The Mafia: The Complete Story

by Al Cimino

Italy’s most notorious export is the Mafia. As Sicilian immigrants arrived on Ellis Island, they brought their bad seeds with them, gangsters who would stop at nothing in pursuit of money. Soon they were rewriting the history of America in blood. The deeds of ruthless hoods and criminal masterminds such as Al Capone, Totò Riina, and John Gotti have since become legend. The Mafia gives you the inside track on the personalities, the brutal exploits, and the fascinating culture of the world’s most powerful criminal organization.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, History, Crime

464 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2015

Reviews

[Joshua Ramirez]

Solid lil' history, but not very well written or organized.

[Sydney Boncoddo]

Really interesting material. But no through-line narrative, so things felt disorganized. Things that should have tied together well did not.

[Tami Baker]

The book is packed with information, and it is obvious that the authors did their research. I was disappointed in the way the book jumped around, though. I understand the tangled web of connections with these characters, but I believe there could have been an easier way to divide the content...perhaps by year, or family or something like that to make it easier to understand the timeline and the connections. As a descendant of Vito Genovese, I am always interested to learn more about his history and involvement with the mafia. The graphics and a few photos throughout the book were a wonderful addition.

[Giuseppe Milazzo]

Really interesting book and great use of real photography gives a sense of what times were like during various eras of the mafia

At times it would be a bit wordy and confusing, but on the whole it was pretty interesting

[John Sexton]

Very interesting information. I was able to get some interesting facts I can use in my Criminology class on organized crime.