• Homicide

  • A Year on the Killing Streets
  • By: David Simon
  • Narrated by: Reed Diamond
  • Length: 6 hrs and 7 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (1,476 ratings)

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Homicide  By  cover art

Homicide

By: David Simon
Narrated by: Reed Diamond
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Publisher's summary

Through wonderfully descriptive writing, Simon details the work of 15 detectives, three sergeants and a lieutenant charged with investigating dozens of Baltimore's 234 murders that year. Simon takes listeners inside the detectives' lives, describing the frustration of departmental red tape and politics, the bursts of energy and moments of despair.

With an eye for the scenes of slaughter and pursuit and an ear for the cadences of cop talk, both business and banter, Simon gives this brilliant, harrowing account its authenticity and fascinating edge.

Simon plants us so close to these detectives that we see everything - the Police Department, the prosecutors, the courts, the city of Baltimore itself - from their angle.

This is a never-before-seen look at what it's really like to investigate murders for a living.

©1997 David Simon (P)1997 Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, A Division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

  • Edgar Award Winner
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What listeners say about Homicide

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    931
  • 4 Stars
    327
  • 3 Stars
    133
  • 2 Stars
    52
  • 1 Stars
    33
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    800
  • 4 Stars
    232
  • 3 Stars
    116
  • 2 Stars
    32
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    14
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    808
  • 4 Stars
    217
  • 3 Stars
    109
  • 2 Stars
    33
  • 1 Stars
    25

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

It's abridged!

I didn't realize it was abridged. Ok... my bad, but it was a bummer to realize that I have to buy it all over again to get the missing parts.

The reader is good, but the generic "creepy" music that's piped in at the ends of the chapters is laughable. I think David Simon would scoff at that shiz.

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42 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Darn!! Abridged...

I think I missed that this was an abridged version because I purchased it on my smartphone app - feeling very disappointed about that, as it certainly explains why there is a relatively few number of stories included (as I listened I kept thinking "How did they keep the TV series going so long with so little here to work with). The narrator is fantastic, however, and the writing style is great.

I agree with another reviewer about the musical interludes - silly, and don't add to the listening experience at all.

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37 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Spoils you for other mysteries

This book, and the show based on it, are such an unbeliveably realistic, complex, clever, and engaging way of telling a 'mystery story' that I can no longer enjoy pat mysteries where the killer reveals all at the end. This is a phenomenal book, and read superbly by the narrator.

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25 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

As real as it gets

Starkly shows life inside a police homicide unit. Brings a realization of how cheap life is to many people in our society. Great read for anyone wanting to know the inside story of the workings of a police department.

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19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

abridged

great performance and great story but unfortunately this is an Abridged version and there does not seem to be an unabridged version

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A great listen--

This is a superb book on tape. The book is about one year in the Baltimore homicide division. It follows a few detectives as they go about their job.

The book is excellent, but the reader puts it over the top. He does a great job of imparting feeling to the characters and the story.

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Avoid abridged books

Great reader and good story but that's as far as it goes because you only got a portion of the whole piece. Stay away from abridged works in genres like this.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Better than the show

This book was a joy to listen to. Simon's writing goes far beyond the critically acclaimed television show, and highlights what it could have been. Diamond's narration is flawless. This is the best of the true crime genre I've come across. I laughed out loud and recoiled in horror at different points. This is a fascinating look inside the world of Baltimore homicide detectives.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great "Slice of LIfe" Crime Writing

Would you listen to Homicide again? Why?

Yes, I really enjoyed the writing and the narration. Simon has an amazing way to bring the homicide detectives of Baltimore to life without inserting himself into the story.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Detective Donald Worden. A super smart, resourceful, honorable and world weary detective.

Which character – as performed by Reed Diamond – was your favorite?

Detective sergeant Terry McLarney. Diamond chose a great voice for this character.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Having watched Homicide and the Wire I was familiar with a lot of the subject matter in this book, but getting some of the firsthand details made it more real. It gives you a real appreciation for what homicide detectives have to go through each day.

Any additional comments?

To me, this is a great example of literary journalism used to tell a story in bold and vivid detail. The storytelling tricks used by Simon never seem too heavy handed, but give a lot of weight to the story. Highly recommended. {Just wish it wasn't abridged}

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

David Simon is a Master

As an ardent fan of the show "Homcicide: Life on the Streets", I was fascinated to listen the story that started it all. The narrator, Reed Diamond, was also a character in the show "Homicide." This journalist-turned-author and screen writer has a crystal-clear understanding of the underside of Baltimore crime, politics and corruption. The best part: much of this book and its characters eventually became the fantastic TV series "The Wire," also written by Simon.

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4 people found this helpful