Subjects:  1. Anecdotes    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Criminals & Outlaws    6. Environmental Conservation & Protection - Endangered Species    7. Grosz, Terry    8. Hunting - General    9. Other Miscellaneous Crimes    10. Sports & Recreation    11. Undercover wildlife agents    12. United States    13. Wildlife crimes   

Editorial Review

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Reviews (73)

Lots of insight on the O.J. Trail
Of all the commentators I trusted Dunne's insight because I believe it came from a person who knew Hollowood.While the book covers many other cases I believe he gave us more insight on O.J. and the kind of man he was.After reading his observations I have to wonder how Judge Ito allowed this circus to go on.

Not Justice; Justice Denied
In this collection of 19 essays, which originally appeared in "Vanity Fair" magazine, Dominick Dunne presents nine true accounts of crimes, trails, and punishments, mostly delayed or denied.He begins with his own wretched first experience with the debacle of the American court system, in which his own daughter was violently murdered, and the guilty served a sentence of only 2 � years.Ten of the essays deal with the O.J. Simpson case.Dunne always believed O.J. was guilty of the double murders, and he presents what happened at the trail and sketches of the participants in a straightforward manner that would convince all but the most stubborn.One essay deals with the Menendez brothers trail for the murder of their parents, another case where the victims are victimized again.The other essays deal with lesser known, but no less sensational crimes.What comes out of these episodes is a realm of society that few of us know well:multi-divorces, extra-marital affairs, extravagant spending, high-flying life styles, cut throat business dealings.It is as fascinating to read, as it is repugnant.Dunne is an outsider who has gained admittance to the inner thoughts and dealings of this nether world and brings it to us unflinchingly.Highly recommended.

Justice
There are 2 things that must be done:
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Subjects:  1. Criminal Law - General    2. Criminals & Outlaws    3. General    4. Legal History    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Trials (Homicide)    7. Trials (Murder)    8. True Crime    9. United States    10. Current Events / Law   

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Criminals & Outlaws    5. General    6. Historical - General    7. Literary    8. Prison Life    9. Biography & Autobiography / Literary   

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography/Autobiography    3. Casinos    4. Criminology    5. Finance    6. General    7. Las Vegas    8. Mafia    9. Nevada    10. Organized crime    11. True Crime / Espionage    12. Spilotro, Anthony    13. True Crime / General   

Editorial Review

This is a story from the long-ago days of Colombian marijuana smuggling--long ago, because most of the pot now smoked in the United States is grown domestically, and the top narcotics import from Colombia is cocaine. Author Robert Sabbag tells the tale of Allen Long, who got involved in this unsavory business in the 1970s because he wanted to provide high-quality cannabis for his buddies and also for the sheer adventure of it. Some readers will find Long a disconcerting protagonist--he's a drug smuggler, after all--though it may appeal to advocates of drug legalization and readers of Read more

Reviews (9)

Phoney baloney
Looks like Robert Sabbag couldn't let his sucess with Snowblind be.This book just sucks.I know Allen Long and his story is true, the smuggling, the four years as someones maid in prison but Robert Sabbag just got sloppy with this one.He tried to take a mediocre story and make it into something interesting; didn't work.

Quintessential reading if you like this genre...
The author Robert Sabbag has this scene nailed down.I thought I had read, or maybe even lived it all.No sir.This book "jacks it up" to new levels of adreneline pumping.These characters had balls.Big ones.And it is really fun to read about people like that.
Loaded
I guess they changed the title of this book at some point -- the copy I got from the library was called "Loaded, A Misadventure In the Marijuana Trade". At any rate, forget any tepid reviews by "professional" reviewers who somehow feel this story wasn't quite up to their literary standards. The book is just a flat out great read and had me laughing out loud many times.A hilarious but cautionary tale with a serious ending, the adventures of pot smuggler Allen Long are so far out there that you know they must be true.Any baby boomer who did time in the counter culture of the 60s and 70s, or who is familiar with the drug culture of that era will get a big kick out of this book, and I'd think many younger readers would enjoy it as well.
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Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Criminals & Outlaws    6. Drug couriers    7. Drug traffic    8. General    9. Historical - U.S.    10. Marijuana industry    11. Special Interest - Adventure    12. United States    13. Travel / Adventure   

Editorial Review

Paul Klebnikov tells the incredible story of Boris Berezovsky, a one-time Russian car dealer who assembled a huge--and illicit--fortune after the collapse of Communism. "This individual had risen out of nowhere to become the richest businessman in Russia and one of the most powerful individuals in the country," writes Klebnikov, a respected reporter for Read more

Reviews (49)

Telling The Truth Will Get You Murdered!
I am halfway through this incredible book and it deeply disturbs me that American Paul Klebnikov died because of this book and other articles he wrote while working in Russia for Forbes Magazine.Of late, all one reads is how someone incredibly powerful managed to get off the hook in one way or another.I am just weary of all the lies in the press and the deceitful 'spin' that the US media gives to people they find useful.No, we don't kill our reporters, but we ruin them in other ways.I hope I live long enough to see this change, but I fear it won't happen in my lifetime.I have learned from personal experiences in my life that 99 percent of what I have read and believed to be true was a lie.It starts with Santa Claus and moves on from there.This book has made me want to read more about Russia, the people, and the various governments.How sad I spent half of my life living in fear of the Russians, and they us.I tried to find 'Conversations With A Barbarian', also by Mr. Klebnikov, but it is no longer available.I feel so awful for his family and friends.

Superb explanation of what went wrong in Russia in the 1990s
I followed the extraordinary events happening in Russia during the 1990s, reading articles, newspaper stories, a couple of books. But I had no idea what really happened until I read this book. Most of the journalists followed the politics. Paul Klebnikov followed the money. And the money was incredible. In a few years, Boris Berezovsky, who never created a productive corporation, never innovated some product, who never added any value to the wealth of his country, accumulated several billion dollars. This came from the hides of the people of Russia many of whom, the old, the unemployed, children, actually starved during the 1990s. This was the looting of Russia to the benefit of a few thousand people. How it was made possible is in this extraordinary book. Since the book is so well researched, documented and footnoted, I have the feeling that some of the one-star reviews have a hidden agenda to discredit the book. After all Berezovsky is now sitting in England on his 15 million-dollar estate and has been told not to meddle in Russian politics or he'll be kicked out. Russia would love to get him back to go over what he did to Aeroflot, what he knows about several murders of people who opposed his takeovers, and a lot more. Not that the book is perfect. For some reason Klebnikov does not mention the role of foreign economists in Russia's economic disaster of the 1990s. The Russians tried to get the best economic advice they could on their transition from communism to capitalismand turned to such people as Jeffrey Sachs, then of Harvard University, who pushed "shock therapy." It produced plenty of shock but no therapy. Tragically, Gorbachov, earlier, did not have the guts to go with a transition plan developed by Grigory Yavlinski, which was much superior. What the wunderkind economists recommended was to kick away the crutches from the patient before he could walk. It's a sad story, and as many people know Klebnikov was murdered in Moscow two years ago and no one has been convicted of the crime. This is a brave book by a brave journalist and a must read for anyone who wants to understand what happened.
A must read!
This is one of the most interesting books I've ever read. I don't know where to start the review, because it's unlike anything else I've ever read, if only from the point of view of the exploits of Berezovsky, his friends, and other "capitalists" who proceeded to rob Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union.
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Subjects:  1. (Boris Abramovich),    2. 1946-    3. Berezovskii, B. A    4. Biography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Business    7. Businessmen    8. Capitalists and financiers    9. Criminology    10. Current Affairs    11. Ethnic Cultures - General    12. Former Soviet Republics - History - Post Cold War (1991-)    13. Organized Crime    14. Political    15. Political Ideologies - Communism & Socialism    16. Politics/International Relations    17. Russia (Federation)    18. Biography & Autobiography / Business    19. Biography: general    20. Russia   

Reviews (8)

Great read
This book was accurate and for someone who is intrested and enjoys reading about John Gotti this is a great book for you to read. A little dragged out in some areas such as the Trials but very interesting. I enjoyed reading this book very much, as i believe you will as well

[...]
as far as i could tell, the book was ok. the best part out of the entire book for me was the pictures but they should of added more. reading some of the chapters were so damn booooring. theye need to get better writers or something. is jerry capeci was the best writer of organized crime how come this book was so boring then? i see other books and then see only half truths and authors twisting the words and stuff. someone needs to write a real book that has the real truth, not making it up or just writing it to get publicity for Gotti's name which i find very sick bcuz the authors glorified and even said in the book in the first pages or so that they and lots or prosecutors and FBI agents and judges and attorneys all became bestsellers and very very successful because of John Gotti's name. I swear. Especially since they glorified in saying that in the book, i find that very disgusting and very low for people like them who are suppose to be professionals, especially gloating fromthe man who died of cancer. I wouldn;t care if he was osama bin laden, i thought the thing about the authors saying that they became successful because of Gotti's name is disgusting and they're making money because of it. that's very very low. Disgusting. and Spare me about how gotti was a criminal if you were an author writing about him, you wouldn't brag that you became successful because of his name. total lack or professionalism in my view and very disgusting. [...] Some of the stuff that he typed in the first chapters saying that John Gotti blew a basketcase about how his grandson said that he wanted to become a criminal and how he yelled at his grandson for saying that was such a exaggeration because i heard the tapes. Complete and total exaggeration. I guess with books of [...] like these, you have to be really careful about what the author writes because they can exaggerate the truth since this is part of the media thing after all. i give it only one stars cuz the pictures were the most interesting part of the book. Rest of it [...]. It disgust me that people would do anything to make money. I guess the disgusting thing is money makes the world go round.

Not what it seems, BORING
When I picked this book up I thought I would get a nice history of Gotti. That was true to some extent but the majority of the book was devoted to the trials. If you are a lawyer or someone who is interested in that sort of thing then this book is for you. If you want a good read then pick up the Capeci book on Gotti,that is top of the line! You can also read this if you are having problems sleeping.... ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Case studies    6. Criminals    7. Criminals & Outlaws    8. Gotti, John    9. Organized crime    10. United States    11. Biography: general    12. True Crime / General   

Editorial Review

They're all there, starting with Anthony Joseph Accardo (1906-1992), the Chicago mob leader known as Tony to crime pals, Mr. Accardo to underlings, Joe Batters to his subordinates, and as "having more brains before breakfast than Al Capone had all day" to syndicate supporters, and working through the alphabet to Abner "Longy" Zwillman (1899-1959), a crime-syndicate founder and New Jersey boss, one of the most feared of the Jewish Mafia, known as the "Al Capone of new Jersey," and much revered for his love affair with Jean Harlow.Read more

Reviews (20)

Knowledgeable
I bought the first edition of this book when it first came out, and found it to be both knowledgeable and unbiased. There is no romanticizing of the mob, simply straightforward descriptions of the major players and events. Highly recommended.

Eye-grabbing Photos
Interesting read for the first Mafia encyclopedia. Very well-illustrated & detailed research.

They don't come better than this...
An excellent resource for those fascinated by the murky, violent world of American organised crime is Carl Sifakis' Mafia Encyclopedia. The new edition is well-updated (though John Gotti is now dead, and Vinnie the Chin was recently jailed). Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Criminal Law - General    3. Criminals    4. Dictionaries    5. Law    6. Mafia    7. Organized Crime    8. True Crime / Espionage    9. Reference works    10. True crime    11. USA   

Reviews (10)

Wised Up by Charlie Wilhelm
As a Baltimore native, I enjoyed this book very much and wouldprobably rate it a "5" based on my enjoyment only. However, thinking of others--not from the Baltimore area--it probably would not be quite as interesting. Knowing the area, and even some of the players, made it a quick read for me. In fact, it was too quick of a read. Made me wish there was more. . .

Who needs fiction?
"Wised Up" is an absolutely chilling account of organized crime in my home town, Baltimore.I previously believed that crime in this city was basically random and disorganized except for the activity of a few drug king pins.This book documents the organized superstructure of a very complex home grown "management system" of illegal activity.Moreover, it has no connection to the traditional Mafia.Charlie Wilhelm's candid revelation of his life including significant events is far more frightening and captivating then any of the "best seller" crime thrillers.He tells this story in a way that makes the reader "stand in his shoes" and experience Charlie's emotions as he reached a point of fear and ambivalence regarding his life of crime.We've all heard the "you-can't-get-out-of-it-once-you-get into-it" theme regarding the impact of an individual's participation in an organized crime syndicate.However, in this true story, you live the fear, the sleepless nights, the concern for love ones and the mental trepidation in a way that no fictional account can begin to relate.
Wised up
Wised Up by Charlie Wilhelm is a very interesting book of a life I can not imagine.Charlie has a window of opportunity to be a positive influence for others especially children or teens in their formative years.Wised Up is written in a way that makes you feel you are there and experiencing everything Charlie is.Charlie showed great courage in going to the FBI and not asking for witness protectection.How many would have the courage to do that and return to Baltimore to live?Charlie has experienced a life most of us can only read about and not even imagine in our greatest imagination.When a man changes his life so completely, how can anyone say it is just another gangster story?If I could give this book a 10 star rating, I would.
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Subjects:  1. Baltimore    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Criminals & Outlaws    6. Informers    7. Maryland    8. Nonfiction - True Crime / Espionage    9. Organized Crime    10. State's evidence    11. True Crime    12. True Crime / Espionage   

Reviews (24)

interesting subject, trying writing
There is no doubt Buddy Cianci is an interesting figure worth reading about. However, this book seems at many times to be not much more than the rehashing of newspaper articles written by the writer or his colleagues. All the chapters have snappy introductions, or "ledes," as journalists say, and tend thereafter to be very repetitive in their descriptions of the mayor.
He wanted to be Vice President of the United States someday
One day in grammar school a young lad named Vincent Cianci announced to his classmates that he was going to be Vice President of the United States when he grew up.What those kids in the schoolyard could not have possibly realized was that even at the age of 10 or 11 Vincent Cianci was dead serious about what he wanted to do with his life.In "The Prince of Providence", author Mike Stanton. a reporter for the Providence Journal, chronicles the life of this colorful and controversial, energetic and enigmatic figure.
Good book, lots of great information
THis book was a good read.Being from RI it was enlightening to see really how corrupt RI politics is.It's sad.I would recommend this book to people who want to know how city hall really works. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1941-    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Cianci, Vincent Albert,    7. Criminals & Outlaws    8. Mayors    9. Political    10. Political corruption    11. Providence    12. Providence (R.I.)    13. Rhode Island    14. United States - State & Local - New England    15. Biography & Autobiography / Political   

Reviews (4)

The Life of Alphonse Capone and the start of the Mafia.
I think Kolbler does a good job of detailing the rise of the Mafia.Italians calling themselves the Black Hand rob and blackmail guilable Italian immigrants.People like Colossimo, and Capone get into the protection busiess.This leads to other rackets, and the Mafia is born.Capone was not a member of the Mafia group, but he knew their main leaders.Capone and before that Torrio become the main influences in the Chicago underworld.
Scarface
In a book subtitled, "The Life and World of Al Capone", one would suspect an in depth look at the famous Chicagoan.While the book has points where it is very informative, I believe the author could have used a more involved editor in composing his book.Having originally gone into publication in 1971, there are better books about Al Capone.
Outstanding.....The "Premier" Bio of Al Capone
In my opinion, this is the best and most well written of all of the Capone biographies. The first few pages of this highly engrossing book takes the reader to the front door of the Lexington Hotel, Capone's headquarters.....on into the inner sactum of the gangleader himself. The story of Al Capone is brilliantly laid out in an easy to follow format that takes the reader through Capone's life and motivations. I've read all of the major bios on "Big Al" and this is by far the best.....highly recommended. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1899-1947    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Capone, Al,    7. Criminals    8. Criminals & Outlaws    9. Criminology    10. Organized Crime    11. United States    12. Biography: general    13. Illinois    14. True crime   

Subjects:  1. 1879-1958    2. Automobile Racing    3. Biography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Boyle, Michael Joseph,    6. Criminals & Outlaws    7. Gangsters    8. History    9. Motor Sports    10. Sports    11. Sports - General    12. U.S. History - Early 20th Century    13. United States    14. United States - 20th Century    15. American history: postwar, from c 1945 -    16. Car racing    17. Inter-war period, 1918-1939    18. Transportation / Automotive / Domestic / History    19. USA   

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Chicago    4. Criminals    5. Criminals & Outlaws    6. Ex-convicts    7. General    8. Illinois    9. Organized Crime    10. True Crime    11. United States    12. True Crime / General   

Reviews (5)

"Bad" Meaning "Really, Really Bad"
Prison ain't a picnic now, but it was much worse in Carr's time. Much of Bad recounts his sadistic brutality (in and out of the joint) with transparent pride. Carr is the "wolf" archetype, thriving inside by taking advantage of anyone dumber or weaker. He's a unique, powerful storyteller - for better or worse, depending how hard your belly is. Before he starts to reflect (which he only does, in earnest, in the conclusion-cum-manifesto), he regails us on his murders and rapes, sparing nothing but any remorse he might feel. Only Jim Goad and Iceberg Slim paint prison life in starker colors, or glean deeper philosophical insight from the experience... but don't get offended by Bad and claim you weren't warned.

Professional Inmate
It's a fascinating book.Incredible actually when you discover that Carr began his preparing for his career as an inmate when he was 9 yrs old.Note: he committed robberies etc. inside and outside of jail, but he was not a professional criminal.He was a professional inmate; and as such, he was cunning, devious, and diabolical.He was also - although he'd deny it - assexual.The only sex he had outside of prison occurred during gang rapes or trains just as if he was in prison.Sex was mechanical; simply a way of displaying power.Be that as it was, it is even more incredible that he was studying and enjoying calculas. What a wasted life.

prison wars of the 70"s in california state prisons
I read this book when it was first published and until recently had always wondered why Carr was killed. I always felt that it was a contract murder but didnt have a clue as to why the contract on carr was carried out. Mr carr was it seems a very bright, well versed man. It" interseting to note that despite all the violence and mayhem. of which Carr contributed was a very itelligent man who was never able to seperate his inate intelligence from his penchant for violence. Mr carr was a victim of his past deeds and very much a product of the era in which he lived. A good read, disturbing because conditions in California State Prisons remain for the most very much the same today as they did in Carr"s time. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Criminals & Outlaws    3. Ethnic Studies - African American Studies - General    4. General    5. Social Science    6. Sociology    7. Social Science / African-American Studies    8. True crime    9. USA   

Editorial Review

Probably no American outlaw has attracted more attention--much of it flattering--than Jesse James. This revisionist biography by T.J. Stiles delves into the exciting life James led--"a tale of ambushes, gun battles, and daring raids, of narrow escapes, betrayals, and revenge." Yet it also places James within a specific political context, showing why it was possible for this murderous bandit to emerge as a folk hero among Southern sympathizers following the Civil War (in which he fought as a teenager). James is often grouped with famous frontier criminals like Billy the Kidd and Butch Cassidy, but he's best understood as a Southerner who forged partisan alliances in postwar Missouri and promoted himself as a latter-day Robin Hood. Stiles describes James as "a foul-mouthed killer who hated as fiercely as anyone on the planet" and places his life in the context of "the struggle for--or rather, against--black freedom." Stiles's fundamental point about James is as startling as it is convincing: "In his political consciousness and close alliance with a propagandist and power broker, in his efforts to win media attention with his crimes ... Jesse James was a forerunner of the modern terrorist." Tough words, but also deserved. Read more

Reviews (46)

Well written, but light on Jesse James
Stiles' book is a well written, well researched, and informative exploration of violence in Missouri in the Civil War era. The biggest problem, however, is that only the last few chapters focus on Jesse James. Because James did not leave behind many documents detailing his actions and motivations, Stiles provides lengthy context about the political and social environment in which James lived. Far too much context, in my opinion. The focus of his book is often far away from James's and his gang's actions. Although a historical figure cannot be divorced from the context of his/her times, a historian should not stray too far from the central figure of a biography. A more accurate titleof this book would be "Jesse James's Missouri." Page after page passes with little or no reference to James or his gang. Only after Reconstruction ends does the author focus on Jesse and his crimes.
Good, but somewhat biased
The first half of this book is a mesmerizing, and fascinating read on the young James' role in the Missouri guerilla war during the War Between the States.This unconventional struggle had some of the most vicious and impassioned combatants in any theatre of the war, continuing long after the Confederate surrender in 1865. Along with the war being discussed in great detail, the book also describes the local politics and personalities of the day in a provocative and alluring manner.
Lost Cause Terrorist
With `Jesse James Last Rebel of the Civil War', J. T. Stiles has given us a most insightful, penetrating, and serious study not just of that outlaw, but more importantly, of the place and times that produced him, and which are necessary for an understanding of who and what he was. Stiles book is as much a study of the social/political/economic history of Missouri from 1845 through 1882 as it is a biography of James. Indeed, Jesse James is not even a principal actor in the book through its first one hundred pages. These are devoted to a vigorous examination of the James family, the Missouri society in which they lived, and the coming of the Civil War to that society. Outside of this context, the actions of Jesse James' life have no coherent meaning.
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Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Civil War, 1861-1865    6. Confederate States of America    7. Crime And Criminals    8. Criminals & Outlaws    9. Guerrillas    10. Historical - General    11. Historical - U.S.    12. History    13. Missouri    14. Outlaws    15. U.S. History - Civil War And Reconstruction (1860-1877)    16. Underground movements    17. United States - 19th Century/Old West    18. West (U.S.)    19. Biography & Autobiography / Historical   

Features

• Illustrated

Reviews (5)

Authors don't prove premise, still captivating story
The Bobbed Haired Bandit by Stephen Duncombe and Andrew Mattson tells the story of Celia and Ed Cooney in 1920s New York.Newlyweds and newly pregnant, Ed and Celia decide to rob some convenience stores to try and make a better life for themselves.Because Celia has bobbed hair, flapper style, the story of their robberies quickly grab the attention of the newspapers and soon the police.The Cooneys find that the stolen money doesn't last long and after a succession of several small hold-ups, flee to Florida only to be captured shortly after the death of their newborn daughter.The authors spend a great deal of time in the beginning of the book discussing the sociological implications of Celia's celebrity, but they can't seem to decide on what exactly the public's obsession with her meant.Much ink is also given to the personal histories of the cops chasing them, but they detract from the real story of Celia.Perhaps one of the most captivating details is that Celia's sons didn't find out about their mother until she had passed away.Celia Cooney was a woman of mystery to the papers in the 1920s and remained one in her life, even to her family.Now there's a story.

A fascinating woman and a well-told story of journalism in the Jazz Age
The Bobbed-Haired Bandit is about a pair of poor newlyweds, Celia and Ed Cooney, who turned to armed robbery to better their lot, sriking terror in the hearts of Brooklyn grocers in 1924. The competitive New York City tabloid press turned the girl desperado into a media darling, an anti-heroine for the age - Jesse James, in a flapper dress.
Who to blame for Celia Cooney?
The 1920s was a decade when few major metropolitan newspapers didn't have National Enquirer style headlines every day. Renegade women were a fixture in these potboiler stories: Katherine Malm, a.k.a. the "Tiger Woman" and lethal flapper Wanda Stopa titillated Chicagoans, and in New York, a tough little laundress named Celia Cooney was determined to burst through the economic barrier between the Haves and the Have-Nots.
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Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Brigands and robbers    3. Crime And Criminals    4. Criminals & Outlaws    5. General    6. New York    7. New York (State)    8. Nonfiction - True Crime / Espionage    9. Other Miscellaneous Crimes    10. Robbery    11. True Crime    12. True Crime / Espionage    13. United States - State & Local - Middle Atlantic    14. Inter-war period, 1918-1939    15. Social history   

Reviews (4)

Southern Illinois' Very Own Gangster
I picked up the original edition of this book years ago. It seemed then to be the definitive biography of Charlie Birger but Gary DeNeal has seen fit to update it and expand it with new info. This is one of the best gangster biographies I've ever seen and the rural background adds to the fascination. The Birger-Shelton gang war, complete with machine guns, armored trucks, and aerial bombing, equalled the violence and color of Capone's Chicago. A well-written and researched work that brings to life the Prohibition era.

Local History can be Interesting
I purchased this book originally while doing family research in Southern Illinois.My family had for years heard stories of my grandfather and Charlie Birger.I wanted to see if any dates/events coincided and to my surprise and relief there were not very many.During the reading of the book, however, I found myself being drawn in and even beginning to become enchanted by Charlie Birger.Don't get me wrong - he was a very dangerous and troubled person - but the writing by Gary DeNeal really drew me in.The history lessons as well as the interesting look at the world of a small time (even though Birger thought he was big-time) gangster was quite interesting.One of the most interesting facets was his association with other local gangsters and the historical look at how East St. Louis, now suffering from urban decay, was once a thriving and beautiful city.This book was a lot of fun and Mr. DeNeal did his research quite well.

Good Clarification of the Topic
Growing up in southern Illinois, the stomping grounds of Charlie Birger, I always heard the stories of gangsters. For anyone who has lived in southern Illinois, it is hard to imagine gangsters, bootlegging, etc. going on in this rural part of the state. Being curious about what was fact and what was fiction regarding Birger, I found this book.Read more

Subjects:  1. 1880-1928    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Birger, Charlie,    7. Case studies    8. Criminals & Outlaws    9. Historical - General    10. Historical - U.S.    11. Illinois    12. Murder    13. Murderers    14. Prohibition    15. Regional Subjects - Midwest    16. American history: c 1800 to c 1900    17. American history: from c 1900 -    18. Biography: historical    19. Biography: political    20. Crime & criminology    21. USA    22. Violence in society   

Reviews (4)

my grandfather
my grandfather was Frank Tatum.He was murdered before I was born.It was a very good story.Now I have to find the obituary.

1950's Portland --the True "Hollywood" Story
Longtime residents of Portland will probably find Portland Confidential a quick, enjoyable read because they'll recognize the places and names Stanford peppers his story with. Portlandresidents will be less put off by Stanford's "conversational" narrative voice, as they have been reading him for years in his role as columnist for The Oregonian, and more recently the Portland Tribune.I suspect that out of towners and would find very little for them here.
Portland Confidential
As a Portland area resident, I was really exited to read this book.I was somewhat disappointed. . . Phil Stanford is a journalist, and the book reads like a collection of news clippings.The characters are colorful and interesting, and the photos added a lot to the book, but overall, I felt his coverage was somewhat cursory.I wanted more information, more historical background and more perspective.To be fair, however, I read this book immediately after reading The Devil in the White City.There, Eric Larson took a time in Chicago history, and created a masterpiece.Imagine the Portland Confidenital story/characters in the hands of a writer of that caliber! ...