I, Mobster

by Anonymous

These are the personal revelations of a New York East Side punk who killed his way up to become Mr. Big in America's Cartel of Crime.

Genres: Crime

160 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1958

About the author

Books can be attributed to "Anonymous" for several reasons:

* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author

Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.

See also: Anonymous

Reviews

[Joelendil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mafia tropes, historical references, and self-justification abound in this fictional memoir. It’s all pretty straightforward; no high action or dramatic plot twists, just a matter-of-fact description of the rise and fall of a New York City mafioso in the 1930’s-40’s. Our protagonist/narrator, Tony (what other name would you give a fictional Italian mobster?), interacts with real-life mobsters like Charles “Lucky” Luciano and Louis “Lepke” Buchalter during the events leading up to and following the formation of “The Commission” and Thomas E. Dewey’s time as prosecutor and DA of NYC.

Throughout the book we are treated to Tony’s view of the absolute corruption of “law and order,” justification for his own actions (and the existence of the mafia), pride in his cleverness and accomplishments, and feelings of being trapped and forced into this life. It reminded me of a much less literary version of Robert Graves’ I, Claudius and Claudius the God (just with the mob instead of the Roman Empire). It’s worth a read if you’re into crime/noir.

[Lawrence FitzGerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read. A lot about how the mob works. Surprisingly realistic.

[Aliza Prodaniuk · Rating 3 out of 5]

TBH I was disappointed that is wasn’t dirtier.

[Kevin Braswell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was so enjoyably terrible, all the stereotypes abound!