A few thoughts...

Alright, so I have to agree and say that "Heroes in Hard Times" is a pretty hard book to get through. To me, all is consists of so far is the author pointing out examples of certain situations having to do with social status, race, gender, etc. within the hero/cop topic and then telling what movie it is from. Although the examples presented might mean something, it seems as though it is more important for the author to cite as many as possible instead of really diving in to one specific topic. Maybe it's supposed to be like that... either way, it's taken some real concentration to get through. To me, it seems like the author is rambling and repetitive most of the time.

"Framing Blackness" is a much more interesting read. Instead of simply pulling examples from lots of different movies, I like how the author encompasses ideas behind the movie and how it impacted society. I'll post more when I'm finished, but so far "Framing Blackness" is more informative and interesting to read.