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The Blue Knight (Paperback)

~ (Author) "THE WHEEL HUMMED and Rollo mumbled Yiddish curses as he put rouge on the glistening bronze surface..." (more)
Key Phrases: paddy hustlers, relay spot, hotel burglar, Mister Bronski, Red Scalotta, Los Angeles (more...)

4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)

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Kindle Edition $6.39 Available for download now. Published April 1, 2008	Kindle Edition, April 1, 2008	$6.39	--	--
Hardcover $30.00 In Stock. Published February 27, 1972	Hardcover, February 27, 1972	$30.00	$9.90	$0.01
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Paperback Available from these sellers. Published December 31, 1972	Paperback, December 31, 1972	--	$9.95	$0.01
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Mass Market Paperback $7.99 In Stock. Published March 31, 2008 Mass Market Paperback: A smaller paperback commonly used for bestsellers and genre fiction.	Mass Market Paperback, March 31, 2008	$7.99	$4.12	$1.43
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Unknown Binding Available from these sellers. Published December 31, 1971	Unknown Binding, December 31, 1971	--	--	$0.01

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Cop's eye view of police brutality...courage...and compassion.

Product Details

Paperback: 316 pages
Publisher: Sphere; First Thus edition (January 1, 1973)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0440006074
ISBN-13: 978-0440006077
Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces

Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,595,307 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

Inside This Book (learn more)
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First Sentence:
THE WHEEL HUMMED and Rollo mumbled Yiddish curses as he put rouge on the glistening bronze surface. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
paddy hustlers, relay spot, hotel burglar, phone spot, vice car, pink dragon, traffic warrant, vice officers, arrest report, elevator boy

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Mister Bronski, Red Scalotta, Los Angeles, Lieutenant Hilliard, Officer Morgan, Sixth Street, Main Street, Abd's Harem, Bumper Morgan, Timothy Landry, Blue Knight, Cruz Segovia, Homer Downey, Aaron Fishman, Charlie Bronski, Harbor Freeway, Mister Downey, San Quentin, Zoot Lafferty, Angie Caputo, Eighth Street, Elysian Park, Fourth Street, Glass House, Knobby Booker

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 2 books:

The Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T.E. Lawrence on page 111
Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T. E. Lawrence on page 111

18 books cite this book:

Cop Knowledge: Police Power and Cultural Narrative in Twentieth-Century America by Christopher P. Wilson on 9 pages
Police: Streetcorner Politicians by William Ker Muir Jr. in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
Finnegan's Week by Joseph Wambaugh in Front Matter, and Back Matter
How to Write a Mystery by Larry Beinhart on page 107, and page 180
Bestsellers: Popular Fiction Since 1900 by Clive Bloom on page 183

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The New Centurions by Joseph Wambaugh

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	63% buy the item featured on this page: The Blue Knight 4.5 out of 5 stars (10)
	12% buy The New Centurions 4.4 out of 5 stars (19) $7.99
	11% buy The Onion Field 4.7 out of 5 stars (19) $9.36
	8% buy The Choirboys 4.5 out of 5 stars (31) $9.36

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10 Reviews

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4.5 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As usual, Wambaugh delivers., April 14, 2003

By	Plaque "Plaque" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Blue Knight (Hardcover)

Joseph Wambaugh never ceases to entertain me. The Blue Knight is one of his earlier works, and so far its a very close second to The New Centurions for my favorite Wambaugh novel.

The novel tells the story of Bumper Morgan, a Los Angeles beat cop who is three days from retirement. Bumper is a big, fat, loveable glutton with a bit of a sadistic streak. We follow his last few days on the police force while he begrudgingly drives his patrol car through his long time beat in LA. Bumper explains that he prefers walking the beat, but since hes too old and fat he is forced to drive his legs arent what they used to be.

Bumper tells his own story, and everything is told through his eyes. As usual, Wambaughs gifted use of sharp, witty dialogue and scathing common-man analysis of the streets brings Bumpers story to life. Everyone on his beat loves him. Restaurant owners pile heaps of culinary delights in front of him on a daily basis, and its obvious Bumper LOVES to eat many times my mouth started watering while reading the descriptions of a wide variety of foods laid out for this loveable cop.

When hes not eating (a rare occasion, or so it seems), Bumper meets with other locals: strip club owners, convenience store managers, even homeless bums whom he pays for info on the local crooks. Bumper is proud of himself for paying his informants out of his own pocket rather than paying out of the PDs kitty; he thinks it keeps his sources anonymous and safe.

As warm, loveable and thoughtful our hero is, there is a sadistic side to Bumper Morgan as well. Hes not above turning up the heat on the undesirables, and it seems to me that its considered to be part of the job for him; certainly nothing to think twice about. Witness the bookie that nearly gets his arm broken after trying mail his book back to himself. This bookie stands by a mailbox and as soon as he sees the heat coming, drops his stuff in the slot this time, he didnt get his arm out of the box fast enough, so Bumper takes the opportunity to crush his arm into the box while pumping for info. Youd think incidents like this would make the reader dislike Bumper; not so. His matter-of-fact tone and the fact that he doesnt dwell on his use of physical force makes you feel as if brutality is a part of his status quo. It is this attitude that proves to be Bumpers undoing once you get to the surprise ending. There is another stunningly crafted scene in which Bumper embellishes the truth in court. Hes not above fibbing a little to get these goofs behind bars.

Sharp witted, thoughtful, funny, human, brutal, warm, disturbing, violent, and truthful, The Blue Knight is a bright spot for Wambaugh. His police stories are far beyond your average police procedural; in fact, I havent read any novel by Wambaugh which follows a set formula. Those unfamiliar with his writing style may note that Quinton Tarantino follows a similar vein when it comes to script writing. The difference is that while the wit is similar between the two, it is Wambaugh who has a more clear idea of how to make the slick verbiage work to establish realism, rather than Tarantinos more tongue-in-cheek approach. Bumper Morgan is REAL. Recommended.

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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Journey Behind The Scenes., February 12, 2001

By	Christopher B. Jonnes "author of BIG ICE and... (Stillwater, MN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Blue Knight (Paperback)

Who better to tell a cop's tale than an old cop? Wambaugh was there. He's able to translate his experiences in the LAPD into words we can feel and smell. The Blue Knight is a refreshing detour in the world of crime writing, a genre overloaded with static police procedurals and gory murder mysteries. The Blue Knight is a simple tale that humanizes a typical beat cop. At a time when cops were unpopular and routinely tagged as abusive Nazis or ignorant "fuzz" or "pigs," Wambaugh takes the other side, realistically describing the unique ups and downs of an LA beat cop by delivering his good-guy protagonist, Bumper Morgan.

Bumper is human, likeable. He walks his well-worn beat, meting out justice not by the book, but by common sense. This book works well at all levels. -- ....

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Three Days in the Life of a Veteran Street Cop, September 23, 2008

By	Franklin the Mouse (Gorham, ME USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Blue Knight (Mass Market Paperback)

Mr. Wambaugh's outstanding book still holds up after three decades. World-weary after twenty years on the police force, Bumper Morgan reflects on the changing nature of police work and the potential for a new phase of his life when he retires at the age of 50. He is exposed on a daily basis to the extremes of the human conditon; from seamy survivalist of poverty and drug-addiction to courageous, law-abiding citizens just trying to get by. Overweight Bumper wallows in a variety of "freebies", especially food, that appreciative merchants heap upon him for helping them out throughout his career. A realistic and compassionate depiction of a street cop. Absolutely worth reading.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars GO AHEAD....MAKE YOUR DAY...READ THIS GREAT BOOK!
To paraphrase fictional movie cop and book reviewer..."Dirty Harry" Callahan..."GO AHEAD...MAKE YOUR DAY...READ THIS GREAT BOOK! Read more

Published 7 months ago by Johnny Walmark

5.0 out of 5 stars blue knight
Excelant book, highly recommend, Joseph Waumbaugh is the best, drama, humor and reality, you'r laugh, cry and mayby understand!!!!!!!!!!

Published 12 months ago by Robert J. McLeod

4.0 out of 5 stars blue knight
one of Wambaugh's earliest which I had missed. It flowed well but the ending was very depressing.

Published on September 4, 2005 by David W. Viergever

2.0 out of 5 stars NOT his best book
although the usual elements are there--defender of the faithful searching the heart of darkness (his own) at a crucial point in life (middle age); the good-as-gold woman who gets... Read more

Published on March 3, 2003 by James H. Sutton

5.0 out of 5 stars Wambaugh's Best Novel
Wambaugh's ability to put you in the novel is superb. You feel the heat of mid-day and the scratchy wool suit Bumper Morgan wares. Read more

Published on June 28, 2000 by Rob Menasco

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendous read, and it has held up
I have never been in law enforcement, or lived in LA, but this book rings with the truth for me. I read it when it first came out and I reread it last week and it is still a... Read more

Published on March 17, 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars Wambaugh's best
I read all of the Wambaugh books in the 70s when I was a kid, and wanted to be a cop. Now, after twenty years on the job, I re-read The Blue Night, and loved every page of it... Read more

Published on February 13, 1998

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