Island of Vice

Before he was president, Theodore Roosevelt was a New York City police commissioner, bound and determined to lead the reform movement and put the brakes on sin. Joe Ochman's no-nonsense yet expressive narration complements Zacks's well-researched examination of Roosevelt's tenure with the city's finest in the late 1800s. Using appropriate accents and characterizations to enhance the story, Ochman takes listeners deep into the seedy side of Manhattan as Roosevelt makes midnight raids on brothels, metes out discipline to cops on the take, and checks up on taverns trying to beat the excise law. Ochman's nuanced tones help listeners distinguish between narrative passages and firsthand quotations. Despite sting operations and courtroom drama, Roosevelt's moral mission was undermined by bribery, a muckraking press, and fun-loving New Yorkers. C.B.L. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine