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The Park
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February 10, 2023
Another Open Library find, this now-forgotten thriller seems to be one of Don Gold's only forays into crime fiction. Don Gold? Well, I had never heard of him either, but according to the obits available online (he died, sadly, in 2021), the guy lived a heck of a life as a reporter, writer, editor, professor, etcetera. (Example available at: https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/6/9...).
As to the plot, this is a pretty standard Hitchcock inspired thriller set in a classically grimy 1970s NYC. The book centers on a series of murders of teenage boys in Central Park. The killer first approaches the boys, makes conversation, and then fires a single shot into their heart with a silenced pistol. The book gives us the perspective of both the hunters (NYC cops, including Jackson, the closest thing to a conventional protagonist in this book with a lot of characters milling about) and the hunted (the killer, who, as we come to learn, may not be completely aware of his crimes). There's some classic dime-store psychology, cop scenes that strike the reader as coming right out of Law and Order and my least favorite convention, that of the reader having to watch the cops stumble after the answer we've known from the first few pages.
Despite its consistent embrace of conventional tropes, the book possesses a charm that's hard to deny. Gold clearly knew Central Park well; his book is a treasure trove of period detail from this time and era that is now fondly recalled by many who never experienced it as "the real NY." Gold has a sense of humor; he deploys tropes, yes, but does so in a (sometimes) knowing fashion. The book is also quick-paced and designed to be a fast read; it finishes quickly.
Two other notable things about this book: The first is Gold's deep dive on the cast of characters; almost everyone gets an incredibly detailed backstory and fully worked up psychological portrait. Gold wants the people you encounter in his book to come across as real folks and not just NPCS in a violent work of escapist fiction. Sometimes the effect works, other times it comes across as over-written. However, it is certainly an interesting style, one that I have not seen in other books of this type.
The other is what will probably divide most modern audiences, and probably stops this one from getting any traction 45 years after its release--Gold's unhesitating decision to make a black cop the hero, and to go deep on that black cop's complicated feelings about race and his role as a cop, especially in relation to how he interacts with other black characters. Gold is, from what I can tell, white; while I think the effect is convincing, it's hard to imagine contemporary audiences giving his free use of the n word and (in this day) provocative character choice the benefit of the doubt.
All in all, a diverting and quick read. Like a lot of 70s lit, there's a gloriously un-PC vibe; coupled with the period setting, this is an okay enough read but not worth going out of your way for.
As to the plot, this is a pretty standard Hitchcock inspired thriller set in a classically grimy 1970s NYC. The book centers on a series of murders of teenage boys in Central Park. The killer first approaches the boys, makes conversation, and then fires a single shot into their heart with a silenced pistol. The book gives us the perspective of both the hunters (NYC cops, including Jackson, the closest thing to a conventional protagonist in this book with a lot of characters milling about) and the hunted (the killer, who, as we come to learn, may not be completely aware of his crimes). There's some classic dime-store psychology, cop scenes that strike the reader as coming right out of Law and Order and my least favorite convention, that of the reader having to watch the cops stumble after the answer we've known from the first few pages.
Despite its consistent embrace of conventional tropes, the book possesses a charm that's hard to deny. Gold clearly knew Central Park well; his book is a treasure trove of period detail from this time and era that is now fondly recalled by many who never experienced it as "the real NY." Gold has a sense of humor; he deploys tropes, yes, but does so in a (sometimes) knowing fashion. The book is also quick-paced and designed to be a fast read; it finishes quickly.
Two other notable things about this book: The first is Gold's deep dive on the cast of characters; almost everyone gets an incredibly detailed backstory and fully worked up psychological portrait. Gold wants the people you encounter in his book to come across as real folks and not just NPCS in a violent work of escapist fiction. Sometimes the effect works, other times it comes across as over-written. However, it is certainly an interesting style, one that I have not seen in other books of this type.
The other is what will probably divide most modern audiences, and probably stops this one from getting any traction 45 years after its release--Gold's unhesitating decision to make a black cop the hero, and to go deep on that black cop's complicated feelings about race and his role as a cop, especially in relation to how he interacts with other black characters. Gold is, from what I can tell, white; while I think the effect is convincing, it's hard to imagine contemporary audiences giving his free use of the n word and (in this day) provocative character choice the benefit of the doubt.
All in all, a diverting and quick read. Like a lot of 70s lit, there's a gloriously un-PC vibe; coupled with the period setting, this is an okay enough read but not worth going out of your way for.
Displaying 1 of 1 review