Rating: 
Summary: A Must Read for EMS Workers
Review: I never understood my cousin's passion for her work as an EMT, and admittedly, never really understood the career itself. Bringing Out the Dead gives a fresh view of EMT life, showing the effects of seeing life and death day in and day out. Connelly uses the jargon of the field, but by the end of the book, you feel like you could easily give a dissertation on intubation. The book also uses the element of humor to lighten the bleakness of a (many times) thankless job- Noel, who is always "so very thirsty," Franco, the ambulance that will never die, and Mr. Oh, a Thursday night regular in the ER. Bringing Out the Dead is a quick read and promises to bring out a better understanding of not only the Emergency Medical Services field, but death and dying as well.
Rating: 
Summary: Vital Signs
Review: Bringing Out The Dead is a novel essentially lacking in plot, and is all the better for it. It is a dark, funny and frenzied slice of life. It is easy to see why the great Martin Scorsese was attracted to this, because like in his films, the lead character Frank seeks redemption. And in a way his job as a paramedic is both his salvation and his downfall. Like Graham Greene's The End Of The Affair, Bring Out The Dead is drenched with guilt, and since the author is Catholic, then we use the common term Catholic guilt. Thankfully Connelly laces this with heavy doses of dark humour like the part (which is also in the film) where Frank gives a suicidal madman less troublesome options with which he can kill himself. The story is basically, a week in the life of Frank, and three shifts with three guys each phsycotic is his own colorful way. Larry who is spectaculary lazy, Marcus a man who oversees group prayer and then rushes off to "watch the hookers" and Tom who is just plain nuts. What is most wonderful about Connely's writing is the atmosphere, it is always night, Frank is always in a state of elevated tension, yet there is a purity to all of this, it not just a vision of hell, but a man who puts himself through hell in search of redemption. I would highly reccomend this book, but I do believe that its vital that you go in with the knowledge that 1-There is no plot 2-It doesn't really go anywhere as a result. I haven't seen the movie yet, but look forward to doing so, meanwhile I hope you enjoy this book for what it is, A man's quest for light in the dark hours of the New York.
Rating:
Summary: Bringing Out The Dead.
Review: I LOVE the way Joe Connelly writes. I will read this book again and again. I felt as if I was going to each call with Frank Pierce, don't pass this book up...
Rating: 
Summary: Dark and Depressing
Review: Having been involved in EMS for over 20 years I thought that Connelly's book would be a welcome and entertaining read. Unfortunately, it was anything but! This story focuses on a burned out, psychotic medic and a host of oddballs who work in the same EMS system. Granted, not all of EMS is uplifting or lights and sirens, but Connelly's story turns the profession into a constant run of hallucinations, drinking bouts and abuses of patients and one "street person." If Connelly's character worked for any of the the EMS units I've had the privilege of being associated with he'd have, at the very least, been fired but more than likely he would have been charged with a variety of criminal offenses. Any supervisor worth his salt, and the one in this book was a joke, would have dismissed this "nut case medic" the minute he came in and asked to be fired. Don't waste your time with this story....it insults the men and women who work in the real world.
Rating:
Summary: Disclaimer from a N.Y.C. Medic
Review: Knowing the author, and myself a nine year N.Y.C. medic understand that neither himself nor any real N.Y.C. medic would ever 'tune-up a patient', but the subconscious mind takes over on an overnight shift and at times you have done it all in your mind - including visualizing your fist to the face of the patient who is on slow autopilot suicide. You know their endgame, loathe them for using your ambulance to play it out in and, in the not so deep recess, want to aid them in that endgame. Joe puts it all together save the love that we all hope Frank is redeemed with. Read it, see Marty's movie and remember us when we force you through a red light into oncoming traffic and you initially want to strangle us. Know we may have someone you love in the back. Despite what Rudy thinks, N.Y.C will still get ya if you don't watch your back. If so, we'll be there.
Rating:
Summary: great expectations were easily surpassed by Connelly
Review: Bringing Out The Dead has catapulted Joe Connelly into elite company with the likes of Larry Brown(Dirty Work, Joe, On Fire, Facing The Music, Big Bad Love & Father and Son). Given that I consider Brown the best thing going, that's saying an awful lot. Connelly's debut effortlessly and masterfully blends stark realism with dreamlike surrealism. The effect is stunning. They say you should write about what you know...Connelly was a paramedic in The Big Apple for nine years. He has written about a profession that few of us know much about without getting too technical. He gives us the humor and horror in layman's terms. BOTD is a novel about an heroic profession, and yet there are no tangible heros here. The inner demons of the main character(Frank) surface to open up an ethical and philosophical can of worms. This is a dark and ugly story that has been written with absolute beauty. Pure poetry spills from the veins of some of the most horrendous situations you will ever encounter. I can't compare it to the movie because I always read the books first. The descriptions are so captivating and vivid that I don't really see the point in watching the movie...I've already seen one, raw and uncut. Joe Connelly's second book will be in my home the day it hits the stores. If you're looking for heros, then go buy a comic book. If you're looking for a gritty, realistic portrayal of hell on earth to allow you a temporary escape from your own woes, then you're on the right track. This is an excellent debut that most authors couldn't rival after a lifetime of writing.
Rating:
Summary: Bringing out the dead, a winner
Review: Bringing out the dead was an awesome book. Being in EMS it was nice to see an entertaining and factual book. I think it was great.
Rating:
Summary: spiritual
Review: in the pages of this book we look into someones soul and emotins.this is much like a diary of things seen wich not many people can relate to or possibly understand.the lead charater sees himself as a god in a way because he is the only person who can save himself.i think this book has multiple plots and they are all completed in thrilling ways.you come to care about the charaters in the book as well as the film.it's nice to have a movie which does the written word justice.
Rating:
Summary: Definitely read this.
Review: An interesting novel about a burnt-out paramedic suffering from guilt caused by botching up on saving an asthmatic girl's life. His idealism shot long ago, he is riding an ambulance through hell (Hell's Kitchen, New York) with the disillusionment that the job is more about bearing witness than saving lives. Beware, though. The book really has no plot. It never seems to build up to a climax or anything for that matter, but this is the type of book you have to read because it effectively immerses you in the life (or death) of a stressed-out paramedic. It is a journey, like you're riding side by side with Frank as he tries to understand not only what his job is all about, but what life and death really mean. The movie is an excellent adaptation of the book by Martin Scorsese with an appropriate soundtrack.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty darn realistic! Read this with Talking Trauma!
Review: This is a pretty darn good look at the dark underbelly that confronts most EMS workers on their daily routine. I'd say read this, Tangherlini's Talking Trauma, and maybe the classic pictorial Knife and Gun Club. Perhaps also take a look at the movie, Broken Vessels.
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