The Wire: Truth Be Told - Tapa dura

Not the usual coffee-table photo book, but something substantial, complex, honest, challenging, revealing, funny and also unprecedented, unique - a book, in other words, worthy of THE WIRE. -- Tony Kushner One of the greatest works of television of all time. * * Independent * * You either love THE WIRE, or haven't seen it. * * Guardian Guide * * A vital part of the television landscape. * * New York Times * * THE WIRE, like its underfunded, workaday cops, just plugged away until it outshone everything else on TV. * * Time * * Rafael, writer on all five series, has produced a companion work that does justice to the original and reveals the depth of its authenticity. * * Waterstones Books Quarterly * * Episode guides often let you down by being just that: a book of plot synopses. True to The Wire's unsurpassed quality, this 'episode guide' has the synopses muscling for space with essays from the likes of George Pelecanos and a Nick Hornby interview with creator David Simon. Essential stuff. * * Empire * * The HBO series The Wire is widely considered one of the greatest television dramas ever, and this comprehensive and inspired series guide is a revelatory insight into the courage, determination and skill that went into making it. With contributions from the authors and screenwriters, it's a fascinating look at both the fractured nature of modern society and how you go about depicting that on screen. * * Big Issue * * Fans of TV series THE WIRE will ove this; those of us who wanted to love it but couldn't grasp what was going on, will need it as a guide. * * The Herald * * Fans of the HBO drama who, five series later, are no ready to let go, will find this brick of a book, complete with film stills, cast lists and Baltimore city map, a good way to decompress. * * The Independent * *

'. . . All in the game.' West Baltimore Traditional THE WIRE has been widely hailed as the greatest television series of all time. It portrays the war of attrition between Baltimore's hardened police force and its drug dealers, and the blurring of good and evil, justice and injustice, right and wrong that happens every day as men and women struggle against the institutions they are bound up in. Over its five series it has built up a detailed, rich and layered portrait of Baltimore: from its corner boys touting dope and its dock workers facing extinction, through the strained education system and tainted halls of power, to the crumbling media establishment. Rafael Alvarez - a reporter, essayist and staff writer for the show - brings the reader inside this world, detailing many of the real-life incidents and personalities that have inspired the show's storylines and characters. Packed with photographs and featuring an introduction by series creator and executive producer David Simon, as well as essays by acclaimed authors George Pelecanos, Ed Burns, Richard Price, Laura Lippman and Denis Lehane, it covers all five series in glorious detail.