The Valachi Papers

You never know how much is true in all of these autobiography's, but there is certain things that have been proven, so you can come up with some idea about what is true and what is not. Now Joe Valachi is not the most reliable source for information, given the fact that he was only a low level soldier in the mafia, but that does not mean that he is lying constantly. There are certain things that he says he is sure about and other things that he is only getting from rumors that are going around, so take some of the things he says in this book with a grain of salt. There are things that get said in gangland lore that have been proven untrue and others that you have to make up your own mind with, like Giuseppe Masseria's so called last meal, which was later proven false with a autopsy report, which showed that he had nothing to eat before he died, and Charlie Lucky Luciano's first kill, Umberto Valenti, which to me seems false given that this incident happened before Luciano was with Masseria, and there was another person at that set up, which seems to me to be the more likely suspect, given the history between the two of them, who's name you should know if you are interested in the mafia in New York, because he was the leader of the first mafia family in New York, Giuseppe The Clutch Hand Morello. Any way like most mobster autobiography's Joe Valachi does not really go into detail on any of the murders he committed. All in all if you are a fan of the genre, then this book is definitely worth a read.P.S if you want to know more about Giuseppe Morello, then you can buy The First Family, by Mike Dash

A great Mafia read. Though a 'mere' soldier, Valachi has much to tell, and offered incredible insight to the previously little known Mafia phenomenon - J. Edgar Hoover (bent Head of FBI) had still denied their existence 'til Valcahi spoke. His insider information in very informative and interesting, and, as noted in an excellent review above, his incredibly forensic memory gives authority & detail to the narrative. Also, it is important to note that Peter Maas (author of 'Serpico' & others) writes brilliantly well. I would also highly recommend Johh H. Davis, 'Mafia Dynasty' (and his brief bibliography) for a wonderful sweep of Mafiosi history, starting from the very early days in New York (pre 'Lucky' Luciano, et al.) to John 'Teflon Don' Gotti. As in 'The Valachi Papers', there is a great economy in writing style, which adds impact to what you are reading. Finally, I would highly recommend Martin Short's, 'Crime Inc.' DVD from the 1980s; slightly dated in places, it is still brilliant as a very real documentary on the Mafia, laced with incredible interviews with real Mafiosi, such as Jimmy 'The Wessel' Fratiano, and a host of other genuine mobsters, whose characters would not look out of place in the fantastic 'Sopranos'.

If you want to trace the time that the world was made aware of the secret mafia in the usa. This is the book that started the disclosure of the secret society called "La Cosa Nostra".Joseph Valachi tells it as it was for him as regime leader.Read this book and all future mafia books become clear and easier to understand and to follow the heirarchy of how the set up woreked.Valachi,s revelations even convinced attorney general Bobby Kennedy to direct the infamous J.Edgar Hoover to redirect his F.B.I. personnel away from his paranoid imagined threat from reds under the bed,to increase the manpower of just four men to over forty agents to investigate the claim made from Valachi about the imagined strength of this secret society called La Cosa Nostra. This book is the beginning of a history of organised mafia crime right up to the present day,as the interest in the mafia culture is still strong today.D.W.W

There's no doubt in my mind that Valachi perhaps 'fabricated' some of the stories he tells in this book, but hey, isn't that what the mob is all about?One of the most in depth and interesting books I've ever read on the American Mafia. Peter Maas hits all the points and gets answers from nearly every aspect of mob-life that we've been curious about in such a way that you almost forget that what you're reading is mostly true.An absolute page turner, it left me reeling at the end at how one man can be so brazen and it has left me longing to book another flight to New York and visit some of the places Valachi talks about.I don't think there will ever be another detailed story of Mafia life such as this one.

Great book

Good book.

A Great Read.

Good read.