NYPD Through The Looking Glass

Retired NYPD Detective Vic Ferrari provides a humorous behind the scene look into the New York City Police Department with NYPD: Through The Looking Glass, stories from inside America’s largest police department.

Ferrari narrates a fascinating police history lesson wrapped in personal anecdotes with rare insight into the NYPD.

Lapse’s in judgment, like moving a corpse to avoid working overtime or safeguarding a loaded revolver in an oven (Yes, it exploded!) show the human side of a 35,000 member police department filled with unusual characters. The reader gets a taste of what it’s like to be an NYPD police officer with details and insight not found watching Blue Bloods or Law and Order. Everything from how an NYPD station house operates to the mascots who inhabit them is covered in exciting detail.  A chapter listing precinct nicknames explains the rich history of the NYPD with colorful names like Fort Surrender, Fort Gyro, and Fort Cirrhosis. A 16-page glossary filled with comical definitions explains cop lingo like:

Desk number: A phone number veiled in secrecy and protected more than the president of the United States or Bill Murray’s personal cell number.

Star Wars: A dive bar located in the Bronx. Patrons included drunks, pimps, ho’s and of course cops. The location featured a giant moose head mounted above the bar, riddled with bullet holes.

Tune up: Physical beating.

Everything from gun battles to practical jokes (Smearing fingerprint ink on toilet seats or placing live chickens in desk drawers) explains a dark sense of humor many NYPD members have and use as a coping mechanism to deal with the stress of the job.

If you enjoy reading true crime, watching Live PD or fascinated with police work, you’ve picked up the right book.