Mob

by Listen & Live Audio (Creator), Fredric Dannen (Contributor), Joey (Contributor)

The Mafia. La Cosa Nostra. The underground, and often not-so-underground, organization and syndicate of criminal activity that has been a part of American history for the past century. Hear the true stories of the inner workings of this chaotic, violent, and surprisingly human world -- a world of respect, tradition, and honor.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, True Crime, Crime

ebook

First published September 9, 2001

Reviews

[Stephanie Coady · Rating 3 out of 5]

Topic is one of my favorites, but book itself wasn't too enlightening. Mediocre.

[LeAnne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Collection of mostly non-fiction pieces about violence in organized crime. The most interesting to me was the last which described anthropologically the culture of mafiosa-controlled Sycillian villages. The cultural values were so contrary to Christianity that they sounded like something in a missionary talk about cannibals in PNG. One thing I learned was that "wise guy" doesn't always mean smartalec, but may mean a member of the mafia. The whole book described such a miserable lifestyle that it was hard to imagine anyone choosing it. Could be valuable for anyone writing fiction involving that world. (Impossible to write effective 16th c dialog while listening to an audiobook using low-life NY accents.

[Genevieve · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an audiobook, it was somewhat interesting to listen to various excerpts from other books about organised crime. However, this book is really only an appetiser, and the rest of the meal is completely missing. The book might serve as a decent introduction to the subject, but that is about it. 3/5

[Briana · Rating 2 out of 5]

inserting but a bit to dull of writing for me.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. A bunch of short stories about lower level associates. If you are looking for something about the bosses this is not your book.

[Shannon Scudella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick little bites to grab your attention then it would end. Makes me want to read all the original books, good but not long enough

[Zak Henry · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s alright. Some interesting parts but it tends to jump around too much to give any in-depth information on a particular family or region.

[Michael Linton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a compilation of various books about the Mafia including a few fiction books which I just skipped (it was the Godfather, Casino and a fake transcript based on actual dialogue). It's a good book to give you an introduction to various figures in the Mob world in New York City, notably Gotti.

[Peter Antonucci · Rating 3 out of 5]

Inconsistent. It contained very little new or original text. Most of the book consisted of stories lifted from other books. That is not to say that it was not interesting. Parts of it were truly fascinating – but parts of it were very pedestrian.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book if you love the gangsta world and learning about it. Some chapters were awesome. A few boring.