Code Blue: An Oath to the Badge and Gun Part 1 (Book 1 of 5)

Jamell Crouthers has certainly crafted an intriguing and potentially polarizing work of thoughtful fiction in Code Blue that takes a philosophical, poetic, and reflective stab at the issues of law enforcement and racism in America.

From a literary standpoint, I think this is a great book. At time I feel like it gets a little overly simple, in an almost suspiciously juvenile way with overt generalizations and two dimensional stereotypes...at the same time, it’s layout in a poetic format, and it’s transition into a more complex inner dialogue that examines the emotional struggle of a cop balancing between duty and morality, is truly masterful.

That said, I gave the book three stars, not five, because as a reviewer, I feel I’m entitled to examine a book not just from a literary standpoint, but a content-related one as well. I feel the themes of this book capitalize on an almost excessively discusses and played out narrative of racist conspiracy theories, racial profiling, and state-engineered police brutality that I just don’t buy...sorry. I agree that there are good cops and bad cops out there, but I don’t think it’s the systematized crisis some people believe it is (and leverage as a rallying point).

That said, I encourage everyone to draw their own opinions from what they know, and enjoy the literary poesy of this fictional work. (3 stars)

Jamell Crouthers has been writing poetry since he was 13 years old. He didn't take his writing ability seriously until his late 20s. Jamell is a poet and writer that creates thought-provoking content about different aspects of life. His goal is to write as many poetry books on societal issues that we all face in today's age. Through writing poetry, it is an easy read for others and it's a gateway to getting inside his mind. Jamell Crouthers book Code Blue An Oath to the Badge and Gun, (2017),is part of a series.

The goal was to tell a fictional story from a police officer’s point of view. It is written in the form of bulletins, discussing the inner concerns around the struggles of man, being part of the police force and raising a son in the world. The writing also takes the form of an agenda of the police system and how brutality, corruption, lies, cover-ups, going under cover, deceit, are orders by higher authority who do not do things by The book.

The protagonist, Gary says:
"I’m currently living by the code of the blue and not for the code red that fills sidewalks, The blood that gushes out of people’s bodies and death fills the air within seconds."

Gary is the author's voice .He depicts the truth about the relations between police officers and focuses on the law enforcing, judicial, prison systems and shows that not all police officers are racist.