Black Flies

A "raw and fascinating" novel based on the author's experiences as a New York City paramedic during the crack epidemic--"Burke is a poet of trauma" (Publishers Weekly, starred review).

Black Flies is the story of paramedic Ollie Cross and his first year on the job in mid-'90s Harlem. It is a ground's eye view of life on the streets: the shootouts, the bad cops, the hopeless patients, the dark humor in bizarre circumstances, and one medic's struggle to maintain his desire to help despite his growing callousness. It is the story of lives that hang in the balance, and of a single job with a misdiagnosed newborn that sends Cross and his partner into a life-changing struggle between good and evil.

"Although Black Flies is a novel, it contains more reflections of lived experience than some memoirs. . . . Reading this arresting, confrontational book is like reading Dispatches, Michael Herr's indelible account of his years as a reporter in Vietnam." --The New York Times Book Review

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Soft Skull
Published: 04/01/2008
ISBN: 9781593761912
Pages: 192
Weight: 0.43lbs
Size: 8.22h x 6.54w x 0.52d

Review Citations: Publishers Weekly 03/31/2008 pg. 41
New York Times Book Review 05/25/2008 pg. 1
New York Times Book Review 06/01/2008 pg. 50
NY Times Notable Bks of Year 12/07/2008 pg. 9