Title: Black, White, and Gray All Over: A Black Man’s Odyssey in Life and Law Enforcement
Author: Frederick Reynolds
Publisher: MindStir Media
ISBN: 1638485216
Pages: 396
Genre: Memoir
Reviewed by: David Allen
Synopsis
From shootouts and robberies to riding in cars with pimps and prostitutes, Frederick Reynolds’ early manhood experiences in Detroit, Michigan in the 1960s foretold a future on the wrong side of the prison bars. Frederick grew up a creative and sensitive child but found himself lured down the same path as many Black youth in that era. No one would have guessed he would have a future as a cop in one of the most dangerous cities in America in the 1980s—Compton, California. From recruit to detective, Frederick experienced a successful career marked by commendations and awards. The traumatic and highly demanding nature of the work, however, took its toll on both his family and personal life—something Frederick was able to conquer but only after years of distress and regret.
About the Author
“Being a gang investigator in Compton was like a fledgling art lover rooming with Jackson Pollock; it was sensory overload. The gang members painted obscene, grotesque works of art with sophisticated weaponry, using the streets as their canvasses and blood as their medium.”