Thanks to those kind people at Canongate, CRT has a copy of David Simon and Ed Burns book The Corner to give away to one lucky winner. Just enter the on-line competition below.

The Corner: A Year In The Life Of An Inner-City Neighbourhood was originally published in 1997, written by Baltimore Sun reporter David Simon and former Baltimore homicide detective Ed Burns. You'll know them better as the creators of The Wire. Much of the reportage that went into The Wire began its formation with The Corner. It's a devastating portrait of the American drugs war and was the eventual inspiration for an Emmy Award-winning mini-series made by HBO in 2000.

David Simon honours his Baltimore Sun editor John Sterling in coming up with the notion that he could create a reportage out of observing a street corner in Baltimore. Sterling knew that Simon would find an inspiring story in the open-air drug markets of the neighbourhood and eventually Simon and Burns spent three years working with the local community on the Fayette and Monroe streets.

The Corner details a year in the life of an inner city drugs market and Simon and Burns observed and interviewed those that lived on the Fayette and Monroe corner.  The book is non-fiction despite it being wriiten in a novelistic style. It uses real names, real people and covers actual events. The major 'characters' are Gary McCullough, a drug addict, his ex-wife Fran Boyd, also an addict, and their son DeAndre McCullough, a high school student who begins to sell drugs. The book is a searing examination of how drugs, addiction, the trade and the social and political war on them impacts on an urban neighborhood. It's also a deconstruction of the sociological factors which underpin the modern drugs trade. As you read it, the brilliance of the book lies in how deeply sympathetic you become towards all these 'characters'.

The Corner: A Year In The Life Of An Inner-City Neighbourhood - David Simon & Ed Burns (Canongate - Published March 4th 2010 - ISBN: 9781847673183 - Format: Paperback)

Here's a review of The Wire: Truth Be Told

Cathode Ray Tube has a copy of The Corner to give away. This competition is courtesy of Canongate Books.

• This competition is open to residents of the UK only over the age of 15, but not to employees of Canongate Books or their agents.
• Entries must be received by midnight GMT on March 12th, 2010
• This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer and no cash alternative is available.
• No responsibility will be accepted for delayed, mislaid, lost or damaged entries whether due to system error or otherwise.
• Only one entry per visitor per day. No multiple entries allowed.
• The winner will be the first entry drawn at random.
• The winner will be contacted by email.The book will be posted within 5 days of the competition closing (unless delayed by postal strikes).
• The judges' decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
• Entrants are deemed to accept and be bound by these rules and entries that are not in accordance with the rules will be disqualified.
• By entering the free prize draw, entrants agree to be bound by any other requirements set out on this website. Entry is only available online or alternatively via email to frank_c_collins@hotmail.com. No responsibility can be accepted for entries not received, only partially received or delayed for whatever reason. Paper entries are not valid

Question:  Who played DeAndre McCullough in the HBO mini-series adaptation of The Corner?

Answer:
Your Name:
	Postal Address & Email