
The Year of Dangerous Days
Riots, Refugees, and Cocaine in Miami 1980
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
3 months free
Buy for $19.49
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Pete Simonelli
-
By:
-
Nicholas Griffin
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 23 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.
©2020 Nicholas Griffin. All rights reserved. (P)2020 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...




















People who viewed this also viewed...


















interesting about the riots and the cocaine
Very Interesting
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Fabulous book! It really describes what went on in Miami in the late 70s and 1980s
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Fascinating history
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
May you live in interesting times
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Griffin obviously did careful research as he reports on the confluence of the tense race relations that followed an incident of police brutality (that could have been June, 2020), the Mariel boatlift with the influx of tens of thousands of Cubans into a city little prepared to care for them, and the cocaine drug trade.
Particularly poignant are the descriptions of the Marielitos’ passage and entry into Miami. Overall a very fair examination of deeply divisive issues--especially the Black race riots and their causes.
Pete Simonelli narrates in a voice both familiar and competent. A great listen.
Forty Years Ago or Yesterday?
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A Must Read for Floridians as well as transplants
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The most gripping and direct book on Miami
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Outstanding! reads like a thriller.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Miami native
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Definitely recommend!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.