Black Flies by Shannon Burke

In Black Flies, Shannon Burke, a former paramedic in Harlem, one of New York City's roughest neighborhoods, provides an honest portrait of a fledgling Harlem paramedic, Ollie Cross. I read the book in a little more than a day, and it was one of the best books I've read in quite some time. However, if you have a weak stomach when it comes to vivid descriptions of gunshot wounds, decaying bodies, and other gruesome things a paramedic might encounter in a crime-ridden neighborhood, you'll probably want to skip this one. But that's your loss.

The book takes place in Harlem in the 1990s and follows Cross as he starts out as a paramedic, choosing the field because he didn't get accepted into medical school. It takes awhile for Cross to fit in, but he eventually develops a relationship with his partner, Rutkovsky, and the other guys in the station. Burke shows how these men develop eccentricities, fall into depression, act out in anger, or close themselves off to their families to cope with all the death they see on a daily basis and their inability to help every patient.

How Cross and Rutkovsky handle a situation with a baby born to a crack addict doesn't unfold until page 113, but it's what Burke was working up to all along. He's successful in developing his characters, showing various sides to each of them and chronicling Cross' evolution. The situation with the baby isn't pretty, but it's not supposed to be. Burke's writing is gritty and raw and real, and I'm glad Burke writes from experience. It adds authenticity to the narrative, it gets you thinking about how much a person can take, and it gives you a new respect for paramedics. You see the weight on the shoulders of these men and women who in many instances have control over life and death. It makes you wonder why they get paid peanuts while some people make millions for throwing a ball.

In the post-9/11 world, first responders have been labeled heroes. Black Flies takes place before 9/11, but it shows that they aren't all heroes, and even those who have done heroic deeds can't fill such big shoes all the time. They aren't perfect, they're human. They don't make the right decisions or say the right things all the time. But they work hard, sometimes in deplorable conditions, and stand eye-to-eye with death on many occasions. You have to expect that it will take a toll.

As Cross says to his girlfriend, Clara, on page 138, "I'm working my ass off. I'm becoming a good medic. And part of being a good medic is having a certain attitude. Of getting people to listen to you and obey in a moment. You can't waste time being polite."

Black Flies also was reviewed by:

Savvy Verse & Wit

Disclosure:  I borrowed Black Flies from the library.