The Wolf and the Sheepdog

by John Smith

The Wolf and The Sheepdog is a personal account that graphically depicts the experiences of a police officer working the cold streets in one of Canada's largest cities. Join the author on his journey from a fresh recruit to an experienced street cop as he deals with a vast variety of Policing calls. Feel the emotions that affect the author as he battles through near death situations. Learn the personal dramatic emotions create by dealing with domestic assaults, violence, sexual assault victims and death. The Wolf and The Sheepdog will bring you into a world that the recruiting posters fail to show.

Genres: Nonfiction

398 pages, Paperback

First published March 12, 2008

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Even as a child running through an imaginary world of good guys verses bad guys, Joseph Smith had a dream of becoming a Police Officer. He had a dream of making a difference and putting bad guys away in jail to keep the streets of his city safe.

Over 10 years of policing some of the toughest streets that a metropolis city has to offer, his dreams have changed. The reality of drug fuelled crime, victims forever scarred and the odour of death have forever changed his dreams. Dreams now boarder on nightmares as the author works his way through a dark valley that is rarely graced by the warming touch of light

Reviews

[Nicole]

Book 43/52 for 2021. Geesh....it was a tough read. I'll just leave the CBC article here about the books highly problematic features. I gave 2 stars only because at times I could engage with his stories and the side of him that wasn't brutally violent. Then it would get right back into beating the ever loving shit out of someone that was not armed, or was even fighting back. I picked this up more because it was suggested this book should never see the light of day. I wanted to know for myself just how poorly this reflected on the constable and on the Calgary Police Service and how their members were trained. Lets just say the work on reforming how we approach the community and policing continues.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgar...

Update 2023: The investigation into this former officer was just recently completed. He made some of the details up. It's still inappropriate and changes nothing. Thankfully, he is no longer a member of CPS.

"[The subject officer] exaggerates and embellishes what occurred in these incidents. What is very problematic is that these fabrications occur in passages where [he] glorifies violence against members of the public, violence that if true would very likely have been criminal," the report said. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgar...

[Sarah]

As someone who had the absolute pleasure of knowing the author on and off duty I am delighted to give my $0.02

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the articulation of the authors memories.

The author always struck me as an admirable person. Hilarious and intensely intelligent person.

Always a composed and professional representative of CPS while in uniform.

Genuine, empathetic and light hearted positive demeanour for a front line worker having experienced and seen things I cannot even fathom.

Great sense of humour and an undeniable regimented and self disciplined individual.

Talented artistically and intellectually in street clothes the author is someone who I remember fondly. Assuredly has no clue how much he impressed me.

Definitely not a badge on a power trip.

Fondly remembered and respected by me.

[Penny]

The author is a lunatic. I could only read 100 pages of him reverently detailing the police brutality he inflicted during his career. It looks like the book was published in 2008, and it did not age well.