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Surviving the Mob: A Street Soldier's Life Inside the Gambino Crime Family
What do you do when the law wants you behind bars and the New York crime families want you buried?
That was the life-and-death dilemma confronting Andrew DiDonato, who began his criminal career at age 14 under the watchful eyes of the local Mob.
By the time he was 17, the infamous Gambino family made DiDonato an associate of the Nicholas Corozzo crew. For the next 14 years, he was a loyal street soldier, immersed in dangerous and profitable criminal burglary, forgery, extortion, loan sharking, car theft, bank robbery, counterfeiting, drug dealing, credit-card and insurance fraud, witness tampering, weapons possession, and attempted murder.
He was also involved in the underworld gambling operations, which took in millions dealing dice and cards, booking sports and horses, and running numbers. Between these pages you'll find the most in-depth look at Mob gambling ever.
At age 31, DiDonato ran afoul of both the law and his friends, turning him into a hunted man on two fronts. After 17 months on the run, the law caught him first.
Surviving the Mob is a cautionary tale of the harsh reality of a criminal, inmate, fugitive, and witness who--so far--has lived to tell the tale.
That was the life-and-death dilemma confronting Andrew DiDonato, who began his criminal career at age 14 under the watchful eyes of the local Mob.
By the time he was 17, the infamous Gambino family made DiDonato an associate of the Nicholas Corozzo crew. For the next 14 years, he was a loyal street soldier, immersed in dangerous and profitable criminal burglary, forgery, extortion, loan sharking, car theft, bank robbery, counterfeiting, drug dealing, credit-card and insurance fraud, witness tampering, weapons possession, and attempted murder.
He was also involved in the underworld gambling operations, which took in millions dealing dice and cards, booking sports and horses, and running numbers. Between these pages you'll find the most in-depth look at Mob gambling ever.
At age 31, DiDonato ran afoul of both the law and his friends, turning him into a hunted man on two fronts. After 17 months on the run, the law caught him first.
Surviving the Mob is a cautionary tale of the harsh reality of a criminal, inmate, fugitive, and witness who--so far--has lived to tell the tale.
280 pages, Paperback
First published December 23, 2010
116 people are currently reading
329 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
April 25, 2018
Criminals are an interesting lot and I’ve often found myself wondering what how they got on this path and why they’re different from the rest of us who avoided this career path. Unlike most other books about the mafia this book takes the view of the guy at the lowest rung of the ladder, not even a made man, just a contributor. These guys only observe rules insofar as to determine the size of the payout comes with breaking them.
I was struck by the similarities between a foot soldier working for the mob and anyone familiar with corporate America – you’re only useful and welcome as long as you have earning potential and kick the proceeds up to the next level, a model the Big 4 et al have turned into a flawless system.
Anyone that thinks that incarceration is an antidote to criminal behavior is delusional – these guys view crime as their daily job w/o which they have no income. Time in prison is a minor setback and returning to the streets is an opportunity to resume earning. In the end, the concept of omearta is lost on the current generation of the mob which has led to its disarray if not total demise. All in all, a chilling view into a day in the life of a criminal.
I was struck by the similarities between a foot soldier working for the mob and anyone familiar with corporate America – you’re only useful and welcome as long as you have earning potential and kick the proceeds up to the next level, a model the Big 4 et al have turned into a flawless system.
Anyone that thinks that incarceration is an antidote to criminal behavior is delusional – these guys view crime as their daily job w/o which they have no income. Time in prison is a minor setback and returning to the streets is an opportunity to resume earning. In the end, the concept of omearta is lost on the current generation of the mob which has led to its disarray if not total demise. All in all, a chilling view into a day in the life of a criminal.
July 31, 2012
Surviving the Mob: A Street Soldier's Life Inside the Gambino Crime Family
I found the way Andrew tells his story to be like no other "lifestyle" book. There is no hero, nobody is a winner and I liked the year by year account. It made me able to see the transgression as it happened as opposed to grouping events and having to guess emotions and decisions. I have been a Mob Enthusiast for decades and read many true crime books. This book to me has a different feel than any other. I will admit it left me wanting more. I would like to see a follow up to this. I hope Andrew writes another book to tell how life continued for him.
I found the way Andrew tells his story to be like no other "lifestyle" book. There is no hero, nobody is a winner and I liked the year by year account. It made me able to see the transgression as it happened as opposed to grouping events and having to guess emotions and decisions. I have been a Mob Enthusiast for decades and read many true crime books. This book to me has a different feel than any other. I will admit it left me wanting more. I would like to see a follow up to this. I hope Andrew writes another book to tell how life continued for him.
February 5, 2016
One of the few Mafia books where the writer actually admits that working for organized crime is not a good thing, instead of unnecessarily glamorizing it like other writers.
Quotes like
"Mafia is for losers.",
"I lied, cheated, scammed, and plotted every day of my adult life, because that's what OC is. It's a never ending lie that exploits every citizen with whom it comes in contact with."
"Loyalty is upwards in Mafia. Bosses ask loyalty of you but throw you under the bus the minute they have no use for you."
"The larger than life image of bosses was shed when I saw the bosses and their behaviour behind the bars."
The writer solely wrote this book for youngsters to warn them that doing crime is not a good thing and there is no honor in Mafia and the writer accomplishes to the hilt with the book.
Quotes like
"Mafia is for losers.",
"I lied, cheated, scammed, and plotted every day of my adult life, because that's what OC is. It's a never ending lie that exploits every citizen with whom it comes in contact with."
"Loyalty is upwards in Mafia. Bosses ask loyalty of you but throw you under the bus the minute they have no use for you."
"The larger than life image of bosses was shed when I saw the bosses and their behaviour behind the bars."
The writer solely wrote this book for youngsters to warn them that doing crime is not a good thing and there is no honor in Mafia and the writer accomplishes to the hilt with the book.
June 21, 2021
This book tells an unusual story in that, rather than tell the story of the mob from the top end, as in the Godfather and all the books and films about mafia dons, it tells the story of an ordinary foot soldier in the mob, the sort of person who has a non-speaking part in the background of one of those film scenes.
Some of the things in the book surprised me. In a sense the phrase 'organised crime' is a misnomer. The main character in the book, Andrew DiDonato, is basically a criminal who has to find his own way in life and in crime, with the majority of his involvement in the mob comprising an obligation to pass some of the proceeds of his crime up the chain to his bosses. A surprisingly small amount of the work he did comprised work he was specifically ordered to do by the mob.
Another surprise is the relatively low level of loyalty shown between mobsters, either up the chain, down the chain or across the chain. DiDonato says several times that there is no loyalty in the mob 'these days', implying that in bygone times the codes of loyalty and silence portrayed in gangster films really did exist.
One highly irritating feature of the book is the way it switches frequently between long passages of narrative in which DiDonato is referred to in the third person, and long passages of direct quotation in which he speaks in the first person. The book would have been greatly improved had it been ghost-written as a first-person narrative.
Another feature with which I struggled was the sheer number of different characters, few of them portrayed with sufficient colour to be distinguishable from each other. I ended up reading the book as if most of the people with whom DiDonato interacted were just interchangeable mob faces rather than individuals.
The nicknames of the mobsters was one of the highlights of the book for me: Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso, John "Jacky the Nose" D'Amico, Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano, Carmine "The Snake" Persico and Greg "The Grim Reaper" Scarpa. I would love the author to have told the stories of how some of the nicknames came about.
Ultimately, to avoid being mundane a book has to have a direction of travel and end up in a different place to the one from where it begins. This book did that in that DiDonato ended up giving evidence against the mob and going into the Witness Protection Program, which is in itself an interesting story.
A good enough book to keep me interested to the end, but not a good enough book that I would recommend it to anyone who didn't already have an interest in the subject matter.
Some of the things in the book surprised me. In a sense the phrase 'organised crime' is a misnomer. The main character in the book, Andrew DiDonato, is basically a criminal who has to find his own way in life and in crime, with the majority of his involvement in the mob comprising an obligation to pass some of the proceeds of his crime up the chain to his bosses. A surprisingly small amount of the work he did comprised work he was specifically ordered to do by the mob.
Another surprise is the relatively low level of loyalty shown between mobsters, either up the chain, down the chain or across the chain. DiDonato says several times that there is no loyalty in the mob 'these days', implying that in bygone times the codes of loyalty and silence portrayed in gangster films really did exist.
One highly irritating feature of the book is the way it switches frequently between long passages of narrative in which DiDonato is referred to in the third person, and long passages of direct quotation in which he speaks in the first person. The book would have been greatly improved had it been ghost-written as a first-person narrative.
Another feature with which I struggled was the sheer number of different characters, few of them portrayed with sufficient colour to be distinguishable from each other. I ended up reading the book as if most of the people with whom DiDonato interacted were just interchangeable mob faces rather than individuals.
The nicknames of the mobsters was one of the highlights of the book for me: Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso, John "Jacky the Nose" D'Amico, Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano, Carmine "The Snake" Persico and Greg "The Grim Reaper" Scarpa. I would love the author to have told the stories of how some of the nicknames came about.
Ultimately, to avoid being mundane a book has to have a direction of travel and end up in a different place to the one from where it begins. This book did that in that DiDonato ended up giving evidence against the mob and going into the Witness Protection Program, which is in itself an interesting story.
A good enough book to keep me interested to the end, but not a good enough book that I would recommend it to anyone who didn't already have an interest in the subject matter.
November 22, 2024
This was really good. I like reading books about the mob. My family on my dad’s side is Sicilian & were born in Palermo & immigrated to America & ended up in Chicago. Some of my family members did get caught up in the Chicago mob. When my dad was young, they moved to KY to escape that life. I am glad that I wasn’t born into a life like that. I really do not like people who steal & lie. It pisses me off. And it doesn’t make sense to just go around killing everyone. I’m glad Andrew made it out and that he educates kids not to go fall for their lies. Even if it isn’t mob related, gangs are the same way. They pretend to be a family but they’d just as easily kill you. It’s sad. I know some people don’t know any other way of life. But I hope more and more people can turn away from it.
August 23, 2017
I have read quite a few books on the mob, normally the are the ones who's name you have heard a lot about. This one is about a member of the mob who starts as an outside and works hard to work his way up. Tells us from the street level and how the mob works. It shows how the top bosses expect loyalty and respect from everyone below them but how they treat those same people. I enjoyed this book a lot it was a different view from inside and well written.
April 9, 2021
Great book
Very good book, well written. Enjoyed it immensely. Wish Andrew the best for his courageous actions in helping bring down these mob criminals. Also glad he chose to change his life and pray someday he gets to see his son again. No sin is too great that Jesus wont forgive us, and I hope Andrew finds forgiveness thru Gods mercy.
Very good book, well written. Enjoyed it immensely. Wish Andrew the best for his courageous actions in helping bring down these mob criminals. Also glad he chose to change his life and pray someday he gets to see his son again. No sin is too great that Jesus wont forgive us, and I hope Andrew finds forgiveness thru Gods mercy.
April 4, 2022
This was assigned reading for a college class, and while I didn't read it during the course of the class, the snippets that I read interested me enough to finally sit down and read it later. It took me 6 months, but I finally finished it. It was a decent book and the telling of events was well laid out to make the narrative compelling.
August 10, 2017
A very good read!
A very insightful and we'll written book about "The Life" inside the mob! Highly recommend for those who enjoy true mafia books.
A very insightful and we'll written book about "The Life" inside the mob! Highly recommend for those who enjoy true mafia books.
March 14, 2020
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January 22, 2021
Great read ! A fantastic insight from a street level mobster !
It’s good to see a criminal not glamorizing the mafia life !
It’s good to see a criminal not glamorizing the mafia life !
July 11, 2021
Good book
Very candid view of the author's experience as an associate in a mafia crime family. I recommend this book to anyone that is a fan of stories about the mob.
Very candid view of the author's experience as an associate in a mafia crime family. I recommend this book to anyone that is a fan of stories about the mob.
July 11, 2023
Eye opener for the youth
December 14, 2023
Interesting information. Didn’t love the writing style.
March 30, 2012
Nice morality tale. The fact that it's true makes it tougher to take.
This follows the protagonist from his teen years, when his hero is his uncle in the mob, to the time he eventually realizes loyalty flows uphill and not down. The bosses demand obedience from the footsoldiers but sacrifice them in a heartbeat.
When DiDonato goes to jail, no one offers to pay his bail. No one cares about his family. He's on his own. That's when he begins to question the myth of the mob looking after its own.
This goes into detail about DiDonato's life within the mob, how the mob operates, and what he had to do to break free.
The writing wasn't that absorbing, but the facts were. Interesting read.
This follows the protagonist from his teen years, when his hero is his uncle in the mob, to the time he eventually realizes loyalty flows uphill and not down. The bosses demand obedience from the footsoldiers but sacrifice them in a heartbeat.
When DiDonato goes to jail, no one offers to pay his bail. No one cares about his family. He's on his own. That's when he begins to question the myth of the mob looking after its own.
This goes into detail about DiDonato's life within the mob, how the mob operates, and what he had to do to break free.
The writing wasn't that absorbing, but the facts were. Interesting read.
May 21, 2016
The story was a good one, but the writing was only fair. Atypically, the mob and their exploits are not glorified, but shown for what they are, an organization of thugs. It is an inside story, written by someone who was in the life, but by the end realizes how much this lifestyle hurts people, and how little it produces for not only society, but its own members. While a compelling life story, despite the main character having developed, there was a lack of emotive force--too often the events unfolded and that was all. I felt the author missed an opportunity to delve deeper into his subject's story. It was good, I enjoyed it, but it could have been better.
October 4, 2011
Research for next novel. One gets the impression that the author didn't quite know how to organize all the material, so he went for a chronological, each chapter was a year, approach. Unfortunately, this made it hard to keep track sometimes of all the different people who came in & out of Andrew's life. Insight into all the different types of credit card & check fraud, illegal gambling & racketeering was useful for my purposes, and interesting given my background in banking. The book doesn't sensationalize the lifestyle, however, and pretty clearly spells out the consequences.
March 21, 2013
On one hand, this book is never going to be mistaken for literature. On the other hand, one might wonder: Where do career criminals come from? Are they the products of nature or nurture? What is a criminal apprenticeship like? The answers to those questions and more are answered here. In addition to having been an absolutely brazen upstart, Anthony DiDonato also is one lucky dude. And he knows it. Call this read harrowing ... and worthwhile.
May 23, 2012
The interesting criminal career of a Gambino Mafia associate in New York, ending as an informant in the Witness Protection Program. The true story could have been written/organized in more compelling fashion, sticking to the first-person in this autobiographical account. The moral: the mob treats everyone badly, even their own.
February 5, 2016
Pretty standard confession memoir from a former criminal. Entertaining, but not necessarily the most gripping. I always find it fascinating to peek inside the inner machinations of really anything, so if that's also your interest, go ahead and read this.
August 21, 2015
Pretty decent book. An easy read.
November 1, 2012
Couldn't put it down, couldn't believe it really happened. If you love mob stories, this is it.
November 11, 2012
Very interesting insight into the inner workings of the mob. Definitely shatters a lot of the Hollywood imagery I had as a kid.
June 28, 2020
one of the best mafia books after 'for the sins of my father'
May 19, 2013
Great book!
October 4, 2013
A much needed book about the Gambino crime family and what it was really like being a made member of the mafia. Andrew DiDonato, Denny Griffin and Dennis DiDonato
Ronald Fino
Ronald Fino
November 20, 2014
Such an interesting story considering the mob is seen as very old and only from the 1940s. However, the mob is very modern ('80s on). One of the best books I've read in a long time
March 1, 2015
Alex's review summed it up perfectly
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews