George Pelecanos' Drama City was the book for discussion and the book received a mildly mixed reaction. The book, which is a strong character study of individuals in certain Washington D.C. neigbhorhoods, was appreciated for what it offered. The characters grow on you and root for them to succeed. And to be honest, the people highlighted in the novel are working in possibly dangerous and likely shunned jobs (a human society enforcement officer and a parole officer--I have short book review on the library's Reader's Club web site). All the same, you respect the characters who are hard working and need extra patience and prayers to finish the workday.
What was missing in the book was any true mystery story. It was a good crime noir story but that was it. That frustrated us as readers (it was an Edgar nominee this year) and one book club attendee stopped reading after one or two chapters since it didn't appear to be a mystery. Oh well. We'll repeat the process in a few short weeks with a new book.
No comments:
Post a Comment