Reviews (11)

BEST MAFIA BOOK EVER!
IF YOU ARE A FAN OF MAFIA BOOKS THIS IS THE ONLY BOOK YOU WILL EVER NEED TO GET. JIMMY FRATTIANO IS THE PERFECT EXAMPLE OF A MADE GUY. HE WAS A FEARED HITMAN, A HUSTLER AND HE WAS RESPECTED BY WISEGUYS FROM SEVERAL FAMILIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY. I HAVE READ STACKS OF MAFIA BOOKS THIS STILL BY FAR THE BEST.

Bible of LCN books
This is a book that is saturated with intrigue and even humor. Jimmy the Weasel has seen it all and tells it like he sees it. This book is the beyond a doubt the best mafia book ever written and no movie could ever do it justice. Read it and forever be captivated by it. Skip the bad Gotti books and pick this one up fast! In memory of Aladena "Jimmy the Weasel" Fratianno.

Great Mafia Reading
I borrowed this book from a fellow Mafia-phile and enjoyed it so much I searched out a used copy on the Internet and bought it. "The Last Mafioso" is the biography of Jimmy "the Weasel" Fratianno, a West Coast Mafioso who turned government witness, but it tells a vastly greater story. The L.A. and Vegas underworlds spring to life in this enthralling book; anyone with a passing interest in the Mafia will enjoy it.

The Last Mofioso
I found the book The Last Mofioso very intorsting, it is one of my favorite books. I enjoy reading about Jimmy Fratianno's role in organized crime. I have read a few other books on the subject but none of them gave the detales that The Last Mofioso did. I would recomend this book to anyone that likes history. It is a very easy book to get involved in, which is good because the book is very long, but the best books are the long ones.The characters and settings are extremly well developed. I read this book because a friend recommended it to me. The book gives detales about the Kennedy's associashion with the mofia and several detales on hits the mob made. It also clears up any hits the mob was blamed for but did not do. What intorests me the most is the codes that the diffrent families had towards each other. For example a mans wife and kids were forbiden, no matter what they did you cant go after them. now a days its almost like fair play. The way Jimmy discribed setting up the unions was also very intoresting to me. This book contains some elements that should not be read by childeren. By the end of the book I had a very diffrent view of the mob, they set up alot of things that we have today. This book was great I give it 5 stars. Their is no way someone could read this book and not get a great deal of information and enjoyment out of reading it.

west coast mafia
the last mafioso is jimmy the weasel fratiano.he was one of the highest ranking mafioso to turn against the cosa nostra.this book is a classic among the true mafia books.you could almost feel sorry for him when he is arrested.in this book you also find out what really happened to jimmy hoffa,who where frank sinatras mafia friends,why did a mobster share his mistress with a us presidebt,why was the mob considering to kill desi arnaz,and what was the real cia-mafia plot to kill the communist fidel castro.an in depth look into the old mafia world.one of the best mafia books.period. ... Read more

Book Description

One frosty winter morning, Jennifer Vogel opened the newspaper and read that her father had gone on the run. John Vogel, fifty-two, had been arrested for single-handedly counter-feiting nearly $20 million in U.S. currency -- the fourth-largest sum ever seized by federal agents -- and then released pending trial. Though Jennifer hadn't spoken to her father in more than four years, the police suspected he might turn up at her Minneapolis apartment. She examined the shadows outside her building, thought she spotted him at the grocery store and the bus stop. He had simply vanished.

Framed around the six months her father eluded authorities, Jennifer's memoir documents the police chase -- stakeouts, lie detector tests, even a segment on Unsolved Mysteries -- and vividly chronicles her tumultuous childhood while examining her father's legacy. A lifelong criminal who robbed banks, burned down buildings, scammed investors, and even plotted murder, John Vogel was also a hapless dreamer who wrote a novel, baked lemon meringue pies, and took his ten-year-old daughter to see Rocky in an empty theater on Christmas Eve. When it came time to pass his counterfeit bills, he spent them at Wal-Mart for political reasons.

Culling from memories, photo albums, public documents, and interviews with the handful of people who knew the real John Vogel, Jennifer has created an intensely moving psychological portrait of a charismatic, larger-than-life figure -- a father who loved her and whom, in spite of everything, she loved back. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Shows the Duality of Man
A brilliant book that captures the essence that both good and evil exist in a single person. A criminal and con-artist who is an enemy to victims is a loving father and husband away from that life. It has the same complexity of character that Rikki Lee Travolta used to dissect the actor's life as both nepotistic and self-aggrandizing but counterbalanced with fear and insecurity in his book "My Fractured Life." Jennifer Vogel's dissection of the real man behind the conman is just as moving and equally as poignant. A highly recommended book.

Can't put it down!
Gorgeously written, highly compelling. Jennifer Vogel is a deeply complex woman who understood her deeply complex father in a mystical way. This book is riveting. I read it cover to cover in one sitting. One of the best memoirs I've ever read, right up there with ANGELA'S ASHES and CHANGE ME INTO ZEUS' DAUGHTER.

A Gem
What I thought would be a kind of cute, whimsical tale about a lovable rogue and his gifted but troubled daughter turned out to be the most compelling story I've ever read about the complex and often conflicted relationships between parents and children. The author is an extremely talented writer who is not the least bit afraid of exploring those internal areas that are sometimes better off ignored. I laud her for sharing so much of herself and her family, and only hope that writing this book was as cathartic for her as reading it was for me. It is rare that a book has such a profound effect on me, but this one blew me away.

A Moving, Interesting and Highly Recommended Debut
Jennifer Vogel's dad was not like other dads. Sure he loved Jennifer and her siblings, remembered birthdays, took them fishing and on vacations. But John Vogel was a criminal, a conman and a crook. In FLIM-FLAM MAN Jennifer Vogel shares the story of her complicated relationship with her father --- his life of crime and secrecy, his affection for her and his bloody death at the end of a police chase almost a decade ago.

Estranged from her father for years when he died, Vogel's guilt and sadness fuel this memoir. And so does her love for him and her understanding of his outlaw ways. She tries to get closer to him by examining his childhood (his father was absent and his mother emotionally distant) and his other relationships. Still, this is not a family history in the traditional sense. Vogel gives the reader sketches, impressions of her family more so than details and facts. The result is emotional, fascinating and quite personal.

Vogel's parents divorced when she was a child. Her mother, left to raise three children alone, was the disciplinarian. Her father's mystique grew. The children spent summers with him, driving in his fancy Cadillacs, spending time at his cabin, entertaining guests and having fun. But over the years Vogel pieced together truths about her father. Her mother told her early on that he was delinquent in his child support. To Vogel, his gifts and personality seemed to make up for this somehow. Yet how was she to balance out his other crimes such as arson? And how was she to make sense of the fact that her father had served prison time as a young man for a violent crime? Or what about his justification to rob a corporate retail chain for sociopolitical reasons by creating and passing counterfeit money? Or the armed bank robberies? How could his rap sheet sum up the creative and eccentric man she knew and loved?

It is not just Vogel's father's faults that are laid bare. Jennifer Vogel exposes herself as well. Despite his shortcomings, or perhaps because of them, Vogel felt a propinquity with her father's life of crime; she understood the need to subvert the system and had a distrust of authority. She eventually channels those tendencies in a way her father was never able to, and as she grew up she steered clear of the choices and mistakes her father made.

Moving between childhood scenes and 1995, the year her father was on the run from the FBI and Federal Marshals, Vogel tells the tale of her family with honesty and even humor. At first glance this appears to be a family unlike most, but she proves they share much in common with families across America. FLIM-FLAM MAN is the poignant story of a challenging father-daughter relationship. It is also about the struggle for the American dream: in John Vogel there was a not uncommon sense of alienation coupled with the not uncommon sense of entitlement. Here we read about a man who makes disastrous and dangerous choices his entire life, yet is also a loving and charming father. It is easy to understand why Vogel is so conflicted about him.

This is not exactly a book about forgiveness or recovery or anything quite as simple as that. Jennifer Vogel's short book is emotionally complicated but a joy to read. Both the joy and the complication seems a fitting tribute to the man presented in its pages: a loving and lovable father, and a career criminal. FLIM-FLAM MAN is a moving, interesting and highly recommended debut.

--- Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman

A fascinating story from an intelligent writer.
I just read the book and have to admit that I was very pleasantly surprised. I bought it on a whim and was expecting a romaticized, self-absorbed account of the author's experience. Instead, I found the book to tell an honest, well-balanced account of her life, her father's story, and its implications. It's rare that someone in Jennifer's shoes happens to be a great writer; usually, ghost writers have to write for people who have such a story to tell. That Jennifer is so well equipped to tell her story makes this book a pleasure to read. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Straightforward and Detailed
Although one cannot accuse J.A. Zeigler of being a creative writer, his account of this horrifying family is definitely an interesting one. I live in the town that the Bighams lived in, and practically everyone here has read this book as well as the now out-of-print "A Piece of the Fox's Hide" by Katherine Boling. Who came before Charles Manson? Jim Jones? Jeffrey Dahmer? The Bighams! ... Read more

Book Description

This book offers a close "inside" account of the psyche of Albert Speer, one of the most powerful men in the Third Reich and a close personal associate of Hitler. King, a Nuremberg prosecutor, offers firsthand observations based upon his encounter with Speer as a defendant at Nuremberg, as well as his 35 year relationship with Speer which ended with the latter's death in 1981. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An excellent first-person account of the Nuremberg Trials
Henry King was actually there. As a young man, he volunteered to be a prosecutor at the most important trial ever held.While in Nuremberg, he became fascinated with the one defendant who provoked reluctant admirationdue to his aristocratic bearing and obvious intelligence. This fascinationhas continued throughout King's life. Now nearing 80, King is one of thefew prosecutors still living and coherent. His memories and impressionsoffer an in-depth, close-up view of one of history's most important events.

The clearest assessment available on Albert Speer.
SPEER REVIEW

by

T.S. Peric'

"I knew Albert Speer better than anyAmerican," said Henry King during an interview, at 26-years-old, theyoungest prosecutor at the Nuremberg trialsand the author of "The TwoWorlds of Albert Speer: Reflections of a Nuremberg Prosecutor" (UniversityPress of America). It was not a comment filled with braggadocio. In1946, fallow and a few years out of Yale Law School, King dreamt the dreamsof many young men: accomplish a great deed or participate in a grandundertaking. Hearing about a friend's appointment to the American "team" atNuremberg, King immediately applied for a position. Within a few months, hearrived at Nuremberg in the middle of a rainstorm and soon found himselfcollecting evidence against Erhard Milch, deputy chief of the Luftwaffe(German Air Force), who was charged with participating in Nazi slave laborand human experiment programs. King also interviewed Reichsmarshall andLuftwaffe chief, Hermann Goering and Wilhelm Keitel, the chief of staff ofGermany's military high command. But frozen in King's memory were theinterviews with Speer in a bleak interrogation room. "Speer wasremarkably composed and unshaken; he seemed to possess an inner securityand objectivity that many of the others lacked," King recalls. Hiscomposure was all the more remarkable because of the unique and key role heplayed in the Third Reich. "From 1942 to 1945 not only was he one of themen closest to Hitler, but he was also one who influenced Hitler'sdecisions. At one time in late 1943, Speer was reputed to be Hitler's heirapparent." Speer was unemotional, analytical, almost regal in hisdeportment. And unlike the other 20 defendants, he accepted fullresponsibility for his actions. "The question thathaunted me then andstill does today was why Speer, who appeared so decent and honest, was aclose collaborator of Hitler," King writes. "Why had he served such amonster." Nearly half a century would intervene before King couldoffer any answers. Speer spent the next 20 years locked away in Spandauprison (kept incommunicado except to his attorney and family). After hisrelease, he became a best-selling author with "Inside the Third Reich"(1970) a personal look into the sanctum sanctorum of the Nazi leadershipand "Spandau: The Secret Diaries" (1976) which described his imprisonment. King continued practicing law, including a stint as general counsel to theU.S. Foreign Economic Aid Program, moving to the private sector andeventually settling in as a professor of international law at Case WesternReserve University in Cleveland. In 1966, King reestablished contact withSpeer, but was unable to pursue his goal of a book until his retirementfrom TRW where he served as general counsel of Automotive Operations. King interviewed Speer repeatedly (including Speer's last interview, onemonth before his death in 1981).He consulted the Nuremberg records, hisown notes and the literature on Speer and the Nazis. He also interviewedSpeer's daughter and Traudl Junge, Hitler's secretary, who observed theinteraction between Hitler and Speer. King's book carefully plots theconditions and events in Speer's life that drew the architect toward thesummit of Nazi power. Speer was politically naïve, despite his aristocraticbackground, growing up in a cold, emotionless family, where intellectualprowess was demanded and ambition expected. Introduced to the Nazis atBerlin's Institute of Technology, Speer fell victim - as did millions ofGermans -- to the zeitgeist of Nazi Germany before the war, a time when thepromise of a new Reich seemed to represent an unfettered, glorious future.Speer's ability to organize was quickly recognized, reaching new heights atthe Nuremberg rallies.His Pantheon-like "Cathedral of Lights,"established Speer's chilling brilliance for displaying raw power. Thefinal, crowning jewel, that firmly enthroned Speer to the Nazis fold washis artistic talent which brought him within handshaking distance of AdolphHitler. Now, Hitler, the failed Viennese artist, would live vicariouslythrough Speer's artistic triumphs. The Nazis' world was Albert Speer'sfirst world, according to King. It was among the Nazis that Speer performedwith remarkable thoroughness and unquestioned devotion, rising to theposition of the Third Reich's Architect and Minister of ArmamentProduction.Indeed, if Speer's artistic triumphs contributed to thephysical manifestation of how the Nazi's viewed themselves, his star asArmament Minister shone even brighter. Experts estimate that Speer'scontribution to industrial production lengthened the war by at least twoyears. Despite Speer's success, he began to enter his "second world,"according to King, even before Germany's surrender. Speer was the only topNazi to act in defiance of Hitler-and did so openly. He refused to carryout Hitler's "scorched earth policy" that would destroy the remains ofGerman industry. Speer's second world is "where his horizon broadenedand his values changed," writes King. "The second and succeeding world ofAlbert Speer was the horizontal world of the questioning spirit. This was aworld of ethical and cultural values, a humanistic world . . . " In "The Two Worlds of Albert Speer," King deftly presents how naiveté,seduction and ambition drove Speer to the pinnacle of Nazi power.Heconcludes that Speer was clearly unique among the top Nazis that survivedthe war. Speer accepted responsibility for his actions and offered meaculpas for his sins. During and after his imprisonment, Speer pondered hisactions and began to search for some degree of redemption until the end ofhis life. While supporting the prison sentence Speer received, King ablydemonstrates that Speer was not some cardboard character from the Nazipast. Rather, he was a complex and brilliant individual who confrontedissues of good and evil on a scale that most of us cannot imagine. King succeeded in his search for a great undertaking with his successfulrole in the prosecution of Nazi war criminals at Nuremberg. More than onehalf century later, he succeeds with another marvelous undertaking: thewriting of "The Two Worlds of Albert Speer." ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Excellent account of the noted desperado
This is a fascinating book that I found very hard to put down. Mr. Metz' writing style is very folksy and engaging, yet quite scholarly. He neither presents Hardin as a hero, nor does he pass judgement: the facts speak for themselves.

Now on to the next Leon Metz book! This reviewer will definitely read them all.

Just the facts, M'am
Yes, you get the facts of John Wesley Hardin's life, probably more of them than you wanted to know. What you don't get is any kind of decent prose.

Best biography of Hardin yet.
Having considered myself a sort of amateur historian of Texas figures, I know quite a bit about J.W. Hardin. Leon Metz's biography is the most honest and thoroughly researched one I've come across yet. This along with Metz's engaging writing style made this book a hard one to put down. He doesn't glorify or vilify this Texas gunman, and the reader comes away with a new understanding of the times and tribulations of those who lived on the frontier. I'm a hard sell, and yet I would recommend this book to anyone interested in characters of the American West.

Another Lame Excuse for Writing Texas History
Although always a gentleman, Mr. Metz, seems to have tried to get into the head of Hardin.This comes across as if Hardin is justifing his misdeeds. Frankly, Hardin is not worth of the acclaim and now honors that Texas is doing him. Metz's research was excellent, but I think that this is a misguided effort to simulate interest in the wrong sort of Texas characters ... Read more

Book Description

Paul Castellano headed New York's immensely powerful Gambino crime family for more than ten years.On December 16, 1985, he was gunned down in a spectacular shooting on Manhattan's fashionable East Side.

At the time of his death, Paul Castellano was under indictment.So were most of the major Mafia figures in New York.Why?Because in 1983 the FBI had hidden a microphone in the kitchen of Castellano's Staten Island mansion.The 600 hours of recorndings led to eight criminal trials.And this book.

Agents Joe O'Brien and Andris Kurins planted that mike.They listened to the voices.Now they bring you the most revealing look inside the Mafia ever ... in the Mafia's own words. ... Read more

Reviews (24)

I would rate it 4 1/2 stars butI cannot
This is a really good book for someone who likes mob books. Its basically about the boss John Gotti took over for, Paul Castellano. He thought he was unlike other bosses and wanted to be known as a "white collar" businessman. But he wasn't. Its interesting to read how these 2 FBI agents broke in this guys secured mansion with crazy Dobermans running around and they finally nailed this guy but they would never really get a real chance to put him away. You know what happens if you know his fate but its interesting to read anyway. Also Paul carried on an affair with his young and ugly Columbian maid for some reason in the house with his wife present. He even goes as far as getting a penile implant to make her happy. In any event, its a good read. Paul Castellano did treat his underlings like crap so its no wonder what he got from them in the end. He was very selfish with the guys under him and always demanded more and more from them but they would always get less. Im suprised they all took as long as they did to get him.

what a read
i feel like this is an honest look at a dishonest man that conducted business as a criminal with the intent of appearing as a businessman. a must read for Mafia junkies.

READ THE BOOK--Don't Rely on the Recent Movie
BOSS OF BOSSES is an extraordinarily well-written account of the development of the case against the head of the Gambino crime family, as told by the two former FBI agents who lived the case.
The recent movie version, starring Chazz Palminteri, was well-made and interesting, but the film transformed the book's story into more of a biography of Mob boss Paul Castellano (even inserting some fictional elements). The original book, BOSS OF BOSSES was a much more in-depth, non-fiction telling of the cat-and-mouse investigation by the men who actually did the investigating!
If you want to read the inside story of the investigation--with all its drama and twists and turns--READ THE BOOK!
The original book was not a NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER for 15 weeks for nothing. The book has won many awards and has gone through several editions in hardcover and softcover.

Friends with the FBI
This was a very book and had a lot of different parts than the movie in which it's based on. Like when the FBI bugged Paul's house, they landed on the roof not jumping over the wall. A little too dangerous actually - jumping over a high wall like in the movie. Instead of having an conversation in the back of the agents' car about his business, they had it in the back of Paul's favorite deli, in which they took him too!

Paul was known to be a admirer of the government and their quick mobelization - it doesn't really talk about the death of Paul for good reasons. This is actually a good book and I also listened to it on Audio Tape, but not a lot of agents' and your local Mob Boss are friends - and not that type of 'This is a friend ours' either. Still a good read though

In a word - Excellent!
This is just simply a very, very good book on the mafia. Page after page is interesting as well as entertaining. The chapters are short (generally 5 - 6 pages long) so it makes for a quick read. And of course, the story is just so fascinating. To hear the intimate and un-edited conversations of a real life Godfather and his henchmen is purely amazing. If you like to read books on the mafia, this book is a must. ... Read more

Book Description

On July 19, 2001, following a conviction for perjury, international bestselling author Jeffrey Archer was sentenced to four years in prison. Prisoner FF8282, as Archer is now known, spent the first three weeks in the notorious HMP Belmarsh, a high-security prison in South London, home to murderers, terrorists and some of Britain's most violent criminals.

On the last day of the trial, his mother dies, and the world's press accompany him to the funeral.On returning to prison, he's placed on the lifer's wing, where a cellmate sells his story to the tabloids.Prisoners and guards routinely line up outside his cell to ask for his autograph, to write letters, and to seek advice on their appeals.

For twenty-two days, Archer was locked in a cell with a murderer and a drug baron.He decided to use that time to write an hour-by-hour diary, detailing the worst three weeks of his life.

When A Prison Diary was published in England, it was condemned by the prison authorities, and praised by the critics.
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Reviews (13)

only good for learning about conditions in a British prison
I have read several of Jeffrey Archer's books and, in particular, his short stories which are really good. This book is whiny and has no plot at all. However, it does give a lot of insight into the British prison system. In fact, Archer, being a lord, is not really treated badly at all in comparison to the other prisoners. What is good is that we do learn about their stories, experiences and treatments.

I gave this book 2 stars for the knowledge I gained from it, but it's hard to say that I enjoyed it.

Superbly narrated by Martin Jarvis
Jeffrey Archer was elected to the British House of Commons in 1969 and was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party in 1985. He was elevated to the House of Lords in 1992. On July 19, 2001, Jeffrey archer (an internationally known and best selling author as well) was sentenced to four years in prison for perjury. He became Prisoner FF8282 and spent the first 22 days of his sentence in a high-security British prison. Archer was moved to the Lifer's wing for the security it provided and became a trusted confidant for fellow convicts (his cellmate sold a story about him to the British Tabloids). A Prison Diary is Archer's candid account of his life behind bars. Superbly narrated by Martin Jarvis, this highly recommended New Millennium six-cassette audiobook edition is complete and unabridged with a running time of 8 hours.

Very good and true to life...
...the nick must be better than it was in 1970 ;) Thermos, radio, chocolate biscuits, track suits WOW!

Extremely well written and memorized.

How was Ronnie Biggs? That saddens me!

British Tory in California

Light at the end of the tunnel for Archer...
That's how I would describe this book. Archer, upper middle class, MP, Deputy Chairman of the Tories finally faced the music when he was sentenced for obstruction of justice.

Whether he is guilty or not doesn't really matter as there will always be two sides to the coin. What is interesting however is that Archer, who have had a very comfortable life prior to his sentence was placed into the prison. All of a sudden, a free man to a convict.

The book simply describes his life in the prison. His daily routines and little things that happen each day. Though it may sound boring, it was actually a plesant read.

I often imagined what it was like to be in his shoes and whether I could handle what he was going through.

Do not expect the book to be one of his masterpiece with plots. This is a simple book about a man who enjoyed all the best in life and suddenly having all that taken away from him.

He was able to bring to the reader a sense of humour, saddness and curiosity to life in prison. Prior to reading the book, I thought criminals deserve their time... after the book, I wonder whether society has done all it can to accomodate these people.

Whether he is guilty or not I do not know... what I would love to see is that Archer can use this unique experience in helping others who are in need...

Not an Archer fan... but I've just purchased First Among Equals.

Interesting...and oh-so British
This is a very interesting book, but labeling it a diary implies more emotional depth and intimacy than it actually has. Archer focuses primarily on other prisoners instead of giving us the full depth of his personal feelings. There really is truth to that old cliche about the British having stiff upper lips! ... Read more

Book Description

Drawing on his experience in creating fictional bad guys, crime novelist Lawrence Block surveys the underside of American history through fifty of its most infamous characters. Some, like Jesse James, Bonnie Parker, and Joe Colombo, led a life of crime; others, like John Wilkes Booth and John White Webster, committed one notorious act. Some, like Pretty Boy Floyd or the elusive thief Railroad Bill, have become folk heroes, whether or not the real details of their lives matched the myths they inspired. Others, like Ed Gein and Ted Bundy, will be forever reviled.Block introduces each biography with a writer's eye for character and a good story. He begins the book with a short essay that considers how Americans have defined and regarded villains through history. The biographies, culled from the pages of the American National Biography and illustrated with archival photographs, describe each villain's background, exploits, and eventual fate--often with unexpected details. The convicted killer Nathan Leopold, for example, became the administrator of a leprosy hospital after his parole. The gangster Dutch Schultz was known not only for his bootlegging expertise but also for his cheap, ill-fitting clothes. The stagecoach bandit Black Bart fancied himself a poet (or, as he put it, "PO8"). And when outlaw Bill Doolin finally met his end, only a rusting buggy axle marked his grave.Ideal for readers of true crime, crime fiction, and history, Gangsters, Swindlers, Killers, and Thieves brings a fresh perspective to American's fascination with crime and its perpetrators. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Honesty can pay
An excellent book,how one small time man can bring down a large powerfull organisation,very well detailed, leaving you in no doubt as to the strugle that the plumber and his family had to go through, the court transcripts at the end are and added bonus that i enjoyed very much ... Read more

Book Description

Wyatt Earp, Billy the Kid, Doc Holliday-such are the legendary names that spring to mind when we think of the western gunfighter. But in the American West of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, thousands of grassroots gunfighters straddled both sides of the law without hesitation. Deadly Dozen tells the story of twelve infamous gunfighters, feared in their own times but almost forgotten today. Now, noted historian Robert K. DeArment has compiled the stories of these obscure men. DeArment, a life-long student of law and lawlessness in the West, has combed court records, frontier newspapers, and other references to craft twelve complete biographical portraits. The combined stories of Deadly Dozen offer an intensive look into the lives of imposing figures who in their own ways shaped the legendary Old West. More than a collective biography of dangerous gunfighters, Deadly Dozen also functions as a social history of the gunfighter culture of the post-Civil War frontier West. As Walter Noble Burns did for Billy the Kid in 1926 and Stuart N. Lake for Wyatt Earp in 1931, DeArment-himself a talented writer- brings these figures from the Old West to life. John Bull, Pat Desmond, Mart Duggan, Milt Yarberry, Dan Tucker, George Goodell, Bill Standifer, Charley Perry, Barney Riggs, Dan Bogan, Dave Kemp, and Jeff Kidder are the twelve dangerous men that Robert K. DeArment studies in Deadly Dozen: Twelve Forgotten Gunfighters of the Old West. ... Read more

Book Description

Former Texas prison chaplain Rev. Carroll Pickett, working with two time Edgar Award-winner and New York Times best selling author Carlton Stowers, provides this eloquent, unflinching look at capital punishment.

Within These Walls is the powerful memoir of Rev. Pickett, who spent fifteen years as the death house chaplain at "The Walls," the Huntsville unit of the Texas prison system.In that capacity Rev. Pickett ministered to 95 men before they were put to death by lethal injection. They came with sinister nicknames like "The Candy Man" and "The Good Samaritan Killer," some contrite, some angry-a few who might even have been innocent.All of them found in Rev. Pickett their last chance for an unbiased confessor who would look at them only as fellow humans, not simply as the convicted criminals the rest of society had already dismissed them as.This first-hand experience gave Rev. Pickett the unique insight needed to write an impassioned statement on the realities of capital punishment in America.The result is a thought-provoking and compelling book that takes the reader inside the criminal mind, inside the execution chamber, and inside the heart of a remarkable man who shares his thoughts and observations not only about capital punishment, but about the dark world of prison society.
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Reviews (7)

You'll love it or hate it
No one escapes this book without being confronted with the tragic realities of the death penalty. Rev. Pickett does not fluff this story with hype but tells it as he lived it. This is not just a testament about the death penalty but is also about the meaning of life, death, family systems, ministry, and, in the end of the book, loving one's enemies. You can argue that Pickett is wrong about the death penalty perhaps but you cannot argue with the fact that he did his job with integrity and love. You'll love it or hate it but will not escape the power of Carroll Pickett's experience.

Very thought-provoking
If you had asked me 6 months ago how I felt about the death penalty, I would have said I was in favor of it. I still believe there are crimes which are so heinous that the death penalty should be used. However, I am troubled that there seems to be no uniform criteria which dictate when it is used. Also, I think we need to ask ourselves whether taking a life, to avenge a life, is truly the answer. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has ever been troubled with how violent crime is punished in America today.

The real cost of the death penalty
Carroll Pickett once supported the death penalty, and this book details a gradual transformation. Within These Walls gives readers a vivid look at the real cost of the death penalty; the impact it has on the people who must carry out society's ultimate punishment.

Anyone who wants a more accurate picture of the reality of capital punishment will benefit from this moving account.

Dead Book Walking
How can a chaplin make money off of the trouble lives of prisoners on death row? Shame on the author and shame on the publisher. The story is really not that good anyway, but the premise of the book is even worse!

Goolish Fare
When I purchased this book I expected truth in advertising. What I got was a goolish account of death row. The book is depressing and dark and I was feeling that way while reading it. I could not finish the entire book. I guess I should buy books that speak about life in a positive way, instead of those that have no life in them. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

Amazing
I have seen the movie and i think it's great but reading the book was totally different. In the book you get to see the two sides of the notorious Martin Cahill. Some people thought he was the modern robbinhood, and others a dangerous criminal. Paul Williams brilliantly gives you the inside story in it's true form, excellent book. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Book does not flow
This book is a great introduction, but nothing more. The book has no continuous flow to it. It is not well written, but does contain some useful information into the power that Luciano held

A fairly good book
This book does provide the reader with a basic insight of Lucianos life.It has been well written but the facts seem to be a bit out of place.A few incidents seem to be exagerated by the author and the reader gets the feeling that its not a book but more like a story from the news paper. A good book for a reader who wants to have basic knowledge of Lucianos life but the book i would recommend for the true followers of Organized crime is the Luciano Testament. ... Read more

Book Description

For more than 70 years, Al Capone has been equated with wealth, violence, and corruption. As America's most infamous criminal, he has intrigued, attracted, and repulsed the general public with his legendary criminal deeds. This concise biography separates the myth from the man. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

The Real Capone: Separating Fact from Fiction
Scholar and expert on Italian American History and American crime, Luciano Iorizzo has provided for the reader a concise, accurate biography of the notorious Al Capone in the context of social, economic, and political developments of his time. The author delineates the factual history of an Italian American anti-hero (folk hero?). Born in Brooklyn in 1899 to Italian immigrant parents, Capone seized his opportunities in his rapid rise to power. Author Iorizzo weaves the life of Capone into an analysis of such terms as ethnicity, diversity, and organized crime, concepts that have captured the imagination of modern America. The real Capone is revealed as underdog, criminal, and family man who was generous as he was violent. If the reader wishes to become acqainted with the career of the real Capone, he/she should begin here. Outstanding features of the book that greatly enhance the volume's relevance are a timeline of Capone's life, a glossary of names and events, a bibliography, a list of motion picutres and videos, and websites that include a wealthy of information on Capone.

A Comprehensive Survey--Welcome to Capone
I wish I had read this before the first Capone book I bought. It makes his complicated career manageable and organized and really whets the appetite for the drill down details which you get in the super long tomes. The publisher states that its intended use is for a high school textbook on the subject ( I wish I had textbooks like this when I was in high school) and that makes it appealing and unusual. It is as objective a book you will find, covering the social elements of the time (and putting a lot of things in perspective, very helpful for a cynic like me) plus it is also a fun read. It is hard to find a fun read that does not have that "groupie"- breathless-sick admiration (which I am guilty of)tone often occurring in many mafia books. And this one does not. (I've read about 30 now). Will not disappoint. A great gift.

Fair Introduction
This book is written for high school students and works well enough in that department. Actually, it's pretty good and contains some fine sociological insights on early 20th Century urban life, Italian-American immigrants, and popular conceptions and misconceptions about the Mafia and organized crime, along with a fair, if common, selection of photos. Slim book, and nothing really new here. It's largely compiled from past Capone biographies. Includes some of the errors from Bergreen's work but doesn't hesitate to question him from time to time. It's still a nice introduction to Al for young aspiring gangsters. ... Read more

Book Description

Written by a top investigative reporter who coverd Luciano's trail from begining to end. This book is a detailed account of Luciano's intriguing life. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A Noted Secondary Source
Powell's documentation is basically correct based on the bare facts of the story found in New York City tabloid newspapers and in archived files. As such, it is a rare secondary source into the lives and legends of the prostitutes, bookers and madams who formed the web of prostitution used at Prosecutor Thomas Dewey's behest to convict the elusive Charlie Lucky. Originally written in the 1930s, Powell's prose reveals the language of old-style morality which was required in the days of censorship. As such, it is a time-capsule of the social mores governing prostitution. While crime historians focus on Lucky's later years, this jewel preserves the trial data that forced Luciano from the shadows.

Bad book by a biased sycophant of the author
This has to be the worst 'Biog' ever.I defy anyone to find enough mentions of Luciano's name to warrant the Title of this book.The main charactor is DEWEY who was so ambitious to become Govenor that he used any means to nail Luciano ,later he tried and failed for President.Even at the time ,the trial was regarded as a farce.being trial by association.Luciano was a bad man who deserved putting away -this was a shabby way to do it.
As a book There are no details of his early life ,his bonding with the none Sicilian gangsters which at the time was considered to be a very daring thing to do.especialy Lansky and Seigal for which he was much critised by the other mobsters I agree with your previous critic there is nothing to learn from this nook ,which frankly I expected was would be a recent study.itis just a publicity spin for Dewey with whole chapters appearing to say nothing about the Title name
A complete waste of money and the time of anybody reading it
PRINCE RAFAEL
(London )

Caution! Public Domain Reprint!
I had hoped to find new, up to date information of Salvadore Lucania (a.k.a. "Lucky Charle", Lucky Luciano, etc.). Sadly, what I got was a reprint of a somewhat lurid "crime reporter's" account of Lucania's trial for prostitution in the 1930s. If that is what you are looking for, this is a good read. However, the only new information herein is a brief introduction and a more brief afterword. The more interesting stories of his role in the WWII invasion of Sicily and his return to Cuba in the 1950s are sadly not given the coverage they deserve. AUTHORS TIP: here is a story worthy of coverage: what happened after he was deported and perhaps what happened to his children. ... Read more

Book Description

This never-before-told story exposes one of the world's most reviled terrorists, Dawood Ibrahim. Several writers, including the late Daniel Pearl, have attempted to write about this mysterious criminal, but they have routinely disappeared. Now, the secrets of Ibrahim's life are finally revealed-from his wild all-night parties with prostitutes and top-shelf liquor, to his Islamic extremism, to his violent and deadly activities-resulting in a true crime account that will both shock and terrify. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A Report With Umpteen Gramatical & Factual Mistakes
Yes it is true. This book is nothing but a collection of various stories which I read on the net, magazines and heard on the news. The only new part is the Osama & Ibrahim connection.

Being a journalist myself, I find this book a shocker.
Spelling mistakes are galore (Confidante is spelt confident, Hit is spelt Him etc.) which even a Grade 5 student will pick up. Facts have not been researched into at all and they just pile up according to King's whims and fancy.

As a journalist, I have done a lot of research in this field, not for publishing but just as part of my curiousity, and Gilbert King is lacking in every aspect.

Factual mistakes:
1. Babri masjid is claimed to be in Bombay (It is in Ayodhya)
2. Sharad Shetty clamied to be shot in his office (He was shot in India Club, Dubai, UAE)
3. Rohit Verma claimed to be informer and a.k.a Michael. (In fact Michael D'Souza was a different person all together). Jagdish Shetty(India) was the informer not Verma. Why would Verma call the assassins and have himself killed ???? Hello Gilbert King ???Verma was Rajan's closest friends who did his dirty job. Sarita was not Verma's wife but his mistress.

There is absolutey nothing about Dawood's early Bombay days. Just a para about the Pathan gang. In fact his early days are more interesting than everything else. His split from the Pathan Gang was the major move in his life. And how from 1983-1987 he eliminated each and every rival by sitting in Dubai.

This book needs a lot to be desired. I give it One star for the nice cover and the other star because it did induce me to buy it !!!!!

Spare yourself the change, more accurate info with photos can be had on the net for free. There are no photos as well in this book!

Timely and disturbing book. Pakistan won't like it.
Perhaps now western media will begin to understand the power and influence of Dawood Ibrahim. Pakistan gladly hosts this dangerous terrorist and he pays off the Pakistani government with billions reaped from opium and other illegal businesses. Most Dangerous Man in the World presents an accurate and horrifying picture of the man who has the power to corrupt governments, advance his terrorist agenda and make himself and his D Company bhais rich.

As the author points out, it is probably just a matter of time until the world learns the name of Dawood Ibrahim. This book also paints a disturbing picture of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence and its involvement with Dawood. Pakistan will not like this book because there is a great deal to answer to. I highly recommend anyone interested in current events, especially concerning terrorism to read this paperback. It is timely and up to date and a solid investigation into the inner workings of a true global terrorist.

good subject but little new information
Great subject, there is very little about a man who influences the lives of so many people.

However, I found little or no new information about Dawood Ibrahim, that is already not published in any other source. It is a summary of most published material.

The book is also quite repetitious and repeates the same information quite a few times. I wish there was more information about his empire and about his rise to power. I guess the reason cited in the book about journalists being afraid to write about Dawood hold true here.

Anyway a good attempt. I hope somebody builds further on it and comes out with more voluminous book. ... Read more