400 Things Cops Know - by Adam Plantinga (Paperback)

About the Book

400 Things Cops Knows shows police work on the inside, from the viewpoint of the regular cop on the beat

Book Synopsis

"The new bible for crime writers." --The Wall Street Journal

How does it feel to be in a high-speed car chase? What is it like to shoot someone? What do cops really think about the citizens they serve? Nearly everyone has wondered what it's like to be a police officer, but no civilian really understands what happens on the job. 400 Things Cops Know shows police work on the inside, from the viewpoint of the regular cop on the beat--a profession that can range from rewarding to bizarre to terrifying, all within the course of an eight-hour shift. Written by veteran police sergeant Adam Plantinga, 400 Things Cops Know brings the reader into life the way cops experience it--a life of danger, frustration, occasional triumph, and plenty of grindingly hard routine work.

In a laconic, no-nonsense, dryly humorous style, Plantinga tells what he's learned from 13 years as a patrolman, from the everyday to the exotic--how to know at a glance when a suspect is carrying a weapon or is going to attack, how to kick a door down, how to drive in a car chase without recklessly endangering the public, why you should always carry cigarettes, even if you don't smoke (offering a smoke is the best way to lure a suicide to safety), and what to do if you find a severed limb (don't put it on ice--you need to keep it dry.)

400 Things Cops Know deglamorizes police work, showing the gritty, stressful, sometimes disgusting reality of life on patrol, from the possibility of infection--criminals don't always practice good hygiene--to the physical, psychological, and emotional toll of police work. Plantinga shows what cops experience of death, the legal system, violence, prostitution, drug use, the social causes and consequences of crime, alcoholism, and more. Sometimes heartbreaking and often hilarious, 400 Things Cops Know is an eye-opening revelation of what life on the beat is really all about.

Review Quotes

Gritty, funny, and truthful, "400 Things Cops Know" will surprise you on nearly every page ... and give you a new respect for the cop on the street. --Edward Conlon, bestselling author of "Blue Blood" and "Red on Red"

I've dog-eared every other page of this magnificent, insightful book. Plantinga's frank, dark comic tone provides insight into a world most people only read about or see portrayed, incorrectly, in movies and TV. "400 Things Cops Know" gets it right. --Stephen Jay Schwartz, L.A. Times bestselling author of "Boulevard and Beat"

The author pulls no punches or keeps any secrets. "400 Things Cops Know" delves into topics not normally on most people's minds, but at some point things they may have wondered about ... an intimate look at what really happens in police work. --John M. Wills, New York Journal of Books

A precise, concise, interesting, insightful and a necessary read for police officers, those contemplating police work, as well as those wanting to understand policing in society today. Written by a practitioner with experience and knowledge of policing who has put his observations, interactions and insights into the written word. Once you begin to read this book you continue to want to hear more. Well worth the readers time and money. --Michael G. Krzewinski, Ph.D., retired director of training, Milwaukee Police Department

Funny and rueful ... many fascinating trade secrets here. --Katharine Whittemore, Boston Globe

An extremely engaging read. As a writer I found it very beneficial as a reference and there was a lot of information that I could glean from it in my current works. --Christina Escamilla

The canon of cop lit is broad and deep ... Adam Plantinga's book stands alone ... a nuanced, complex portrait of the life cops lead. -- Bill Mesce, Jr., New Letters

Eye-opening, funny, heartbreaking, and enlightening ... Plantinga walks a fine line between loyalty to the uniform and honesty with the public. --Glenn Dallas, San Francisco Book Review

For writers of crime fiction, this book is a gold mine ... It's by turn fascinating, informative, funny, and heartbreaking, often more than one simultaneously. --Dana King, One Bite at a Time

Essential for crime writers and anyone interested in the reality of police work. --George Pelecanos

Riveting and often humorous ... an unusually frank insider's view. --The San Francisco Chronicle

As well as being an entertaining look at the daily lives of the men in blue, this book is an excellent resource for crime writers. Many of Plantinga's observations are laugh-out-loud funny and others will make readers sit back and wonder about the state of the world. Given the recent focus on the behavior of certain police officers in America, this book provides a savvy insider's look at the other side of the story. --Bev Vincent, Onyx Reviews

The new Bible for crime writers. --The Wall Street Journal

Adam Plantinga's hard-earned, street-wise practical wisdom shines on every page of this book -- as does his unsentimental compassion and desire to make the world a better place. Reading it will help good cops become better, and the rest of us to better appreciate the hard work cops do. This book is wise, but it's also hilarious. --Paul J. Contino, Seaver Professor of Humanities, Pepperdine University

Loaded with insights, criticisms, witticisms, and inside references ... threaded into stories of driving fast, taking down tough guys and righting wrongs, a low-key morality surfaces. Delivered without a heavy hand and mixed with unrelenting honesty about police shortcomings, admiration for the profession is complex, but hard to resist. --Lou Fancher, Contra Costa Times

[Plantinga's] observations about life as a street cop ... are practical and blunt when they aren't funny, heart-rending or chilling. My next manuscript with a police officer as a character will be checked against this book. I highly recommend it. --Warren Bull, Writers Who Kill