Bobby Martini reveals the real truth about Winter Hill
354414
Of all the books written about Boston's most notorious crime figures, Bobby Martini actually interviews the people who "were in the room". This is a brutally honest expose' that eradicates the fiction and fantasy portrayed in the other books on this subject. The author has personal recollection and relives painful events from  his past and the people that are interviewed do the same. This book debreeds the scabs and opens old wounds that were not only created by life on the fringe but by the government as well. The perspective that you read is that of someone that is involved and not someone from the suburbs who is trying to make a fast buck by writing a book on this hot button topic. It rights the wrongs portrayed in the Boston newspapers and other forms of media and gets honest and insightful answers to questions that have never been properly answered.<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Citizen-Somerville-Growing-up-with-the-Winter-Hill-Gang/dp/0982991509/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Citizen Somerville: Growing up with the Winter Hill Gang</a>&nbsp;A great read!
950589
This book is an incredible tale of the car theft crew of the Gambino crime family. It is hard to fathom that anything like this could ever happen. A story about Roy DeMeo, a gangster who is considered by the F.B.I. to be the most prolific serial killer in United States ever(!), and his crew of killers. John Gotti himself was afraid of DeMeo and his crew, so that in its self is a reason to read this book. A great story about  the Mafia one that is very hard to put down and one that you will read again.
4546090
Hill Street Blues was well written and closer to the truth than most cop shows of that period. Homicide- Life on the Streets was better but Hill Street beat that show by several years. A true classic
1812958
Dorothy Allisons Bastard Out Of Carolina hits on so many emotions that it was really hard for me, the book was hard to look away from but at the same time made me want to run screaming, because of the memories of growing up in Greenville County, SC, they hit so close to home for me because I was there.

The lifestyle of Bones family is depicted so close to the truth that most people will not believe it true, but the family dynamic here is real.

The abuse she went through is unspoken in many families, and taken care of by an uncle who makes sure the guilty party pays, this is real, people actually live this way and Dorothy Allison brings it all to life with Bastard Out Of Carolina.
3142170
As an NYC police officer, I can attest to the realness and true grit of Washburn's story. It gets right to the heart of life on the street, and how very difficult it is to tirelessly track a dangerous criminal. This is not a story for the squeemish - its scary, suspenseful, and very hard to put down. Without a doubt, you will be locking your doors and looking over your shoulder after reading this book. Its really chilling in its authenticity.
I would highly recommend this book to anybody who wants to take a real walk on the wild side of how criminals are actually tracked and caught by law enforcement, and how dangerous it is to assume the bad guys aren't watching us right back. The book is now making the rounds at my precinct, and all the guys would agree that Washburn has hit a home run with this book.
3204267
Richard Kuklinski, also known as The Iceman, has killed over 125 people in his time as a mafia contract killer. In this documentary he talks about getting started with the mafia and several hits that he carried out. Listening to him tell the stories you can't help but think of things you've seen on television like The Sopranos... but this stuff actually happened. (Find out why they call him the "iceman".)

Kuklinski talks about his childhood and his abusive parents. He talks about his theory that "nice guys finish last". He says that when he was younger he wanted to be left alone and to leave people alone but they kept bothering him. So he got a metal pipe and beat up a group of 6 guys. From then on he'd established his motto "If you hurt someone first, they'll leave you alone."

Listening to Kuklinski talk is a bit mesmerizing. He's very deadpan and entirely unemotional. When asked how he felt about killing someone he says "I don't." and it's easy to believe after listening to him talk. This is definitely a DVD to rent, unless you're really interested in listening to descriptions of murders over and over. But this is an interesting documentary and one that will hold your interest.
599191
I was an Avery truther from the first MAM episode to the reading of this book. After reading this book and analyzing the cold hard EVIDENCE it details, I am convinced Steven Avery is guilty. Regardless of what you think of Ken Kratz, the police reports, the chronology of evidence collection and witness statements all speak for themselves. Kathleen Zellners rebuttal of this book convinced me even further; the facts from this book that she DIDNT attack speak louder than any theory she can concoct. Im just so sorry for the negative thoughts I had regarding Manitowoc law enforcement.
516023
With all the hullaballoo about police brutality, former 3-time Los Angeles District Attorney, Steve Cooley (who lived in Toluca Lake with his wife Jana for 35 years) and co-writer Robert Schirn have come along with a compelling book telling the true stories of nine police (8 humans and one dog) who were murdered in the line of duty.
Told in Law & Order style by first outlining the facts and then telling of the criminal legal actions taken against the killers and tried in a court of law, this bares the truth about the danger our police face day in and day out.
Each of the eight chapters deals with one murder of a police officer, starting, as did the TV show, with each of the victims starting out on what is for them a normal day before each turns deadly violent, costing each victim his life.
Told in no nonsense, but fascinating, manner this book is a real grabber. In fact, when I received it I was in the middle of reading a library book that I had to read under a deadline to return, so I put Cooleys book aside to finish my library book.
One evening shortly thereafter I picked up Cooleys book to see what it was like. It was so interesting and real that I didn't put it down to go back to my other book until I finished it.
Its a quick read and it brings home the dangers these police face every minute of every day. Some of these murders begin with a simple traffic stop.
This is a factual book written by a tough prosecutor that lays bare the violence faced by the police every day. And its a monument to prosecutors who are dedicated to bringing the guilty to justice, especially when the victim is a police officer killed in the line of duty. One of the cases profiled is a cold case that took 45 years to solve. But they never gave up and finally got the murderers.
4166883
I've read several books on the Kennedy Conspiracy over the years and have never believed the lone gunman theory, although such a huge conspiracy that has remained a mystery for all these years is hard to believe too.

Bill Sloan's book furthers the information.  I have believed some of the evidence related here  for years.  The homeless men who were taken into custody and then let go, a possible shot from the storm drain at street level, and the man who was hit with a piece of the underpass that was dislodged by a bullet.  Mr. Sloan goes so far as to name the assassins.  While I don't necessarily believe these names, it doesn't matter.  It's the conspiracy that I have believed for years and I now have more information on.

I can't say it's a real page turner, evidence is laid out that I haven't found before.  I was glued to the television the weekend it all happened and have been searching for the truth ever since.  All books have to be taken with a grain of salt, but I have heard many of the details here and there over the years which adds credence to this book.  Worth a read.
1230685
Dale Hudson and Billy Hills have wrote a book that makes this place I live in more real than any newspaper ever could! It is written in an unabiased way that they can only do. I would recommend this book to all true-crime readers.  It is a must read.  The story is about one grizzely murder in  Horry County, Myrtle beach,SC. And the way it is told by Dale and Billy  really gets you involved in what is going on! I give this book one high  mark for "must read"!
4887534
I am from Westchester County, NY where David Berkowitz was captured, so I grew up with a lot of the Son of Sam stories from my parents who were young adults back in '77. I am also aware of the weird occult gatherings that took place in Untermeyer Park in Yonkers,NY. That stuff is fact according to Yonkers P.D. In 1987 my mom read the original hardcover ed. of "Ultimate" while tending bar in Yonkers, and when some of her local regulars learned she was reading it, they told her that there was a lot of weird cult stuff going on up at Untermeyer. Very chilling book, and although I agree with its critics about it being filled with too many "anonymous sources" and no index, which makes Terry's claims outlandish, there is still a lot of evidence that suggests the SOS murders where orchestrated by a larger group. Even the victems' families don't believe in the lone-killer story! I will admit that the whole coast to coast Manson Family/.44/Radin/Perry connection sounds very sensational. Why hasn't Terry interviewed Bill Mentzer (MansonII)? It's not that I don't believe it, but it comes across more as theory than fact. However, between the varying .44 caliber shooter sketches and the case being re-opened in Queens (still open in Yonkers) I am convinced of one thing, Berkowitz did not act alone.
4784113
A wonderful in-depth history of Schoodic Point. I have lived here in Winter Harbor all of my 69 years, and heard many stories of the area from my father, mother and grand-fathers as well as other "old timers". At least one relative is described in depth in the book. I was easily able to follow along with the descriptions of the properties described. Everything as described is as I have heard all my life, plus so much more that I didn't know. This book has filled in many blanks. I never realized how important this area was to commerce in the 1800's.
943623
David Critchley is without a doubt in my opinion one of the few organized crime authors and historians who's information is based on solid research and facts, not the same regurgitated jargon, half truths and so called facts that most of the mafia and organized crime related books are based on. Mr. Critchley's work is fresh,insightful and highly accurate. Mr. Critchley has based his work and his reputation on meticulous research that is fact based and always provable. Critchley does not rely on American mafia myth, unsubstantiated stories and theory, but hard, truthful facts that have escaped most American mafia historians and buffs.

Forget the price, it should not even be a consideration! This is the book that any true mafia buff who's interests concern early American mafia history. This book not only covers new material never before dealt with, but as I stated previously Mr. Critchley dispels many of the continuously published mistakes found in earlier works published over roughly the last six decades. Merely to entertain was not Critchley's objective, it was to enlighten and teach, and he has thoroughly succeeded where many others have failed!

David Critchley's work can be spoken of along side that of Selwyn Raab, Thomas Hunt, T.J. English, Paul R. Kavieff and Scott M. Deitche, some of the top American mafia authors and historians who's works are based on meticulous research and fact finding. BTW, I speak through personal knowledge in that I have corresponded with Mr. Critchley in the past and to say that I have learned a great deal from this man concerning early American mafia history is an understatement! His insight into new, important and overlooked facts are clearly shown in his most recent work.

This book is a must have, along with Thomas Hunt's "Deep Water: Joseph P. Macheca and the Birth of the American Mafia" and Selwyn Rabb's "Five Families: The Rise, Decline and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires." Critchley covers early new York mafia history, while Hunt does the same with New Orleans, the two earliest and most powerful mafia empires in America from the late 1800s through to the early 1900s. Raab covers New York mafia history mainly from the Prohibition era to the present day, all three works together constitute a great start for any new American mafia buff and for any old ones who are still ignorant of the facts. Throw in Paul R. Kavieff's work on the early Detroit mafia, "The Violent Years: Prohibition and the Detroit Mobs" and you have a really good start on early American mafia history, with some insight to the successors of the early American mafia dynasties.

Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria, Salvatore Maranzano, Salvatore "Charlie Lucky" Luciano, Meyer "The Brain" Lansky, Frank "The Prime Minister" Costello, Carlo "Don Carlo" Gambino, Gaetano "Tommy Brown" Lucchese and Joseph "Joe Bananas" Bonanno are not the architects of the American mafia. These men were without a doubt some of the most innovative mafiosi in America, men with drive, passion and strong wills, but these men were not the earliest mafia Dons and Godfathers in America. Other, less known mafiosi who had emigrated from the Sicily, Calabria and Naples area of Italy are the true pioneers of what came to be known as the American mafia or Cosa Nostra. These men not only created the earliest mafia families and factions within the American mafia, but those factions, Sicilian, Calabrian and Neapolitan left a deep and lasting impact on American organized crime. Their histories have not been well documented, but Critchley now gives us insight and new information concerning some of these important American mafiosi.
873417
In Larry Tyes BOBBY KENNEDY: The Making of a Liberal Icon, readers follow the journey of RFKs life beginning in an unlikely place, in a time unknown to many Americans as it relates to his private life and professional career.

Set to the backdrop of the Cold War, with which Bobby Kennedy was intimately involved, Tye studies in detail the working relationship between the seemingly incongruous allies of future liberal hero Bobby Kennedy and Senate architect of the Red Scare --- none other than Joe McCarthy himself. In fact, it is indisputable that Bobby is hardly a liberal in the 1950s and is overtaken by anti-communist fervor like much of the nation, compelled to work on the front lines yet behind the scenes as Senator McCarthys close counsel. Family is a factor that is explored to explain Bobbys early political leanings, with his influential father Joe being a committed believer in capitalistic enterprise and the patriotism perceived to protect it. Connections to family are plentiful throughout the book, as it features valuable material drawn from personal interviews of Bobbys widow Ethel, his sister Jean and others. Rife are the themes of family and country, which also in many ways were the themes of his life.

If you are seeking a long look into Bobbys famous 1968 presidential campaign, you will have to wait until the books end, because what is featured here is a detailed account of his career in full, much of it not spent as the iconic, liberal crusader he is remembered as today. Tye defines the Cold War era only as the important beginning of Bobbys transformation, moving on to other eras of extreme importance to the United States, in which he was unsurprisingly on the frontier.

There is Bobby the senator, who took center stage in investigating union boss Jimmy Hoffa at a committee hearing. The complex relationship between them is both informative and entertaining. There is Bobby wielding his influence to help elect his brother to the presidency over Nixon. Then there is Bobby the attorney general, when corruption is fought and remediating race relations is attempted, but not before giving FBI director J. Edgar Hoover the approval to wiretap Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, the anti-communist experience of his early days is put to the ultimate test, and though his foresight and handling of the situation can be questioned, the result heaped incomparable foreign policy experience upon him, readying him for his eventual presidential run. It is a pleasure to hear the exchanges between Bobby and Ethel throughout all these trying times, and the entire book.

In his political transformation, Bobbys ideology did not move chronologically from conservative to liberal, and Tye attempts to dispel the fables of this conversion by studying the people closest to him --- the Kennedy family. The varied characters mingle with the times and each other, constantly reminding the reader of the link between the family of the man, and his dealings with political friends and foes alike. In the books final segment, one can experience his 68 campaign for the presidency. Racial healer, unifying figure and abhorrer of injustice, Bobby sought to bond a country divided. While including further interviews with those close to him, there is not much new that is gleaned from this final period of his life.

When Bobby died, a large segment of a way of life in America died with him, as did the momentum of his movement. Without his tragic death, would he have been elected president? And would he have continued on his idealistic 60s path? Tyes book does not necessarily answer these ambitious and frankly unknowable questions, yet reveals much about Bobby Kennedy the elusive, transformative man --- a passionate figure willing to change with the times.

Reviewed by John Bentlyewski
3759297
Worth ten stars at least ! ! ! Congratulations, Christopher Ruddy, for a factual book on this horrible death of an innocent family man who deserved so much more ! ! ! After reading this, one cannot help but feel that people in Washington need to be super careful when performing their duties, as murder is so easy to get away with, there. It's a real shame that Vincent was "taken care of" on the Clinton regime's watch, but he was working on really confidential Clinton business and was unfortunately involved with business that could have blown the lid off a lot of the Clinton cover-ups and extremely sensitive personal issues of the Clinton family and their so-called shady business & political dealings. It boggles one's mind that someone could do such a shoddy and poor staging of a so-called suicide death and actually get away with it, but it seems that everyone was in on it and willing to just push Vincent under the rug (no pun intended, since his pants were covered with carpet fibers and not dirt or leaves). It also seems really strange that the Foster family was so willing to accept the ridiculous assumption that it was a suicide, but then maybe they were afraid of further repercussions ! Christopher Ruddy has written a fine book that truly spells out the facts that surround the demise of Vincent Foster!
1553074
I have always been a true crime novel fan.  I have devoured Ann Rule and Joe McGinniss.  I am not alone.  Over the holidays I had a conversation with another fellow true crime fan.  She asked if I had ever read Vincent Bugliosi's novel, Helter Skelter, the true story of the Manson Family murders.  I hadn't.  Truth is, I had kind of been afraid to read it.  When the murders took place I was only a toddler.  I do however, remember the TV mini-series "Helter Skelter", based on the book and feeling, well, freaked out.  I've had the book Helter Skelter on the back-burner of my brain for years to read.  Well, I finally took the plunge.

The book Helter Skelter embodies my two favorite reasons for reading true crime.  Number one, I love to learn the psychology of the murders  - why the murderers may have done what they did.  Number two, I love to read how the prosecutors and detectives used their knowledge, experience, and hard work to solve the crimes and prosecute the criminals. For those unfamiliar to the case, and really, how could you be, The Manson Family headed by Charles Manson, went on a killing rampage in Los Angeles in August 1969 brutally murdering seven people.  Vincent Bugliosi, the author of the book, was the prosecutor at the trial and investigator on the case.  It was the most horrifying murder spree in US history and the longest, most grueling trial the country had seen to date.  Some say the murders put an abrupt end to the 60's spirit of free love and ushered in a new more sated era.

The book itself is a great read.  It is well-written and tells the story of what occurred, how the case was solved, and how the case was successfully prosecuted.  In addition, the writer provides the back story as well as reporting on the pulse of the country as the trial proceeded. It is a real glimpse in to the history of the country.  I learned that my original perceptions of the case were not accurate.  The book accomplishes the herculean task of sorting through hundreds of witnesses, several police department's participation, and reams of testimony while at the same time managing to keep readers interested and informed as the investigation and case unfolds in chronological order.

I am particularly fond of the author, Bugliosi.  He sounds like a brilliant guy who worked his tail off.  His constant reference to the hours of preparation on both the investigation and each stage of the trial is inspiring.  He mentions more than once the "100 pages of notes on yellow pads" reminding me in the words of James Michener, "It is not just talent alone, but disciplined talent that makes for success."  Taking the time to be prepared is half the battle, isn't it?

Although Helter Skelter was first written in 1974, more than 35 years ago, it is still very relevant.  Why?  As Vincent Bugliosi himself says in the book and I am paraphrasing here," The reasons behind the murders are so important to uncover because we do not want such a thing to happen again."  That's true of all history, isn't it?  Check out the book if you have the chance.  It will teach you something, I promise you.
1526970
Great book of the story of ur life john alite.  Can't even imagine all the pain n suffering u went through.. Yes u were a killer urself n hurt n killed people on the orders of the dis functional gotti family... But it's hard to comprehend that people r calling u a liar n that this is a false story. ? Being brought up in woodhaven n knowing u n the lifestyle u hav made for urself, that this is a true story... I remember jr gotti coming up to the neighborhood n stopping in with u to the local bar the white horse tavern. He walked in( jr) n would pick on people for no reason than just being a bully. He had guys behind him so he was protected.. John alite on the other hand was always a gentleman to b around, never out of line with people who didn't deserve it.. I kno because I grew up around it all. Woodhaven was a tight knit place to grow up, we all knew everyone.  Just like the story said, he only hurt n took the lives of low life underworld people. Never the innocent bystander.  Thx John alite.! Ur going in the rite direction with ur life, don't ever settle for less..  Knowing alite the way I do, he'll always come out on top. He was always a different mobster n the real tough guy..!!!  Great book n great job .! Hats off to Alite n Anastasia for getting the truth out...!