Report from Engine Co. 82: The American Firefighting Classic

"This could be the night" reads the sign above the [South Bronx] firehouse door. And, indeed, with the introspection of a man prepared to face death with every alarm bell, Dennis Smith turns his observant eye upon the lives he unflinchingly places before his own. From his bawdy and brave fellow firefighters, to the hopeful, hateful, beautiful, and beleaguered residents of the poverty-stricken district where he works, this is the compelling human story of the most brutalizing – and most rewarding – profession in the country. Now reissued with a new introduction by the author, "Report from Engine Co. 82" is a tense, violent, poignantly written account from the front lines…where fire illuminates a battered city and heroes are made of ordinary men.