The Year of Dangerous Days, Nicholas Griffin
The Year of Dangerous Days, Nicholas Griffin
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The Year of Dangerous Days
Riots, Refugees, and Cocaine in Miami 1980

Author: Nicholas Griffin

Narrator: Pete Simonelli

Unabridged: 9 hr 20 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/14/2020


Synopsis

In the tradition of The Wire, the “utterly absorbing” (The New York Times) story of the cinematic transformation of Miami, one of America’s bustling cities—rife with a drug epidemic, a burgeoning refugee crisis, and police brutality—from journalist and award-winning author Nicholas Griffin.

Miami, Florida, famed for its blue skies and sandy beaches, is one of the world’s most popular vacation destinations, with nearly twenty-three million tourists visiting annually. But few people have any idea how this unofficial capital of Latin America came to be.

The Year of Dangerous Days is “an engrossing, peek-between-your-fingers history of an American city on the edge” (Kirkus Reviews). With a cast that includes iconic characters such as Jimmy Carter, Fidel Castro, and Janet Reno, this slice of history is brought to life through intertwining personal stories. At the core, there’s Edna Buchanan, a reporter for the Miami Herald who breaks the story on the wrongful murder of a black man and the shocking police cover-up; Captain Marshall Frank, the hardboiled homicide detective tasked with investigating the murder; and Mayor Maurice Ferré, the charismatic politician who watches the case, and the city, fall apart.

On a roller coaster of national politics and international diplomacy, these three figures cross paths as their city explores one of the worst race riots in American history as more than 120,000 Cuban refugees land south of Miami, and as drug cartels flood the city with cocaine and infiltrate all levels of law enforcement. In a battle of wills, Buchanan has to keep up with the 150 percent murder rate increase; Captain Frank has to scrub and rebuild his homicide bureau; and Mayor Ferré must find a way to reconstruct his smoldering city. Against all odds, they persevere, and a stronger, more vibrant, Miami begins to emerge. But the foundation of this new Miami—partially built on corruption and drug money—will have severe ramifications for the rest of the country.

Deeply researched, “well-written” (New York Journal of Books), and covering many timely issues including police brutality, immigration, and the drug crisis, The Year of Dangerous Days is both a clarion call and a dramatic rebirth story of one of America’s most iconic cities.

About Nicholas Griffin

Nicholas Griffin is a journalist and author of four novels and three works of nonfiction. His writing has appeared in The Times (London), the Financial Times, and Foreign Policy, among other publications. His book Ping-Pong Diplomacy was shortlisted for the PEN/ESPN Award for Literary Sports Writing. He lives in Miami with his wife and two children.


Reviews

Goodreads review by David on September 18, 2020

Fascinating account of Miami in 1980. This book is so well researched and beautifully written that it reads like a fast-paced novel. It is also a reminder that drugs, racial divides, and poverty have the same roots. The problems Miami faced are a distant mirror of today’s problems. I loved this book......more

Goodreads review by Diego Kuschnir on July 17, 2020

This is a stunning book. It’s the story of how one crisis after another pummeled Miami in 1980. Since that was an election year, and Miami was seen as a sort of national embarrassment, there wasn’t much help forthcoming from the Feds. We meet Arthur McDuffie, a black ex-Marine beaten to death by fif......more

Goodreads review by Rafal on May 10, 2022

Wstrząsające podsumowanie pamiętnego roku 1980 w Miami - czasu krwawych zamieszek o podłożu rasowym, którego punktem zapalnym, aczkolwiek nie jedynym powodem, było brutalne pobicie ze skutkiem śmiertelnym, czarnoskórego ojca rodziny i byłego żołnierza marines Arthura McDuffie'ego, przez policjantów......more

Goodreads review by Craig on November 22, 2020

"The Year of Dangerous Days" is an amazing book about the most tumultuous year in Miami's history. It's deeply researched and filled with fascinating characters and scenes. It's got a couple of flaws, but they weren't enough to kill my enthusiasm for what Nicholas Griffin has accomplished here. Griff......more

Goodreads review by Joanna on June 01, 2022

W trakcie lektury pierwszych rozdziałów “Miami 1980. Roku niebezpiecznych dni” zawaliłam parę osób z instagrama wiadomościami jak rewelacyjny reportaż czytam i że oto najprawdopodobniej szykuje się nowy ulubieniec w serii Amerykańskiej Czarnego. A trzeba było słuchać się mądrzejszych, kiedy mówili,......more