. But in the end, there are not enough solid insights into the often-embattled NYPD and the men and women who compose it. Police buffs will be disappointed. (Aug.)
