4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good Action Against Bad Bullies, July 15, 2007
This review is from: Dreams in Blue: "The Real Police" (Paperback)
Richard Neal Huffman stepped out of the TV of his childhood, and began walking then, in his daily reality, in the footsteps of his super heroes. Though some of Huffman's steps fell far and hard, he kept walking, kept defending, even now, 58 years hence.
This true story needed to be told and needs to be read. It was written in a clean, direct style which had me reading easily, comprehending without effort, wanting to return to read after being away only a few minutes.
Even having been married to a policeman for many years, I learned more from this story than I knew or had experienced about the life of a policeman, more of what I wanted to know, what I felt honored to know.
I am thankful to Amazon for many things, including opportunities in which to develop my profession as a writer; including various services to customers to communicate opinions to each other and to the public on products purchased; including product availability of items I need and can't get as easily locally, or elsewhere.
After reading this story I can say that I'm more thankful to Amazon for one thing over the others noted above. I'm thankful to have been able to find, read, and review the books I have from authors who believed in their work so much, they paid to have their books published. This book, DREAMS IN BLUE, has solidified that appreciation for Amazon being the only easily accessible, viable place in which I could have discovered this book and bought it, in the Super Saver Shipping category, no less. After reading DREAMS IN BLUE, my conclusion has become concrete that I've discovered more rare gems among the offerings of POD's like Publish America, Book Surge, Author House, etc., than among the established NYC Houses. I do not mean to disparage those houses or books; I mean only to elevate POD offerings as they deserve to be in the currently quirky and queue challenged market place.
This true story needed to be told and needs to be read. Yes, I've purposely repeated that statement from my above paragraph.
This is a man who didn't stop at reading and watching movies about super heroes coming to the rescue of the timid or weak, against those who brutally and repeatedly bullied them. This man dedicated himself to defending people in harm's way, from his childhood days through adulthood, in his personal and professional life. His stories accounting this walk reached beyond my heart, into my soul and will do that to most if not all who read it. One qualification, however: Please read this story from page one, in order, and slowly. To use any other method might allow a reader to draw inaccurate conclusions about "The Real Police." This story deserves any reader's apt and orderly attention.
In his introduction, Huffman writes: >>...so that people can better appreciate what the police do on a daily basis.<< He expressed that "daily basis" with refreshingly simply clarity, more so than any other police novel or true crime book I've read. Again, I don't mean to downplay the others; I'm merely expressing my opinion of the unique value in this account.
I had forgotten how underfunded most police agencies are, and how much this lack is increased in many small towns:
>> In stark contrast (to the City Hall in the same building), the police department was housed in a section that, back in the fifties and sixties, had been used by the fire department. During the time that the fire department used the building the floor had a drain so the fire trucks could be washed. The floor became impregnated with oil from leaky seals on the fire trucks. As a result, the carpet that was installed for the police department, later became discolored in spots from the oil working its way back to the surface. The carpet always appeared dirty because of the oil stains.... Many of the (ceiling) tiles were missing or broken, exposing a tangle of electrical wires running this way and that. Some of the tiles were discolored from leaks in the roof, a problem that was not only cosmetic but dangerous, since water and electric does not mix well.... Our two police vehicles were Chevy Novas with too many miles on them, both ran good but were in constant need of repair.... Generally speaking the night shift would get between three and ten complaints during the shift. Now that appears a small number, but when one complaint, such as a serious accident or someone stabbed, or shot, happened, then eight hours was just not enough. Mostly however, it was responding to domestic situations, a report of theft or vandalism a landlord tenant dispute, a disorderly person or a reckless driver. <<
I had known first-hand how these men felt to be in a patrol car alone at night, with backup sometimes a half-hour away in the distance. My husband was a deputy for Multmomah County Sheriff's Office, which protected the large rural county surrounding Portland, Oregon. Those deputies didn't run with partners; each vehicle was manned by a lone deputy, but there were other deputies and Portland police officers actively "out there" somewhere. In a small town like Bangor, Michigan, a single deputy would sometimes be alone in the city, the solitary law enforcement, except when an auxiliary or reserve officer would ride along or have their radios tuned.
This story lived up to its title perfectly, and it does so much more than that. "This is my story," means something here. Something I am thankful to have read. Something you will be thankful to read.
Thank you Richard Neal Huffman, for making it through the other side of throat cancer to write and publish this story. And, my thanks also to your family. I know how it feels to be on their side.
Thank you Amazon, for assisting authors like this to be discovered and read. That service is close to being equal to the one given by men like this author.
Possibly nothing rises above the service of a human being who steps far enough out of his boundaries of safety to rescue someone within the clutches of a bully, when that victim is not able to defend himself. Some people seem to be born to defend.
This hero will not go unsung. Read this clear voice singing as one, in DREAMS IN BLUE "The Real Police." Read it before the chorus comes. I'm proud to be among the first. This man, this story, deserves to be read.
Bless you and your family, Officer Huffman.
Linda Shelnutt
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