In Madison Smartt Bell's novels, character development is generally stronger than plot development. The Washington Square Ensemble is certainly no exception, as multiple, widely divergent voices are blended into a single narrative of the formation and dissolution of this group of small-time "Pharmaceuticals salesmen" (i.e., drug dealers). Like a musical ensemble, their story consists of four major motifs developed through a series of movements in two major parts. The novel also resembles a theatrical ensemble in which the focus is upon the group rather than the individual actors — the five major characters and two minor ones who constitute the cast. Existing on the fringes of organized crime, this group operates on the principle that a small operation allows the participants anonymity and reduces the chance that either major criminals or the police will consider them worth harassing.

The manager of this drug-selling operation is a charismatic...