Jew Gangster

by Joe Kubert

Ruby is a handsome young man growing up in a poor Brooklyn Jewish family. When Ruby falls in with a local mobster called Monk, his initial eagerness to make a few dollars to support his saintly, hardworking parents ends up getting him in way over his head in the organised crime world.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Crime, Fiction, Historical Fiction, New York, Comic Book

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Joe Kubert was a Jewish-American comic book artist who went on to found the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art. He is best known for his work on the DC Comics characters Sgt. Rock and Hawkman. His sons, Andy Kubert and Adam Kubert, have themselves become successful comic-book artists.

Kubert's other creations include the comic books Tor, Son of Sinbad, and Viking Prince, and, with writer Robin Moore, the comic strip Tales of the Green Beret.

Kubert was inducted into the Harvey Awards' Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1997, and Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 1998.

Reviews

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was wonderful, most reviews of this don't get it. The line work, composition and the evocative and moody inks bring a realism to the story that you don't get in most crime/bio comics. Everyone knows Italian and Irish mobsters but how many know of the Jewish ones? It's JOE KUBERT people and one of his last works. Joe did more in these slim pages than most do in any of today's 6 issue writing for the trade crap out there. I couldn't disagree more with most of the other reviews. It doesn't get 5 stars as I wish it was longer.

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gritty crime GN by one of the undisputed masters of comics - Joe Kubert. Met him at a comic convention years ago; one of the nicest 'comic legends' I have ever met. Got him to sign a couple things for me. Just a very nice person. Sorry to say that he passed away in 2012 - but left behind a rich legacy that continues on.

[Jeremy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would compare this book to eating a tasteless, poorly prepared bowl of oatmeal and finding a filth-encrusted foreign coin at the bottom.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joe Kubert wrote and illustrated Sgt. Rock for more than three decades. He also did other action comics, and is one of the greats of comics history. Later in his life he started to do more work a la Will Eisner, about Jews, about hardships they faced, with period appropriate realism, evoking in every way the time of the story. This is true of Yossel, about the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, and true of this period crime story, set in the depression. We know about the Mafia, and the Irish mob, but less so about Jewish gangsters, and this is one story, unsurprising in almost every way, cliched, but hey, it's solid and one of the master's final works.

[Nick Kives · Rating 3 out of 5]

Closer to a 2.5

This book is a very quick read about Jewish gangsters in the depression era. About what some people had to do to survive. Interesting, but simple. Not cohesive story, just a number of events, over the span of a few years.

[Sooraya Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

A kid desperate to make money the easy way, chooses a life of crime.
The constant 4-panel per page layout felt comfortable and I loved how the lettering wasn't congested as this type of story tends to be. With a cool twist at the end, Jew Gangster wasn't that bad.

[Daniel Sevitt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bit of an oddity, this one. I picked up a nice, unread hardback cheaply based on the title and author's pedigree. And that's pretty much exactly what the book is trading on. The artwork is crisp and clever, but the story just isn't really there. Respect to Kubert and all that, but meh.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

An immigrants tale, and one well told, it's only crime is in being short and having no sequel.

[Ravenhats · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the story isn't the newest one, it has a really nice classic feel that reminded me of Public Enemy. Much like Public Enemy is a story told through major occurrences, and is without a always clear story arc as it follows the rise (or moral fall) of the rebellious Jewish boy Ruby who defies his father and becomes a criminal learning from the local thug Monk. While not original, the story does have a interesting cinematic quality to it and most importantly has outstanding art. Joe Kubert is definitely an artist to be reckoned with, and this book makes that entirely clear. The artwork within it a stunning black and white setting, with immense detail placed on character design and expression, and with the city scape they live in. I feel that often not enough credit is given to Kubert for just how effective and stunning the art and style of the book is.

[Garrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most of what people refer to as Graphic Novels really aren't; they're Trade Paperbacks. They're collections of previously published comic books which are goddamn handy for people who want a whole story, all at once, without waiting four to eight months for it, and they are - in the long run - cheaper. The biggest difference in these and what Papa Eisner gave us is that TPBs are simply collections of whatever editors or companies decide belong together or is marketable, while a true GN should be a story, complete from start to finish.

This is awesome, and is, in its spare simplicity and blackness (in tone and visuals) evokes Eisner's New York stuff. It's set in Depression-era tenements, life is cheap, and people do what they must to survive. Or what they believe they must. It's a quick, brutal, simple, unflinching read, and it comes off as real. Recommended.

[Jake Forbes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though the book was published in 2005, this slim graphic novel feels like a relic, the comics equivalent of an old Warner Bros. film noir B movie, with all of the earnestness and heavy-handed morality of that era. That's not necessarily a bad thing. The dialog is sharp and the chins are square. There's just not much to take away from this story that a fan of noir and crime stories hasn't seen a hundred times before, aside from the fact that the gangsters are Jewish.

[Emilia P · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know what? I thought this book was just fine. The story was straightforward if not terribly engrossing.. ok.. maybe it was a little bit. I really liked the old comic book style of illustration! Sexy mobster ladies! Dick Tracyesque hitmen! Slightly cariactured but still pathos-filled old Jewish dudes! Man! There wasn't much to this beyond that but there didn't particularly need to be. I enjoyed it, and that seemed it's intention. Thanks J.K.

[zackxdig · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm always all for a little gangster story. It's your typical father wants better for his kids but his son ends up running with a bad crowd. But it's still a good little short read. Makes you wonder what more could come of the story and the aftermath.

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid story of a young Jewish kid growing up in 1930s NYC. It wasn't anything i hadn't read before, but it made me want to read more Kubert.

[Mark Allard-Will · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joe Kubert brings us a tale of the seedy underworld of Depression-era through World War II era New York City, where Mafias, Italian, Irish and Jewish, rose to prominence. Our lens in to this World is our protagonist, albeit an antihero, by the name of Reuben "Ruby" Kaplan; a troubled young teen whom hits a metaphorical fork in the road of his Life, does he keep on the straight-and-narrow? Or does he take the darker path of joining the Jewish Mafia?

In this sense, the Book feels like a coming of age story, one that Kubert pulls off well; despite doing so at the expense of expanding upon the emotional involvement of his characters. For instance, Ruby's Father rides him about making the right choices in Life, but we see no repercussion, no emotional turmoil come of his choice to ditch High School and join the Mob full-time while he still lives with his parents; sure, Ruby runs away from home very shortly after this decision, but some emotional meat-on-the-bones here, so to speak, would really have added some narrative value to the story.

The flow works well, sped-up or missed emotional narrative nuances aside, the pace of the story is almost filmic and works as a solid transition through the three acts. Adding to the solid flow of the story, there are some interesting historical references here; for example, Monk not only appears to be a storytelling reference to WWI era Jewish mobster, Monk Eastman, but actually looks like Monk Eastman in the visual Art style employed by Kubert too.

Another disappointment comes in toward the end of the conflict act, when, after having disappeared from the Book for almost an entire act, Ruby's family suddenly comes back in to play only as an emotional framing device when his Father is on his deathbed; where Ruby rushes to be by his Father's side as he passes, only to be told that he is disgusted with him for his life choices. Guess what? That's right, Reuben's family promptly disappears again, not be seen again until very near the close of the Book; making this transaction between Ruby and his Father a cheap attempt at cashing in on emotional transaction. Fantastically scripted dialogue, a nice peddle in to backstory, but sadly providing little pay-off or value to the narrative.

Thought Bubbles only act to do the job of emotional nuance from facial expressions and actions, something that Kubert's Artwork is certainly talented enough to achieve; but, for some inexplicable reason, Kubert decided to give us an onslaught of Thought Bubbles nonetheless. Ruby's actions told us how much of a young upstart he was, how dismissive of his Father he was, we ultimately didn't need the exposition of thought to come along and reiterate it for us; and this is why Thought Bubbles are the bane of the Comic Book world.

The Artwork, however, is flawless; it bridges a gap between Comic Strip and Movie, giving us filmic perspective and facial nuance at the same time as giving us Comic elements such as cross-hatching, ink wash and pen-style ink lines.

Overall a solid read that suffers some effects of exposition. A solid attempt to bring the realities of Depression-era crime to the public.

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this enough to give it four stars, but that's from rounding up. This was Joe Kubert doing a Will Eisner-style story, and his artwork was better and more convincing than the writing.
The main character starts off the story as a Jewish teenager in a big city during the Depression, and the story revolves around his rise through the levels of criminal endeavor. Kubert was an outstanding artist, and this book has some nice work, but once in a while a side character becomes cartoony, which seemed odd. Ruby's friend with the buck teeth is a good example of this, as he sometimes is drawn seriously, and at other times looks pretty goofy.
The serious parts of the story hold together very well artistically. There are no real surprises, but it's an interesting alternate take on the crime of the period.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I felt that Kubert could've given more page time to Ruby's mother and sister and strengthened the familial bond between them, I enjoyed this book a lot. Superior cartooning (Kubert can do more with three lines than most comic artists can do with their entire careers), no easy morals, and very complex, believable protagonists make Jew Gangster a winner.

Seeing Ruby growing up in the depression forces the reader to understand why he makes the choices that he does, and the mobsters are appropriately foul-tempered and unsympathetic without falling into pastiche. There is a sense of honor among the thieves, although it is a brutal eye-for-an-eye honor.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not usually a reader (or watcher) of gangster/mafia stories, but picked this up because it's by Joe Kubert. It's an atmospheric, brooding noirish and brutal tale of Ruby a young man becoming a hood in 1930s New York. The book is as much a sociological study of an American City during the Great Depression and how one soul sees his way to do better than his father, whatever the cost and how ever many others get hurt if they get in his way. Joe Kubert's storytelling is second to none, even if the pacing (four panels per page) unvaries throughout...

[Mhorg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner by Joe Kubert. For years Joe was my favorite (and still is) Tarzan and Sgt. Rock artist. His every line was beautiful avid when he wrote, there wasn't a wasted word. This graphic novel, about a Jewish kid growing up in the early part of the 20th Century, and becoming a gangster (the Jewish mob was quite strong at the time) is a great, engrossing read.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautifully executed by Joe Kubert, with a great feel for time and place, but unfortunately the story and characters are extremely generic. You know exactly where it's all going right from the start and you've seen this sort of thing many times before. But still, it was an enjoyable meat and potatoes "kid joins the mafia" story to kill about an hour the other day.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes it's nice to read a story and that's what this is. Not part of a larger universe or the first in a series. It's just a story and a good one at that. The art work is fantastic - full of nuance despite being in black and white.

[Roberto Diaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

A master of the craft at job

Joe Kubert tells a tragedy set in the depression era New York in an exceptional way, with classic comic storytelling, that flows so easily is astonishing.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Joe Kubert is a master. The poignant story seems true to life. Mr. Kubert packed much of his upbringing and culture into play.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Jewish teenager living in Brooklyn during the Great Depression is drawn into the gangster life. Kubert's art has a great film noir look.

[Rpeter Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

great drawing

[annalee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the title but I didn’t like the book

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, it's not exactly Scarface but Joe Kubert's artwork is always interesting. I like the surprise ending, it actually enhanced everything which preceeded it.

[Ajesh George · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing new . Very much predictable story line . Should have come in the 60s -70s to excite the readers. Over these years we have seen and heard similar stories multiple times

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book up because of the title. "Jew Gangster" struck me as funny for some reason. Of course, I realized, as soon as I read the summary on the inside jacket that I was not in for a comedy. It's a rather intense book about what happens when you find the only options left to you turn you away from everything you've been taught.

[Wib · Rating 3 out of 5]

Graphic novel set during the great depression about a Jewish teenager who thinks that the only way that he'll be able to get ahead in life is by becoming a gangster. Unfortunately this causes some serious problems for both him and his family.

It's not bad but I was expecting something more after reading other reviews.