Thanks for the answers. It happened that the man I had contact with, is selling his whole maffia book collection. He only had this 5 on the internet. But now I've got his whole list and there are some nice books on it.

I'm thinking about buying 10-15 books in one time...:P

Just read TOUGH GUY:THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A MAFIA INSIDER by Louis Ferrante.

It is a good read,the first half re-telling his mis spent youth on the streets,the second telling of his redemption in jail!

My only problem,as with all these books,is how much of it is actually true?

Just ordered..

Capone: The Life and Times of Al Capone
by John Kobler (Author)


Havn't seen any reviews on this book but thought i'd give it a try..

You should! Capone was one of the very few gangsters to have competent biographers. Kobler's bio is the best. It's not as up to date as Laurence Bergreen's later version, but it's better written and goes into a lot of background on organized crime and Italian immigration. Highly recommended.

Finally read GASPIPE by Philip Carlo.

Not impressed in the slightest. Full of over grand statements and hackneyed old rubbish about him being a lover of animals and his dear old mother despite him beind a homicidal,murdering maniac! Also about him hating rats and never considering himself a rat,even though he was a rat?

And the daftest thing in it? When Carlo tries to get into the Sicilian psyche he talks about the night of the Sicilian Vespers when the islanders rose up against the French invaders,back in the 1200's. According to Carlo this uprising echoed around the world "from Saudi Arabia to Norway"!!!!!!!

How did this info echo back in the medieval world? Internet,phones,carrier pigeon???

Ridiculous stuff,from start to finish!

That was one of the most poorly written mob bios I've ever read, Yogi. And that's saying something. That it was written by a life long friend of Casso's is hardly a surprise. A horrible book about a horrible person.

I was impressed by Phil Carlos "Iceman"

I wont be reading Gaspipe in a hurry..

If anything, Yogi, that's an understatement. What crap! Compare with "King of the Godfathers," Anthony M. DeStefano's outstanding bio of Joe Massino.

"King of the Godfathers," is a excellent book

Have just brought

The First Family: Terror, Extortion and the Birth of the American Mafia




Before Al Capone and Lucky Luciano, there was the one-fingered, cunning Giuseppe Morello and his murderous coterie of brothers. Had it not been for Morello, the world may never have heard of 'men of honour', the code of omerta or Mafia wars. This explosive book tells the story of the first family of New York, and how this extended close-knit clan of racketeers and murderers left the backwaters of Sicily to successfully establish themselves as the founding godfathers of the New World. First Family will explain in thrilling, characterful detail how the American Mafia established itself so successfully. Combining strong narrative and raw violence - set against the raucous bustle of early twentieth-century New York, and the impoverished rural life of nineteenth-century Sicily - this impeccably researched, groundbreaking study of a crucial period of American history is a compelling portrait of the early years of organised crime.

I have seen this as well DN. Looks good. It is on my list

There's a brand new one about the Gallo Brothers. It's title is THE MAD ONES, by Tom Folsom. I read it over the weekend and was very impressed that the author could breathe new life into such a seemingly dead topic. I think the reason is that he looks at Joe Gallo's artsy side, as well as his gangster side. It's as much about Joe Gallo, the hipster who adopted Greenwich Village, as it is about "Crazy Joe" from President Street. Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Here's a link: http://www.amazon.com/Mad-Ones-Crazy-Revolution-Underworld/dp/1602860815

Thanks for the tip, PB. My library has it on order. I've put myself on the list.

Thanks for the Link PB. Looks like a interesting read..

It most certainly does...

Have you put it on your list as well Yogi...

It's on my Birthday wish list! Can't wait to read it.

If you click on the link and blow up the book's cover, you'll see the garrote mark on Larry Gallo's throat. It was the result of an attempted assassination that exactly paralleled Frankie Pentangeli's attempted assassination in Godfather II, and confirms that the Rosato brothers were modeled on the Gallos.

Which link?

I am interested.

The link above ^^^^^

So I get home from work today and find a package from Amazon on the kitchen table. I'm like "I didn't order anything from Amazon."

I open the box up and lo and behold it's the new book THE MAD ONES!

I find a note inside that says

"To Don Cardi, Happy Birthday from your most valued and trusted friend."


What a thoughtful and generous thing to do! Thank you Consigliere!

Very nice, SC.

You'll read it in less than a day, DC. It's not too long to begin with, and it's written an an unusual style. Kind of rambling and almost hard to follow, but if you're familiar with the story (as I know you are), it's a fast, enjoyable read.

Very gritty. Very New York. The author paints a nice picture of the City in the '60s and early '70s (admirable, considering he was born in '74). It brought me back to my childhood.

Very nice touch SC.

Would you like my address so you could send me stuff?

Sure... I have lots of bills that I'd love to send to you.

I got my copy of "The Mad Ones" yesterday..... looks good from just a quick browse through it.

I also got "The Canary Sang But Couldn't Fly" by Edmund Elmaleh. It's the story of Abe Reles and his "fall" from a hotel window just before he was set to testify against Murder, Inc.

I guess I'll have some reading material for a few rainy days.

I saw the canery book, looks like a interesting read..

Just been browsing in my local Borders this morning and the "True Crime" section seems to have doubled by at least a half

Whilst this is good,it means my "to read" list has also doubled at the same rate and it was already a mile or two long.....

I thumbed through both books at the local Barnes & Noble yesterday. My library has "The Mad Ones" on order. I'm sure you'll be shocked--shocked ;)--that I'm first on the list for that one.

Library doesn't have plans to get the Reles book. SC, I'd be grateful for your opinion on whether or not it's worth buying.

I finally started reading the Mad Ones. So far so good. Just found a couple of inaccuracies, but nothing really major. One being that he refers to a certain part of Brooklyn, East 13th Street and Avenue P, as being in South Brooklyn, which it is not.

The second being that he says that Joe Profaci had his daughter Rosalie married off to the Zerillis family of Detroit.

I believe that Zerilli's son was married to one of the Profaci daughters. But I don't think that it was Rosalie. I thought that she was married to Bill Bonnono.

Yes, Rosalie was married to Bill Bonanno, DC.

Yet another book about the "mob cops." I've already read three books on the subject, so I'm really tempted to pass this one up. Then again, if I see it at the library, I'll probably grab it. This one's written by Tommy Dades, one of the local (Staten Island), honest cops who brought these scumbags down.

Here's a link: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Friends-of-the-Family/Tommy-Dades/e/9780060874261