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Cityside, by Pulitzer Prize nominated author, William Heffernan is a heartfelt novel. It is just as full of tension, passion and compassion as it is conspiracy, god-like-ego and deception. Though it takes place in the mid 1970šs, it is clearly a timeless piece and therefore, shamefully reflective of aspects of American society in nearly any given decade. Billy Burke is a star journalist for an icon New York City newspaper. After a scrap with a drunken police officer, the paper bails him out of trouble. His editor, the ruthless Leonard Twist, wants Burke to cover a story. Burke is sure the story will be lame as a penalty for jeopardizing the paperšs position with the police. His suspicion could not be any further from the truth. A disgruntled nurse shows up at the paper wanting to stir up trouble for her employer, Dr. Bradford, an arrogant heart surgeon. She explains to the editor that he and his cohorts are double dipping. The doctors claim to be working at two places at the same time, collecting checks from patients and from the state. To top it off, Bradford has no heart of his own. Roberto Avalon is a very sick little boy. His heart has a hole in it. Without undergoing an expensive surgery, he is sure to die. Dr. Bradford may be an arrogant heart surgeon, but unfortunately he is also one of the best in the area. However, he will not perform the operation because Maria Avalon has no medical insurance. If she can come up with 80% of the 90 grand needed, he will operate. Working in a sweatshop for peanuts, Maria knows she can never raise that kind of money. The newspaper is her sonšs only hope. Burke knows better than to get drawn into the personal element of the story. He needs together facts and report on them. He and his wife separated years ago. They had a daughter, Annie, together. But Annie was severely autistic. When they had no choice but to place her in a home, their marriage fell apart. Guilt eats away at him. He knows he let his wife down, and it kills him to think that he let his daughter down as well. This story might one chance for him to do something good for someone elsešs child. The fear that he might fail is a little overwhelming. Burkešs articles strike a cord within the hearts of the people in the city and the money pours in. The paper plans to pay for the boyšs surgery, and then expose the crooks for what they really are. The only trouble is, will Roberto live long enough to undergo the surgery, a surgery he was prevented from having only because he belonged to a poor Hispanic family? Heffernan delves deep into multiple areas of corruption. Nothing is what it seems. The characters are so well defined, you feel like you know them. The scenes are so perfectly plotted that no question goes unanswered. The story is so moving and infuriating that reading the book is like climbing into a car on a roller coaster. Hang on tight, and enjoy the ride. Cityside is a smart, edgy novel. Š 2003 Phillip Tomasso III
Reviewed by Phillip Tomasso III, November 2003
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