Review: Working the Hard Side of the Street
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 07 6, 2012
Usually people think of Hollywood as sleek and glamorous.  Kirk Alex's Working the Hard Side of the Street - L.A. Cab Stories, Vol. 1 reveals the not so glamorous side of Hollywood that the average person rarely hears about or sees in person.  This book is a compilation of eight short stories all told by a taxi driver, named Cash Register.  He is a lonely, yet caring guy who is looking to connect with someone after a devastating break-up.  These quick stories are snapshots of some of the hard living citizens of Los Angeles.  As he drives around town picking up fares, Cash gets glimpses into the lives of passengers, some who have been broken and bruised by life's circumstances and others who are searching for their big break.Reading Working the Hard Side of the Street is like being a "fly on the wall" in the back seat of a cab.  Kirk Alex did a wonderful job of voicing the character, Cash.  He feels honest and familiar, like a friend who has a story to tell.  The heartfelt realities of the stories were so relatable that, at times, I had to remind myself these stories were fiction.While I know Kirk Alex needed to establish that Cash Register was in a dark place, at times, I did feel the stories got a little bogged down by the dark feelings that linger from Cash's bad break up.  Once I knew the depth of his depression, I wanted to know more about his current situation with each passenger, not to revisit the reasons he was in such a dark place.  Despite this, readers will enjoy Working the Hard Side of the Street and find it to be a quick and revealing view into the true and not so shiny side of Tinseltown.  I am looking forward to reading more about where life takes Cash in Volume 2.