Rafael Alvarez – The Wire: Truth be Told

For any fan of the HBO Television series The Wire, this book is a must. For anyone who is new to The Wire, it is a police/crime genre series set in the U.S. city of Baltimore, Maryland which ran from 2002 to 2008 and takes a multitude of perspectives on the American war on drugs; from the police to the drug dealers. In later seasons, however, it also encompasses storytelling strands involving longshoremen using drug smuggling to reinvigorate failing business, the failure of politicians to cause any reform, school children failed by inner city schools and turning to the drug trade as well as the media’s failure in addressing these problems.

What makes the book enlightening for readers is its discussions on many of the show’s key themes, often with commentary by some of the series key figures including show creator, David Simon. Analyses of the female roles and characterisations as well as the choice of music helps to supply the book with a great depth and keen eye for the many meanings within the show. Also included within the episodes is a style of commentary which gives the reader a close view of the many subtleties and nuances of characters and events within the series.

But what gives the book its edge isn’t these analyses but rather the real life elements behind the series, which injects a high amount of authenticity. Interviews with 1980s Heroin trafficker Melvin Williams who was an influence to a major drug lord in the first season of the series. These interviews have a great intensity, particularly when Williams discusses lengthy prison sentences and street violence. These moments within the book add a genuine sense of disturbance, power and enlightenment in its exploration of the themes of the show. But many of the real life incidences invoke a sense of sympathy. The real life model for the character of homeless crack addict Bubbles within the book has a particularly compelling and sad story to his life. The book fundamentally invokes a sincere interest and often care to the characters depicted behind the artifice of the fiction.

Having said the positive factors, there is one major negative issue I have with the book. The descriptions of episodes within the book are often sketchy and Alvarez fails to provide full coverage of all episode plotlines and events. A more detailed and dedicated book could have done this to further enlighten the viewer as to the interconnected nature of events within the show.

Yet despite this, this is the definitive expose into the world of The Wire.