And All The Saints

by Michael Walsh

A fictionalized memoir of Owen "Owney" Madden, one of the most colorful and influential Irish mobsters of the twentieth century, recalls his rise from leader of a violent Irish street gang in Hell's Kitchen to the leading bootlegger in Prohibition New York, lover of Mae West, proprietor of the notorious Cotton Club, and owner of five world heavyweight champions. 30,000 first printing.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Irish Literature, True Crime, Crime

352 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2003

About the author

Michael Walsh was for 16 years the classical music critic for Time Magazine and has also worked for the San Francisco Examiner and the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. He is the author of eleven books, including five works of non-fiction as well as the novels Exchange Alley, As Time Goes By (the authorized sequel to the movie Casablanca), and And All the Saints, a winner of the 2004 American Book Awards for fiction. His novel, Hostile Intent, was published in September by Pinnacle Books and hit the New York Times bestseller lists and shot to No. 1 on Kindle. The sequel, Early Warning, was published in Sept., 2010. With Gail Parent, he is the co-writer of the hit Disney Channel 2002 Original Movie, Cadet Kelly, at the time the highest-rated show in the history of the network.

Reviews

[Michael]

A great book. New York historical fiction. About Owney Madden. Crime boss. An Irish "Scarface," but he was real. Excellent descriptions of the city's culture of graft. The heyday and last days of Tammany Hall. Rise of the Italian mob. Funny, among other things Madden was a nightclub owner. Started the Cotton Club.

[Catherine Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you love "old New York" and neighborhood mobs, this is a book for you!

[Eddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Owney Madden, Mr. Real life, bad-ass, Irishman, gangster w intelligence— oh how I loved you in this book! Thank you for the ride in gangland back in the early 1900's that you took me on.

[Bea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very long book with lots of detail about the life and friends and associates of Owen Madden, a gangster who came to prominence in New York in the late 20s and 30s. There were so many fellow gangsters, who all had nicknames, that I had a hard time keeping them straight. Other than that, it was great if you want to know how mobsters worked and rationalized their deeds. It is fiction, but the research was fantastic. Lots of prominent people are mentioned. It was written in first person, and I had a hard time remembering that it is fiction, since the author did a good job of telling the story through the eyes of a self important, know it all with no conscience. The slang was so good I didn't understand some of it, but lots I did and found it humorous.

[Kerry Gavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great narrative. Vividly brings the violent criminal life of the 30's to life, through the eyes of someone who's living that life.

[John Findlay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an historical fiction novel, written as if it's an autobiography of Owney Madden, the leader of Irish gangs in New York City in the 1920s and 30s. Walsh uses the slang and lingo of the time period, which makes it more genuine but also more difficult to follow at times. Madden is a real historical figure, with whom I was not at all aware. My stereotypical gangster is an Italian Mafioso, but Walsh makes it clear that there were all types of gangs in this period, including Irish, Jewish, Italian, Black, and perhaps others. Madden lived a very colorful and powerful life, being one of the crime chieftains of the city. He was involved in many killings and attempted killings, and was nearly assassinated himself several times. The book makes you wonder why anyone would want this type of life, never knowing who your friends or enemies were. I was also amazed at the women who moved in these same circles, and why they would prefer gangsters to average men. I found the book very interesting and informative, and also easy to read. I thing many people would enjoy it.

[Rex Libris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written as an "autobiography," And all the Saints is the story of the life of Irish gangster Owen Madden. Walsh chronicles not only the life of Madden, but the corruption of the Democratic party as it makes use of the NY gangs, and in turn takes orders from the mobsters as the gangs become more powerful.

[John Petersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Hoodlum's Hoodlum

I found this account of the life and times of New York gangster Owen Madden to sound authentic and fanciful at the same time. Done autobiograhically, this is a terrific read about a hardened yet complex man.

[Fred Mcbreen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually like gangster books but the ‘hero’ was so cold, ruthless and lacking in any redeeming qualities I found it a struggle to get through.

[Gregory Hermes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating, doubt many people know Owney’s story.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.2 Stars
Milton

[Thomas Hunter Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

enjoyable

The beginning is a bit rambling but once pats the halfway mark and the protagonist grows up things get real interesting.

[Frank Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best gangster book that I have ever read. A pure slice of New York City cultural history from the turn of the century to the 1950’s. The most interesting half century of the modern era

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Several years later, this was worth revisiting. The familiar names of gangsters and well-drawn pictures of an old NYC don't overshadow a touching story of sibling tensions and loyalty.

[Margaret Carmel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is Goodfellas: the book. If you love that movie, this will be for you. If you don't, then it's not.

And All the Saints is a historical novel accounting the life of famous New York mobster Owen Madden and his rise to power. It starts with street brawls as a child, his initiation into the gangster lifestyle and his later rise to be one of the most powerful in New York. There are fights, raids on bars, his time starting the Cotton Club and all of his mistreatment of women along the way. It's written in an entertaining voice and full of interesting historical detail, so if this period interests you then you'll likely enjoy this book a lot.

But, for me this falls into the same pit that Goodfellas does. Stories about people's real life often aren't paced in interesting ways and it's hard for me to enjoy stories about mobsters on its face without a ton of interesting other narrative or something that seems to push up against their lack of morality. I know the argument is "well, just because we're telling the story of someone's life doesn't mean we're endorsing the behavior or you have to admire it!" and it is true, but that doesn't mean the story of the people in question is super interesting to me.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Owney Madden was a gangster of the early 20th century. This work of historical fiction has Owney narrating the story of his colorful life. He was not a nice guy. The author uses slang of the day to give an authenticity to this story. Since my family is from NYC and lived there during the Madden era, I found myself wondering if they ever crossed paths. My grandfather was even on the NYPD during this time. No doubt he would have been aware of the Owney the Killer. It was an interesting read.

[Loretta Curran · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love anything about Old NY, especially the ethnic neighborhoods, which have all disappeared and been replaced by yuppie towers (for the new immigrants).
The story of Ownie Madden is so engaging, that I actually wished I had been reading a biography. It was so hard to sort out what may be true or not. A bit of research revealed that some of the events in the novel were exaggerated with regard to Mr Owen's influence. Yet, the descriptions of Hell's Kitchen and LES are fascinating and very informative--good research there!

[Robin H-R Holmes Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Gangster Read...

An excellent gangster novel!! This novelization of the career of Owney Madden is full of New York gangster history. Written in 1st person, complete with "gangster-speak", it locks you in page after page. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Bravo!

[Stephan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Purchased this novel a few months prior from the local library. I would read a bit here and a bit there ever so often. This did not really excite me nor leave me with any new insight.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent portrayal of Irish prohibition era mobster Owen Madden.