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Summary: samaritan
Review: price is intrusive sometimes when points are made obviously for the reader's benefit (asides about parenting pitfalls, personality disorders, intimacy traps, etc.); and it's hard to believe that a character's deep personality flaw can be read at the glance of the savvy observing character as happens in this novel (to the benefit of the reader, who is also then made aware of what to watch for in the flawed individual; but actions speak louder than words, and a reader can usually be trusted to come to his own accurate conclusion thusly). _freedomland_ haunts me still, from a single reading years ago; _samaritan_ covers more territory and a larger number of characters; the pace is consistent, the style visceral, and the metaphors are witty and thought-provoking
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Summary: A surprising disappointment
Review: Price's earlier strong work made the appearance of "Samaritan" the occasion of some anticipation, but for me the novel failed to deliver the expected punch.The premise is sound: a product of the New Jersey projects with a checkered past unexpectedly achieves success as a writer in LA, but returns to his old haunts, mostly to try to reconnect with is daughter, from whom he has been physically separated since his divorce. The novel, however, pivots on a vicious attack on the writer, Nick, who refuses to reveal the nature of the assault to a black female detective --nicknamed Tweetie -- who, remarkably, lived in the projects at the same time. In fact, Nick witnessed, and even participated in, a humiliation of a young Tweetie. Well, Ok, quite a coincidence, but maybe we're still willing to go along, except that Price introduces yet another character from Nick's past in a chance meeting that ultimately leads to the attack that Tweetie winds up investigating. Too much authorial meddling for me, but Price can write well, so I might be willing to go along. However, he compounds problems by insisting that his main character is an inveterate storyteller. And oh, how this character tells stories. In fact, that's about all he does, in endless forays into the past that seem merely to serve as an excuse for Price to wax eloquently through his characters. Well, other readers might have enjoyed the liberties Price takes, but for this reader, a series of speeches by the characters and long narrative expositions of what happened years ago is a prescription for a stagnant narrative, no matter now masterful the writer. In fact, I give three stars only on the strength of the prose. Unlike novels I best admire, which gain strength as they progress, "Samaritan" tired as it reached the finish line, leaving me both exhausted and relieved that the ordeal was over.
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Summary: The slums of Dempsey, N.J.
Review: Ray Mitchell grew up in the housing projects of Dempsey, N.J., went to LA to become a successful TV writer, and now returned to Dempsey with enough money to allow himself a few quirks. Mainly, re wants to reconnect with his 13-year old daughter Ruby. Nerese Ammons, a black detective within months of retirement, knows Ray from childhood and remembers him as being on her side when the other school children gave her grief. Ray wants to do good so that people will love him. But he does not know how to do it without coming across like the Salvation Army. He gets lied to, he gets ripped off, he just simply cannot connect because he forgot about the slums and no longer speaks their language. And then Ray is brutally beaten up. Nerese takes over the investigation, because she owes him from way back. But Ray won't tell her who did it. and she has to detect the hard way. By now this book should be a mystery. But it refuses to. It is the story of the people living in the project, their hopes and aspirations. They will not make it out of that slum, and they know it. But still they keep trying. They act like mafia godfathers hoping the image will put them on a higher level. The children visit prison and the criminals become superman. Yet at all times they have a clear understanding of their surroundings and the psychological facts of their diminished lives. The author gives us an uncanny picture of people and locations but presents them almost like a stream of conscience. While it is fun to dig deeper here or there, the main attraction is in the swimming on the surface and let it all parade by.
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Summary: Lesson in Life
Review: Richard Price has written a marvelous book- it is a good lesson in life- those who do not accept personal responsibility for their own actions are doomed to failure.
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Summary: let's not forget the humor
Review: Richard Price is a street-lyrical craftsman at depicting urban atmosphere. But he's also very funny. Just about all these reviews of "Samaritan" leave out the comic angle. Salim's raps to Ray Mitchell as he tries to tag him for T-shirt making cash are a riot. The mixed emotions of the teenagers are at once touching and comic. Tom Potenza's nervous fury of hypertalk brought me to tears of laughter. Yes, the book's got a keen gritty atmosphere, but a lot of the electricity in the dialogue comes from the edgy humor.
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Summary: This Samaritan is Very Good
Review: Richard Price's Samaritan is an excellent novel, one which explores the moral ambiguities of contemporary life, providing no pat answers, just thought-provoking prose. At the heart of the novel is Ray Mitchell, a man returning home to the fictional New Jersey town of Dempsey. He has had some successes and comes home for various reasons-some admirable, some not. He volunteers to teach a creative writing class at his old high school, and the next thing we know, he is in the hospital after being brutally beaten in his apartment. The novel moves back and forth in time (although all in the space of a few months), shifting perspective between Ray and Nerese Ammons the determined detective investigating the beating. She suspects he knows who beat him, and has various plausible theories. The resolution of the novel is unexpected, but certainly not unbelievable. The characters are terrific, as is the dialogue. Samaritan is an excellent novel-challenging, thought-provoking and completely readable. Enjoy.
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Summary: Samaritan
Review: Samaritan by Richard Price is a novel that engages the reader through suspense, mystery, and sympathy for anyone who has experienced the emptiness of giving kindness and receiving no gratitude in return. At the beginning of the novel Ray Mitchell, a lonely schoolteacher, is in the hospital after being attacked, which leads to questions about his past. These questions are answered one by one as Nerese Ammons, the detective investigating his case, uncovers them. This gives the reader a clearer idea of Mitchell's story, which is trying to reach out to the people around him any way he can including his daughter Ruby. In the end Mitchell and the reader both receive the gratification that comes with gaining compassion in return for a life of giving it.
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Summary: Stories
Review: Samaritan is a 400 page confessional of lives gone wrong, lives wrecked and semi-salvaged. To help is to expose yourself to more grief than any man can deal with. Ray, returning to the projects he grew up in with a pocketful of money, never fully materializes. We know him as a doubter (doubts almost every thought that he has) but his moves seems passive. Ray gets coerced into making his offers, manipulated, even by his young daughter. He is a watcher and a story spinner, but he doesn't have enough strength to drive the narrative. Samaritan is more of a Whydunnit than Whodunnit. Price is interested in the psychology of white/black, adult/child, rich/poor. Still, the weaknesses are hard to see since Price writes beautifully. The depiction of the bleak urban landscape is worth the cost of 'Samaritan', but this book neither approaches the plotting of 'Clockers' nor evokes the pity and despair found in 'Freedomland'.
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Summary: It Took My Breath Away
Review: Samaritan is a novel that is being sold as a mystery. But it's like no other mystery I've read before. The main plot which, in any other hands, could have turned into your average thrill-a-minute police investigation is only the basis for character developement in Samaritan. Price isn't really concerened about plot. What he does care for are his characters and their interraction with one another. Ray is a man who doesn't really know what he wants. He needs to be loved, needs to be told that he is needed or wanted and, because of this very flaw, Ray is a very unhappy man. He can't connnect with his daughter, can't keep a job, can't seem to find a way to feel truly happy even when everything seems to be going okay in his life. When he is found beaten to a bloody pulp in his apartment, people believe that Ray has stepped into some sort of sour deal he can't find a way out of. But as we're about to learn, Ray doesn't want to tell who hurt him. He doesn't even seem to care about it. Enters Nerese, a cop who's on the brink of retirement and a woman who used to know Ray when they were growing up in a harsh and brutal part of New York. She's decided that she will figure out who hurt Ray before retirering, something that is easier said than done. Told in flashbacks and through dialog, the book is the kind that grabs you by the gut by its shear intelligence and brilliance. It is a rare thing to find a book where every single character feels real, as if he or she is about to jump right out of the page. Price brings his characters to life in a way no other author can. And as if that wasn't enough, Price proves himself a master at writing dialog. The characters often go on long rants, recalling the past, or more precisely, recalling their own interpretation of the past. These moments are like listening to a master storyteller telling a story. You won't want to skip a single word. Nostalgia drenches every page of this book, and so does pain and misery. Through each other, these characters learn to accept themselves in a way they've never been able to before. And although the book never reaches the high happy note each character is triving for, its quiet ending is simply perfect. Samaritan is a slice-of-life that completely blew my mind away. I can't recall the last time a book got to me so much. This was my first time trying Price, and now that I'm hooked, I'm sure it won't be the last.
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Summary: Draws you in
Review: SAMARITAN is a very enjoyable read. The dialogue could not be any truer to life. The characters come alive so vividly, I feel as though I've known them for years. There are no heroes here: Nereese is not the hottest cop in the bunch; for all his extreme generosity, Ray is not someone you'd want to emulate. Each person is a story and has stories, which add more depth to these already utterly believable people. It also connects them in a Zen-like way. I wasn't at all surprised to learn that the author is a screenwriter: Therein lies much of the book's strength. So why not 5 stars? Two reasons. First, Mr. Price jumps back and forth between events in January and events in February. You get used to it, and even come to appreciate the effect, but it's kind of annoying at first. Also, though the story is tense and you can't wait to find out what happens next, it's slowed down by everyone telling their stories. Hmmm, above I said that was a good thing. Guess it's a two-edged sword, all the story-telling. Maybe there's a teeny bit *too* much character development (can't remember the last time I complained about that!). The suspense does suffer a bit. Still, I recommend SAMARITAN, and plan to read more of Mr. Price's books.
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