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Born to Kill: The Rise and Fall of America's Bloodiest Asian Gang
A profile of Born to Kill, a savage gang of young Vietnam immigrants under the leadership of psychopath David Thai, describes their brazen beginnings, infiltration into America's Asian underworld, and decade-long empire. Reprint.
341 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
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About the author
T.J. English
13 books454 followersT.J. English's latest book is THE LAST KILO. English is an author and journalist with an emphasis on organized crime, the criminal underworld, and the criminal justice system. Many of his books have been New York Times bestsellers, including HAVANA NOCTURNE, THE SAVAGE CITY, PADDY WHACKED, and WHERE THE BODIES WERE BURIED. Four of his books have been nominated for an Edgar Award in the category of Best Fact Crime (BORN TO KILL, HAVANA NOCTURNE, THE SAVAGE CITY, WHERE THE BODIES WERE BURIED). In 2023, his book DANGEROUS RHYTHMS was given a special award by PEN Oakland. A collection of his journalism was published under the title WHITEY'S PAYBACK, an anthology that includes articles originally printed in Playboy, Newsweek, Esquire, The New York Times, and other national publications. He lives in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
November 10, 2025
This was a good mix of crime history lesson and a third-person story. The story was centered on a young man named Tinh Ngo and his flee from post-war Vietnam, difficulty assimilating into American culture, finding refuge among a Vietnamese street gang, and breaking free from the life of crime and violence to start a new life. T.J. English wove the book together successfully to create a narrative full of information, empathy, and giving the reader insight into the world of crime inside the gang Born To Kill, or BTK.
In the 1980s, the gang was founded, organized, and ran by David Thai, a Vietnamese refugee from post-war Vietnam who wound up in New York City's Chinatown. The gang was comprised of young Vietnamese teenagers and kids who were also refugees from the war, runaways from foster homes, and kids looking for a family structure. David Thai offered these kids this extended family Big Brother and Uncle structure common in Vietnamese culture, a sense of ethnic pride living among an all Chinese community, and a sense of power and invincibility. In turn, they turned into a pretty powerful organized crime entity—enough to open investigation and eventual arrest by the NYPD, ATF, and FBI.
In the 1980s, the gang was founded, organized, and ran by David Thai, a Vietnamese refugee from post-war Vietnam who wound up in New York City's Chinatown. The gang was comprised of young Vietnamese teenagers and kids who were also refugees from the war, runaways from foster homes, and kids looking for a family structure. David Thai offered these kids this extended family Big Brother and Uncle structure common in Vietnamese culture, a sense of ethnic pride living among an all Chinese community, and a sense of power and invincibility. In turn, they turned into a pretty powerful organized crime entity—enough to open investigation and eventual arrest by the NYPD, ATF, and FBI.
The BTK's practice of preying entirely on Asians only reinforced the gang's inherent isolation. The Vietnamese, in general, had not been warmly embraced in Chinatown to begin with. Now that the BTK was muscling its way onto the local scene in such seemingly disrespectful fashion, Chinese stereotypes about the Vietnamese were conveniently true. pg 54The gang pulled a lot of wildcard stunts including broad daylight sidewalk shootings, armed robberies without ski-masks or concealment, and high-visibility crimes like robbing Triad-operated businesses and casinos aside from the usual extortion and shakedowns. Chinatown is an insular community and was suspicious of outsiders: the police, Caucasians, other ethnicities. These crimes remained secret and created ongoing war between BTK and the Triads, the Flying Dragons and the Ghost Shadows.
In numerous meetings with his dai low [lieutenants], David Thai had made it clear that because Chinatown's traditional power structure did not include the Vietnamese, the Vietnamese were therefore not bound by the rules and laws of the community. BTK members would play, rob, and even kill wherever they wanted. pg 58T.J. English did a great job of laying out the history of Asian Americans immigrating to the US, the history of the their plight and discrimination, the rise of the Triads, Chinatown, and much more. I enjoyed this book and it was a solid first book. I really enjoyed his book Where the Bodies Were Buried: Whitey Bulger and the World that Made Him. English has a way of writing that kept me engaged and I read this quickly. I would recommend it to anyone interested in organized crime. Thanks!
February 7, 2017
This is a problematic book for me. I have many thoughts, but will organize quick and dirty with bullet points.
* It is so clear this is English's first book. So much more could have been done. It was stilted in places, repetitive, and careless mistakes were made. My rating is for the material - the writing leaves much to be desired. TBH, I don't care for non-fiction, but read this in something like 36 hours during CNY/Tet family celebration.
*I bumped on several places in this story. It's problematic because where I find obvious mistakes in facts and descriptions, I question the veracity and accuracy of the entire work, the basis of which I can't check so easily. Mistakes include:
*There were parts that rang true, because there are universal truths. BTK was composed of young Vietnamese refugees. Most came from families that had been shattered by traumatic circumstances. In America, these boys were thrown into schools at a level commensurate with their age, not their educational abilities. Many were humiliated by the experience, and sought refuge and a sense of self-worth through the gang, where their desire to be accepted made them vulnerable to manipulation by the older, more hardened criminals among them.
If they weren't alive during the fighting and killing, they remembered the starvation and were born to parents who did. (The name "Born to Kill" came from the slogan GIs wrote on their helicopters and helmets during the war. That's so fucked up, I can't even.) Many were smuggled out of the country illegally, often braving the ocean in tiny fishing dinghies, preyed upon by smugglers, pirates, soldiers and other crooked people. Most had no family, since their parents paid the smuggling fee in hopes of better lives in America for their kids. They didn't know the language, and they were ostracized by larger society and the Chinatown community: "Some of it had to do with fear: The Vietnamese were the product of a violent, war-torn country, and some Chinese believed them to be similarly violent, unstable people. Mostly, though, prejudice ... was class-based. They were simply the most recent Asian immigrant group to arrive in Chinatown, and were therefore on the low end of the pecking order." Most social-service agencies catered to Chinese, where only Mandarin or Cantonese dialects were spoken. Since there were no residential areas where Vietnamese passed along apartments from one generation to the next, finding, much less being able to afford, a place to live seemed insurmountable. Where were the social programs and community centers that might help them feel they have a place in the community?
* The "Asian underworld" was possible not only because drug lords, banks, businesses, tongs and youth gangs worked symbiotically, but also because Caucasian law enforcement stayed away. Few ethnic groups in American history have been as systematically discriminated against as the Chinese. See: Chinese Exclusion Acts. Chinatown's isolation from mainstream society was both its greatest strength and its most crippling weakness. The image presented to the public was of a "Gilded Ghetto," a thriving business community where any impoverished immigrant could make a living. In truth, Chinatown's housing, health, and labor conditions were among the worst in the city, and getting worse.
* BTK's "leader," David Thai "knew how to play his role as both gang boss and benefactor. He knew that, unlike Chinese gang members, few Vietnamese coming out of prison had any family connections to depend on. David's willingness to take care of his brothers, to provide food, rent, and companionship at such a vulnerable point in their lives, was one way of ensuring that the gang remained the center of all that was reliable and important to the boys of the BTK." (p. 80). Also the tattoos were visible signs of belonging. How cheaply he could buy loyalty and affection.
* BTK targeted Asian immigrants, because they were the most vulnerable, the least informed about their rights, the most frightened of the police (who rarely investigated properly), and the most likely not to make reports to the police. Often, they worked in illegal massage parlors or poker houses. When you're living on the fringes of the fringes of society, you're most vulnerable. Even on the occasions when witnesses and victims did come forward, there weren't many cops or agents with an understanding of the culture.
* This is good witness prep: "Use the truth as your anchor. The lawyers will try to confuse you. They will call you a liar to your face. Just stick to the truth and everything will be okay."
* I seriously doubt that the author spoke to anyone involved with this case, but least of all, any non-white people. The use of terrible English by gang members serves to underline the "us" vs. "them" even the author uses.
* Further bullshit, because author then writes like he knows dudes: "Tinh was quietly amazed as he listened to Kumor relate the tragedies that had shaped his life. Here he'd assumed this blond-haired, blue-eyed American had lived an easy, pampered life. But he too had experienced loss. He too knew what it meant to be dealt a cruel and crippling blow, to be an innocent victim of fate." (p. 263)
* Last night, I had dinner with my parents, and this book sparked a discussion about my parents' experiences or knowledge of (gossip about) with gangs. I was surprised that their knowledge was ongoing - from 2000 or so, and also of the Charlotte and Winston Salem gang activity. It also led to my own questions for my parents on how they left Vietnam. Fascinating.
* This is fascinating to me: "These initial refugees had come overwhelmingly from Vietnam's educated class, those with ties to the military power structure in Saigon. The boat people in the late 1970s and those who followed throughout the eighties were not so well scrubbed. They were poor and mostly from the countryside. Predominantly young males, they were set adrift by their families, a tradition known as "throwing out the anchor." It was hope that, as males, they would be better equipped to survive the refugee experience and find work in Australia, Canada, or the US, then bring family members to live with them. Arriving as "unaccompanied minors," many young, shell-shocked refugees simply cracked under the enormous pressures. Like Tinh Ngo, they bounced from foster family to foster family. From Florida to Washington state, they dropped out of school and hung out in pool halls with other young Southeast Asian refugees. Some banded together and committed crimes, establishing links with other Vietnamese criminals in far-flung towns and cities."
* It is so clear this is English's first book. So much more could have been done. It was stilted in places, repetitive, and careless mistakes were made. My rating is for the material - the writing leaves much to be desired. TBH, I don't care for non-fiction, but read this in something like 36 hours during CNY/Tet family celebration.
*I bumped on several places in this story. It's problematic because where I find obvious mistakes in facts and descriptions, I question the veracity and accuracy of the entire work, the basis of which I can't check so easily. Mistakes include:
(1) Use of word "Oriental" to describe persons, which is offensive and improper.
(2) Description of a victim's death at the crime scene, as pronounced by "the doctors." Medics respond in ambulances to crime scenes, not doctors.
(3) Description of murder victim's blood as "the color of nuac mam, the dark, amber fish sauce used like soy as a flavoring for traditional Vietnamese foods."
-- Misleading and inaccurate - fresh blood doesn't look like fish sauce
-- Terrible grammar and phrasing
-- Bizarre placement - as if author wanted to pad the story with his knowledge of VN cuisine, but didn't know how else to use it (hint: perhaps when describing numerous meals, duh).
*There were parts that rang true, because there are universal truths. BTK was composed of young Vietnamese refugees. Most came from families that had been shattered by traumatic circumstances. In America, these boys were thrown into schools at a level commensurate with their age, not their educational abilities. Many were humiliated by the experience, and sought refuge and a sense of self-worth through the gang, where their desire to be accepted made them vulnerable to manipulation by the older, more hardened criminals among them.
If they weren't alive during the fighting and killing, they remembered the starvation and were born to parents who did. (The name "Born to Kill" came from the slogan GIs wrote on their helicopters and helmets during the war. That's so fucked up, I can't even.) Many were smuggled out of the country illegally, often braving the ocean in tiny fishing dinghies, preyed upon by smugglers, pirates, soldiers and other crooked people. Most had no family, since their parents paid the smuggling fee in hopes of better lives in America for their kids. They didn't know the language, and they were ostracized by larger society and the Chinatown community: "Some of it had to do with fear: The Vietnamese were the product of a violent, war-torn country, and some Chinese believed them to be similarly violent, unstable people. Mostly, though, prejudice ... was class-based. They were simply the most recent Asian immigrant group to arrive in Chinatown, and were therefore on the low end of the pecking order." Most social-service agencies catered to Chinese, where only Mandarin or Cantonese dialects were spoken. Since there were no residential areas where Vietnamese passed along apartments from one generation to the next, finding, much less being able to afford, a place to live seemed insurmountable. Where were the social programs and community centers that might help them feel they have a place in the community?
* The "Asian underworld" was possible not only because drug lords, banks, businesses, tongs and youth gangs worked symbiotically, but also because Caucasian law enforcement stayed away. Few ethnic groups in American history have been as systematically discriminated against as the Chinese. See: Chinese Exclusion Acts. Chinatown's isolation from mainstream society was both its greatest strength and its most crippling weakness. The image presented to the public was of a "Gilded Ghetto," a thriving business community where any impoverished immigrant could make a living. In truth, Chinatown's housing, health, and labor conditions were among the worst in the city, and getting worse.
* BTK's "leader," David Thai "knew how to play his role as both gang boss and benefactor. He knew that, unlike Chinese gang members, few Vietnamese coming out of prison had any family connections to depend on. David's willingness to take care of his brothers, to provide food, rent, and companionship at such a vulnerable point in their lives, was one way of ensuring that the gang remained the center of all that was reliable and important to the boys of the BTK." (p. 80). Also the tattoos were visible signs of belonging. How cheaply he could buy loyalty and affection.
* BTK targeted Asian immigrants, because they were the most vulnerable, the least informed about their rights, the most frightened of the police (who rarely investigated properly), and the most likely not to make reports to the police. Often, they worked in illegal massage parlors or poker houses. When you're living on the fringes of the fringes of society, you're most vulnerable. Even on the occasions when witnesses and victims did come forward, there weren't many cops or agents with an understanding of the culture.
* This is good witness prep: "Use the truth as your anchor. The lawyers will try to confuse you. They will call you a liar to your face. Just stick to the truth and everything will be okay."
* I seriously doubt that the author spoke to anyone involved with this case, but least of all, any non-white people. The use of terrible English by gang members serves to underline the "us" vs. "them" even the author uses.
* Further bullshit, because author then writes like he knows dudes: "Tinh was quietly amazed as he listened to Kumor relate the tragedies that had shaped his life. Here he'd assumed this blond-haired, blue-eyed American had lived an easy, pampered life. But he too had experienced loss. He too knew what it meant to be dealt a cruel and crippling blow, to be an innocent victim of fate." (p. 263)
* Last night, I had dinner with my parents, and this book sparked a discussion about my parents' experiences or knowledge of (gossip about) with gangs. I was surprised that their knowledge was ongoing - from 2000 or so, and also of the Charlotte and Winston Salem gang activity. It also led to my own questions for my parents on how they left Vietnam. Fascinating.
* This is fascinating to me: "These initial refugees had come overwhelmingly from Vietnam's educated class, those with ties to the military power structure in Saigon. The boat people in the late 1970s and those who followed throughout the eighties were not so well scrubbed. They were poor and mostly from the countryside. Predominantly young males, they were set adrift by their families, a tradition known as "throwing out the anchor." It was hope that, as males, they would be better equipped to survive the refugee experience and find work in Australia, Canada, or the US, then bring family members to live with them. Arriving as "unaccompanied minors," many young, shell-shocked refugees simply cracked under the enormous pressures. Like Tinh Ngo, they bounced from foster family to foster family. From Florida to Washington state, they dropped out of school and hung out in pool halls with other young Southeast Asian refugees. Some banded together and committed crimes, establishing links with other Vietnamese criminals in far-flung towns and cities."
November 1, 2009
If you like intelligent true crime books about organized crime in particular and you haven't read T.J. English yet, you're missing out. His books are meaty and well-written, but as entertaining as any thriller out there. I've read all of them and enjoyed them all, but for different reasons.
Born to Kill is English's first book. It examines the rise and fall and rise of the Vietnamese gang, Born to Kill. This gang was born in Chinatown among young Vietnamese immigrants during the nineties. The book tells their story in the context of both Chinatown's traditional gangster societies and as a fundamental, if unexpected, consequence of the Vietnam War.
The majority of the members of Born to Kill were boat people who immigrated alone, often as 11 to 13 year olds. In a society literally destroyed by civil war, it was felt that these young men would have the best chance of making it to America, becoming self-sufficient and making the money to bring the rest of the family over. Imagine being 12 years old and dumped onto a small boat to cross the seas to America; encounters with pirates were ubiquitous and the conditions in the refugee camps where those who survived a voyage ended up were brutal. Once arrangements were made for immigration to America, most of these young men were sent to live with foster families who had no connection to them or their culture - many were in it for the money alone. Most of these young men washed up on the streets of Chinatown where they met other young Vietnamese men who banded together in shared apartments and in shared crimes to form the nucleus of the Born to Kill gang - a kind of extended family.
The Vietnamese gangs were very violent and very mobile. With no real ties to the larger Asian community or indeed to American in general, they broke all the established norms for criminal endeavor. Ultimately brought down by one of their own members, this is a fascinating story of a sad and brutal kind of family.
Born to Kill is English's first book. It examines the rise and fall and rise of the Vietnamese gang, Born to Kill. This gang was born in Chinatown among young Vietnamese immigrants during the nineties. The book tells their story in the context of both Chinatown's traditional gangster societies and as a fundamental, if unexpected, consequence of the Vietnam War.
The majority of the members of Born to Kill were boat people who immigrated alone, often as 11 to 13 year olds. In a society literally destroyed by civil war, it was felt that these young men would have the best chance of making it to America, becoming self-sufficient and making the money to bring the rest of the family over. Imagine being 12 years old and dumped onto a small boat to cross the seas to America; encounters with pirates were ubiquitous and the conditions in the refugee camps where those who survived a voyage ended up were brutal. Once arrangements were made for immigration to America, most of these young men were sent to live with foster families who had no connection to them or their culture - many were in it for the money alone. Most of these young men washed up on the streets of Chinatown where they met other young Vietnamese men who banded together in shared apartments and in shared crimes to form the nucleus of the Born to Kill gang - a kind of extended family.
The Vietnamese gangs were very violent and very mobile. With no real ties to the larger Asian community or indeed to American in general, they broke all the established norms for criminal endeavor. Ultimately brought down by one of their own members, this is a fascinating story of a sad and brutal kind of family.
March 22, 2022
A real page-turner, providing a humanistic look into this infamous Vietnamese gang. English does an exceptional job analyzing the how and why young men get drawn into the life of gang violence. Moreover, he illustrates how just a single charismatic, diabolical leader can drag hundreds of wanting youth under his spell. The cultural mores of traditional Chinese and Chinese-American society are a complex juxtaposition to those of many other American ethnic groups. This saga provides a clear example why understanding, respect, and recognition of this culture is essential for civic leaders.
November 4, 2021
i removed a star because of TWO really weirdly placed racial stuff in an otherwise really amazing book. aka, comparing blood of a violent crime to vietnamese fish sauce, and a vietnamese police officer claiming he wasn’t vietnamese after seeing criminals….
but i guess micro aggressions or wtv they’re called weren’t a thing in 1995 so i’ll accept it. i fr wasn’t bored reading this, as I usually am — highly recommend !!
but i guess micro aggressions or wtv they’re called weren’t a thing in 1995 so i’ll accept it. i fr wasn’t bored reading this, as I usually am — highly recommend !!
February 19, 2025
I love this book so much, English rights in such a viceral and engaging way that makes the book feel personal. You can feel the fear and regret of the main character from the book. It's a great book for those interest in vietnamese american history or crime in general.
June 12, 2009
great book!
January 20, 2010
The only book on the market that follows a Vietnamese gang in America. From this story, one can easily see the disorganization that prevails in these groups.
March 25, 2012
If T.J. English writes a book, I'm going to read it.
September 25, 2023
Tracks the ATF investigation into the NYC-based Vietnamese gang Born to Kill. Very well sourced and reads like a novel. Good background on how some Vietnamese refugees arrived in the US with hardly any support and were forced to make it work. Can't imagine what that would have been like. Also liked that it talked about some the traditional Asian power dynamics, both legitimate and criminal, in New York.
November 14, 2021
What I enjoy about TJ English's true crime work is his ability to shed light on the more obscure criminal elements, and this journey into the world of Vietnamese street gangs in America is no exception.
May 13, 2019
The narrative is very descriptive, as if I were reliving a memory myself. I am the type to be interested in Asian gangs since I knew my father grew up with any of these gang members. Very well done.
February 13, 2022
Interesting but feels a little more fiction-ey than it should
October 8, 2022
Enjoyable read.
November 13, 2023
80年代末九十年代初的纽约曼哈顿华埠，一个迅速崛起的越南裔帮派Born to Kill 搅动了华人帮会传统势力范围。这本书从一个年轻帮会成员的经历来讲BTK的发展和覆灭。当执法机关将犯罪团伙绳之以法时，作者希望社会能进一步思考迫使无所依靠的越南少年难民加入帮会的社会和历史原因。在读此书的过程里，还顺便查阅一些关于中国城华人黑社会帮派的文章。感觉下次走在Canal Street, 会有一些新感受。
August 7, 2012
The first T.J. English book I've read and it wasn't a disappointment.
The most intriguing aspect is that it takes a look at the Vietnam War's after effects from the point of view of the Vietnamese immigrants rather than from the Americans point of view. (I honestly find there is always a lack of books and information from the refugees on the war.) It also covers a gang that most people don't know about even though they were strong for a short period of time.
The book was well-written in the sense that rather than a boring ongoing list of events, the story was actually told in a way that can actually pull in the reader to continue to read more to find out what happens next. I read this book whenever I could after I bought it on impulse at my local bookstore.
As a Vietnamese-American (born from refugees), I found this extremely interesting to find out the other angle of what happened to young Vietnamese teens/adults who don't go down the path of education/work like my parents did. It really makes me think, what would've happen to my father if he didn't adamantly go to school and just dropped out like a handful of people that he knew.
I recommend this book to almost everyone when they need to read a non-fiction book for projects at school. :)
The most intriguing aspect is that it takes a look at the Vietnam War's after effects from the point of view of the Vietnamese immigrants rather than from the Americans point of view. (I honestly find there is always a lack of books and information from the refugees on the war.) It also covers a gang that most people don't know about even though they were strong for a short period of time.
The book was well-written in the sense that rather than a boring ongoing list of events, the story was actually told in a way that can actually pull in the reader to continue to read more to find out what happens next. I read this book whenever I could after I bought it on impulse at my local bookstore.
As a Vietnamese-American (born from refugees), I found this extremely interesting to find out the other angle of what happened to young Vietnamese teens/adults who don't go down the path of education/work like my parents did. It really makes me think, what would've happen to my father if he didn't adamantly go to school and just dropped out like a handful of people that he knew.
I recommend this book to almost everyone when they need to read a non-fiction book for projects at school. :)
June 25, 2014
There is a famous picture, taken during the Vietnam War, of a South Vietnamese officer shooting a prisoner in the head point blank. Born To Kill made me think of that photo because any one of the young gang members profiled by English were just as coldhearted as that officer.
T.J.English opens the door to the Asian community's strange relationship with local Asian gangs. Yes, we've all heard about what goes on in the Chinatowns of the United States but until this book was published nobody outside the Asian community really knew about the brutality and viciousness of these criminals.
Born To Kill is a thoroughly researched and well written book that provides a great deal of insight to the lifestyle and activities of the Born to Kill gang.
T.J.English opens the door to the Asian community's strange relationship with local Asian gangs. Yes, we've all heard about what goes on in the Chinatowns of the United States but until this book was published nobody outside the Asian community really knew about the brutality and viciousness of these criminals.
Born To Kill is a thoroughly researched and well written book that provides a great deal of insight to the lifestyle and activities of the Born to Kill gang.
October 7, 2016
The book “Born To Kill” by T.J. English is about a young boy named Tinh Ngo and how he grew up with the Gang BTK (Born To Kill). Book is told from a 3rd person point of view and switches from dialogue to facts every few pages. The book starts out when Tinh Ngo was a teenager and talks about his struggles he came across as the years go by in the BTK. This book was a great book, it is definitely for the more mature mined because there are some very intense and gory scenes in the book. Anyone who likes book about gangs and the history of the Chinese and Vietnamese early life in America.
March 23, 2010
A lot sadder than i thought it would be--most of the members of Born To Kill are Vietnamese refugees from the Vietnam war. Definitely added a deeper layer to what could have been just a straight up trashy read (which would have been great, too.)
I think that of all the sensational, trashy crime books that i've read, T. J. English is the best writer. he's not great, but it's readable and i never got caught on how bad the sentences were. well organized and coherent all the way through.
I think that of all the sensational, trashy crime books that i've read, T. J. English is the best writer. he's not great, but it's readable and i never got caught on how bad the sentences were. well organized and coherent all the way through.
November 12, 2012
This is English's first book, and it shows. It's fascinating and worth reading, but it's a bit repetitive. Also, while I'm pretty sure the speech/dialogue came from recordings of the conversations, reading the English as spoken by the Vietnamese got annoying after a while (missing verbs, articles, etc.).
English's later books are better written, thus the three-star rating here.
English's later books are better written, thus the three-star rating here.
November 17, 2024
Solid history of of the American Vietnamese gang lead by the psychotic David Thai, covering their rise and fall. English does a good job showing the origin of this gang, with its roots in the Vietnam War, from them being refugees to taking their name, 'Born to Kill', from the slogan US Army soldiers war on their helmets. While thorough, it is a bit dry, but still a nice read overall.
November 7, 2010
I didn't realize this was T.J. English's first book, I thought it was his latest. Not that it matters because my opinion was already cemented when I read Paddywacked and The Westies. I think English is the class in this genre.
Read
September 5, 2011loved it!! My momz was a 'MOmma-SOn'(took in and care of REffuGEEZ)..SO GROWING UP I MEt and seen a-lot of faces....theY mAdE Thier oWN GAnG..37TH-BOYZ(WE LIVED ON THA Corner hOUSE Of 37th and anza in S.F!!
December 3, 2012
Born to Kill Was originally written in 1996, and is now available in a Kindle Edition for $7.69. I was lucky enough to purchase the ebook for only $1.99 when English ran a special promotion. The book is a bargain at both prices. It’s also available in a paperback version for $14.99 at Amazon.com.
June 4, 2013
Just as The Westies was a timely book shining a light on the Irish gangster of the West side, Born to Kill explores the world of Asian gangs, especially the Vietnamese gangs which were up and coming when TJ English wrote the book.
March 26, 2014
A very interesting look at a Vietnamese gang. Most of the book was well written and the major characters were memorable. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn a thing or two about how Asian gangs operate.
Read
June 28, 2007A good background on vietnamese gangs.
November 13, 2012
Superior overview of Asian gangsterism in early 80s NYC and fallout of Vietnam diaspora. Recommended.
April 16, 2016
This was a really great read considering it covers a part of Vietnamese American culture that I had never encountered or even heard of before.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews