I finished Rocker's book last night. I enjoyed it.

By the time that I had reached the middle of the book, I was beginning to notice the large and ever-changing cast of characters, and the relentless repetition of the ongoing fight. But I guess that was the point. At different times, different people came and went, but the same old fight went on and on and on, and if anything, it got worse..

In the end, although the Gaylords put up a good fight, it was finally over - at least in the old neighborhood. Maybe the fight wasn't really won or lost, depending on how you look at it, but there was no denying that it was over.

There were no preachy moral sermons about what happened. The reader is told the story and is then left alone to think about it. Was one side or the other right or wrong? Was it all worth it? Maybe, as the saying goes, "You had to be there". The book takes us there, for a while.

I was impressed by Rocker's ability to recall what happened in such detail. I doubt that he took an hour or two off each day, to write about things as they were happening. He probably wrote about it at some later time. Perhaps he was able to recapture some of the facts by interviewing others.

Even though there are some imperfections here and there, it is an impressive book. So it isn't a grammar manual. It's imperfections give it an air of authenticity. After all, who would expect that a bunch of street fighters would always use flawless English?

The book is a job well done - especially considering that it is an author's first effort.