Black Flies- The Odyssey of a Harlem Paramedic
Written: Jul 06 '08
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Riveting story, gritty and believable, Black Flies resonates on many levels
Cons: Narrative sometimes gets bogged down by details, story sometimes becomes overpowered by gruesome imagery
The Bottom Line: Black Flies deals with universal themes of loss and redemption in a powerful coming of age story.
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| sarah5775's Full Review: Shannon Burke - Black Flies |
I picked up Black Flies in the library, and I have to be honest- I picked it up for less than noble reasons. I saw that the author had been a Harlem paramedic and assumed that his novel would contain a realistic portrayal of all the gruesome details of the job. I got the book out for the same reason most people watch those terrible “shocking true-life” videos of car chases and explosions; indeed, the same reason why people slow down when passing a car accident. I wanted to know the gory details. And, even as I checked out the book, I was ashamed of myself.
If you pick up Black Flies for similar reasons, if you want the unvarnished truth about what a city paramedic does and sees on a daily basis, you will not be disappointed. If you want blood and gore, you will not be disappointed. By the same token, if you are too sensitive, you won’t be able to tolerate Black Flies. This is definitely not a book for the faint of heart. In Black Flies you will find graphic descriptions of decomposing bodies, stories of mentally unstable people doing disgusting things, and shocking details of violence. But please read on and pay attention when I say this- Black Flies is FAR more than a gritty expose of the inner city at its worst. It is a literary powerhouse of a novel reminiscent of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness.
Ollie Cross is a young man aspiring to be a doctor, but his test scores are too low to gain admittance to a good medical school. He decides to better his chances by gaining some real-world experience and applies for a job as a paramedic on the streets of Harlem. Cross begins the novel innocent and inexperienced, with no idea of what to expect. A rookie, he must prove himself to the rest of the squad as well as deal with an exacting and harrowing job. He is paired with Rutkovsky, a much older and experienced paramedic who is deeply respected and very competent. Together they encounter everything from shootings and stabbings to teens faking injuries to obtain drugs. Cross slowly adjusts to the gallows humor and cold attitude of many of the paramedics he works with. Slowly he gains the acceptance of the other paramedics, but he does this at the expense of his conscience. As violence and dying people become more and more the routine, he begins to leave his humanity behind. Along the way we see how so many of the medics and cops they work with have become corrupt- jaded with the system and abusive of their power. Cross changes, becoming alienated from his girlfriend and family.
Through this, Rutkovsky, though abrasive and anti-social himself, is a stabilizing influence. When tragedy takes Rutkovsky out of the picture, Cross becomes torn between two potential mentors on the squad. Trying to deal with his own guilt, rage, and pain, he descends into near madness. His two main influences are polar opposites. One is LaFontiane, an extremely corrupt and virtually soulless man who abuses his authority at every turn. LaFontaine mocks patient’s suffering and truly believes that the residents of Harlem are all prostitutes and junkies who do not, in fact, deserve to live. He is a man who loves his job because of the power it gives him- the power to inflict death or give life to the patients in his care. Some of LaFontiane’s actions can only be described as evil. As Cross falls under the man’s influence, he becomes almost unrecognizable from the innocent and idealistic college boy he had once been.
But there is another potential mentor for Cross. Paramedic Verdis is a man who became a paramedic because he wanted to help people. He somehow has managed to remain uncorrupted by the system. Though not perfect, he cares about his patients. He sometimes goes above and beyond the call of duty, comforting the injured and their families and giving his time and effort to various charities. Around the station he is respected, but often barely tolerated- he certainly is not popular. The other paramedics consider him to be weak and even misguided in his compassion. He is a good man, and it is that very goodness that shames his colleagues and makes them uncomfortable. As LaFontaine introduces Cross to a world of prostitutes, drugs and cruelty, Verdis seems to have little to offer- only redemption.
Cross (the very name similar to “crossroads”- I wonder if that was deliberate) must choose whether to be corrupted by the evil of the world or to rise above it. In the harsh world of the inner city, illusions are stripped away and his need to make a choice is clear. For most of us, it is not so clear- the daily details of life distract us from greater issues. But ultimately, every human being on earth must face the same choice that Cross does- to live for his or her own pleasures or to seek to help others, to give in to evil or to fight it. In this sense, Ollie Cross is Everyman, and his story is universal.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
sarah5775
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Member: Sarah Terzo
Location: New Jersey
Reviews written: 68
Trusted by: 1 member
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