The Black Marble
(Joseph Wambaugh)
The Black Marble (1978) is probably
Wambaugh's best police procedural novel, a romantic comedy with dark
roots. The protagonists are two Los Angeles police detectives, A.M.
Valnikov and his new partner Natalie Zimmerman. First-generation
Russian Valnikov is haunted by dreams of past cases and his previous
partner's suicide. Tough-nut Zimmerman is a two-time loser in the
marriage department and determined to save her career by cutting her
drunken partner loose as soon as possible. She thinks Valnikov is nuts.
Valnikov is usually too drunk or hungover to think. Then they get on
the trail of a dog-kidnapper and Zimmerman starts to see a gentle,
romantic side to Valnikov. He's a much better cop than his current
condition indicates and a loving man under all the vodka. Meanwhile,
Valnikov is falling in love with the spikey Zimmerman and rediscovering
a reason to kick the booze.
As an ex-cop, Wambaugh knows the law enforcement mentality from the
inside out. He is best known for humanizing the police, making them
something besides the cookie-cutter heroes or corrupt stormtroopers
that we see on television. But his scenes of the dog-show circuit also
demonstrate a flair for research that puts the reader deep into an
unfamiliar world, into its sounds, smells and rules. What makes
Wambaugh a classic detective novelist, though, is his additional
ability to write flawed, sympathetic characters, both heroes and
villains. Even the dognapper isn't a bad guy, just one who gets off on
the wrong foot and keeps going. And even though Valnikov is a half-mad
drunk and Zimmerman is a bitter divorcée with a very sharp tongue, you
can't help rooting for this mismatched couple to beat the odds, for
love to win out in the end. As romance drunkenly blossoms and the case
goes south, the story finally unravels into a hilarious scene involving
two amorous cops and a terrified fiddler playing a Russian gypsy love
song under the stars.
Resumos Relacionados
- Cross
- Tevye's Daughters
- The Further Adventures Of Halley's Comet
- Why We Love: The Nature And Chemistry Of Romantic Love
- Gone With The Wind`
|
|
