Cops: Their Lives in Their Own Words

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Summary: True Stories of how cops do thier amazing work!
Review: All policemen and women who shared their work in this book did a great job!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book but outdated
Review: As a New York City Auxiliary Police Officer, I am still baby powder-fresh in the world of law enforcement. This book has shown me how to stay on my toes and make the right decisions. An excellent look into what it means to be blue. A must for all law enforcement, a tool for all anti-police. Excellent.

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Summary: Cops' stories are good lessons for rookies & veterans alike
Review: As a New York City Auxiliary Police Officer, I am still baby powder-fresh in the world of law enforcement. This book has shown me how to stay on my toes and make the right decisions. An excellent look into what it means to be blue. A must for all law enforcement, a tool for all anti-police. Excellent.

Rating:
Summary: A must-read
Review: I read Baker's "Nam" and loved it. And "Cops" didn't disappoint either. I first read it a number of years ago in preparation for a law enforcement career that got sidetracked before it began. Now that my wife and I are putting in applications again, I just had to have her read "Cops." And of course I had to read it again myself.

It's a fantastic book, much more comprehensive than Connie Fletcher's "competing" (but still good) book, "What Cops Know." Every serious student of law enforcement should read this book.

Other cop books I recommend: "Close Pursuit" by Carsten Stroud and "Boot" by William Dunn.

Rating:
Summary: A must-read
Review: I read Baker's "Nam" and loved it. And "Cops" didn't disappoint either. I first read it a number of years ago in preparation for a law enforcement career that got sidetracked before it began. Now that my wife and I are putting in applications again, I just had to have her read "Cops." And of course I had to read it again myself.

It's a fantastic book, much more comprehensive than Connie Fletcher's "competing" (but still good) book, "What Cops Know." Every serious student of law enforcement should read this book.

Other cop books I recommend: "Close Pursuit" by Carsten Stroud and "Boot" by William Dunn.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but...
Review: I'm a brand new police officer. Actually I don't even take my oath until later in October. This book is an excellent read, but I also feel like it's somewhat dated. Most of the interviews were conducted in 1983 and 1984. There's a whole new generation of police officer out there now. Attitudes have changed, training has changed, and I suppose society has changed somewhat. When I first read this book back in 1986 my father was still a cop with six years to go before he retired. At the time the book was dead on. Now, though it is still truthful in spirit, I feel like cops have chnged in many respects. It would be nice to see an update. I would also like Mr. Baker to go farther out into this country of ours and speak to cops in the Western U.S., the South and so on. I get the definite impression that many of his interviews were conducted with NYPD officers and Long Island cops. Contrary to what some may think law enforcement is different in various parts of the nation, just like attitudes and beliefs are different in our many regions. It's still a very good book. Don't let my quibbles discourage you from reading it.

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Summary: A great cop book with timeless appeal
Review: This book gets a message accross very well through stories of real people in law enforcement. It will be well worth reading 50 years from now. I recommend it.

Wayne D. Ford, Ph.D., author of "Managing Police Stress" [e-mail]

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Summary: Police tales from 1970s to 1985
Review: This book is filled with short stories of cops in their own words. No censorship: From the cold description of an impaled baby on a tree on the scene of a terrible car accident to a blown up drug addict body in a bloody appartment. I almost vomited on my way to work when I read it two years ago on the city bus. So be sure to be prepared for horrible descriptions, lots of action and a superb inside view of the psychological aspect of the policemen/women. But remember that the tales are mostly taking part in the early 1980s. Every chapter starts with the author's take on a selected aspect of the police work. Are you ready for Atari-boy-killer, incredible housecalls, drugs, alcohol, sex and corruption? Then this book is for you. Very easy reading because each story is clearly divided by little stars. A must for police-related readers.

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Summary: NOT FOR COPS ONLY...
Review: This is a book about cops, for cops, and by cops. The author has done an excellent job of organizing their stories about what it means be a member of the blue team. There are over a hundred such accounts compiled, and each one has a ring of authenticity, colored by a layer of humor and cynicism that goes often goes with the territoty. The often raw and gritty language, coupled with their vividly described experiences, gives the reader a birdseye view of the underbelly of the beast.

The only problem with the book is that policing has undergone a substantial change in the past several years, which is, of course, not reflected in this book, as it was published in 1985. Read in that context, the book is somewhat anachronistic. Still, it is one that will be enjoyed by those with a penchant for police war stories. If you are an avid cop buff, add one star to my rating.