Our storied past

[enochs-fable.livejournal.com]

So I'm finishing up Legends of Winter Hill by Jay Atkinson, a flawed but entertaining slice of true life crime and cops in Somerville from the 1950's on. It's a funny reminder of how much Somerville has changed - you've got all sorts of shenanigans going on amidst familiar landmarks like RedBones, the Doherty Funeral Home, Union Square, and of course, the once infamous Winter Hill.

What other good books (of any genre) about Somerville are out there that are worth reading?

Comments

[ron_newman]

These are fiction, but ...

Strong Motion by Jonathan Franzen is largely set in Somerville (also in Cambridge, Ipswich, and Peabody). He goes to a lot of trouble to provide true recognizable locations for his fictional scenes.

Julie and Romeo by Jeanne Ray is a romance between members of two feuding florist families in Somerville. I believe she's written a sequel, but I haven't read it.

Swimming In It by Patricia Wild is about a homeless abuse victim living in a Somerville shelter.

Elaine Ford, a former Somerville librarian, wrote at least two novels set in the city, Ivory Bright and Missed Connections.

[reverend-jim.livejournal.com]

If you liked "Legends of Winter Hill," you'll probably enjoy "The Cops Are Robbers," by Gerald Clemente, a former MDC police captain who knocked over a bank in Medford. As long as you don't mind his ridiculously self-serving narrative, there's tons of local color and wild stories in there.

[enochs-fable.livejournal.com]

Excellent. Clemente and the Medford heist comes up towards the end of the book.

[ron_newman]

where does Redbones enter into this story?

[enochs-fable.livejournal.com]

It's one of the places some of the cops in the book go to grab a bite and talk.

[tt02144.livejournal.com]

'Black Mass' touches on Somerville mob history. It's mostly about Whitey Bulger and Jack Connolly and their relationship, however since Whitey Bulger began his career on Marshall Street as part of the Winter Hill Gang, there are some Somerville references. There's a book being written now about the Winter Hill Gang, by someone who's almost connected!