IRB Media Summary of Joseph Wambaugh's The Onion Field

Annotation

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview: #1 The night in the onion field was a Saturday night. Saturday meant impossible traffic in Hollywood, so felony car officers did their best work on side streets off Hollywood and Sunset boulevards. The streets were full of revelers' cars that were clouted or stolen.#2 The smell of tar in the air reminded Ian of a park in the heart of the city, where he had once spent hours by the pits and stare into the tar until he vividly imagined great Pleistocene creatures there.#3 The piper was trying to get the reeds to snap, but they were much harder than the piano. He took a deep breath, moistened the valve, and tried to play. He played Mallorca.#4 The 17-year-old piper was alone in his apartment marching the twelve-foot square, lost in the music. His mother did not allow him to play his pipes in the apartment, but what did it matter. He lived across the street from Hancock Park and the tarpits, perfect for a piper.