5 comments about World Encyclopedia of Organized Crime (Paragon True Crime Library).

1. Nobody can claim as much accomplishment and detriment in the genre of true crime reference books than Jay Robert Nash. Over the course of over forty years and seventy volumes, Nash has repeatedly ripped off consumers by intentionally planting disinformation in his (otherwise exhaustively researched) books in the course of inept attempts to, as he phrases it, "detect any unauthorized use or duplication." As a strong supporter of individual property rights and a copyright enthusiast, I find Mr. Nash's paranoia and greed to be appalling. And in this book, like so many others, his inane tactics yield a reference material littered with inaccuracies.
   
   On the other hand, it's not as though this would be a scholarly resource if Nash were principled. While it's well-organized and quite entertaining, this condensation of Nash's six-volume "Encyclopedia of World Crime" is written in a slightly melodramatic style. Despite its' faults, the scope of this book's content is impressive; it documents a wide variety of individuals, organizations and events in considerable detail.
   
   Unfortunately, this book is also hopelessly outdated. Published in 1993, no mention is made here of the Russian mob that's engaged in massive international criminal affairs to enormous profit since the Soviet Union expired.
   
   If you want to learn about organized crime, read scholarly resources concerning specific phenomena. This book is fun and even informative to a point, and it makes for compulsive reading, but Nash's idea of what constitutes legitimate reference material is just criminal.



2. While its some feat to assemble this amount of information in one boopk, the author never actually goes out to check the accuracy of the data. This causes many factual mistakes to merge. Some are very basic, such as the statement that Jack McGurn was born in Chicago, rather than in Sicily. In a field like this, where errors are commonplace, you need a book that tries to get the truth about personalities and events if its not to be just another myth-spreader. This sadly isn't it.



3. Trying to find a good reference book about organized crime? Want one at a good price? Jay Robert Nash has created the perfect book for you with World Encyclopedia of Organized Crime from De Capo Press.

   The over 600 pages of the Who's Who in organized crime is covered in an A to Z format. From Joe Adonis, Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Bugs Moran and so many others, you'll find the fascinating stories and cross-references.

   You may find other books more detailed, but I have found this book to be complete in the overall number of people covered. The book is an easy read and the index makes it easy to look up anybody or any topic.

   You'll be hard pressed to find a better value for your money. About the only thing missing is a cd-rom software application.




4. Truth in advertising? This is solely about the U.S., with a very few token entries on people and place outside it. Nothing on the Triads, nothing on the Golden Triangle, nothing on Marseilles or Hong Kong, nothing on modern international gangs such as the Jamaicans or Nigerians, etc., etc. I returned my copy to Amazon in great disappointment. If you want biographies of some U.S. figures (only some: nothing on Harold Meltzer, for example) with ugly pictures, this might be of some use. But it's solely oriented to personalities, not to analysis



5. I don't think there has to be much explanation here. I've been studying the American Mafia for a couple of years and I have never seen or found such a variety of information. I have movies and books alike and I have to say that this is probably my best investment in any book or movie I own.

No comments about To Alcatraz, Death Row, and Back: Memories of an East LA Outlaw.

No comments about Handstands in the Dark: A True Story of Growing Up and Survival.

5 comments about Unholy Messenger: The Life and Crimes of the BTK Serial Killer.

1. Gives a lot of insight into the mind of a deranged killer. Proves that we never really know anyone, even our closest friends and family members.



2. As compared with all of the BTK killer books, this is the worst by far. A totally shameless attempt to capitalize on the terrible decades of fear lived by the citizens of Wichita, Kansas.
   
   The book is a rehash of material that has been spun ad-nauseum through a number of similar accounts. The problem here, however, is that much of the information which the author seems to take as given is simply not based on fact. He seems to surround much of his story with surmise.
   
   The Booklist reviews it as "riveting....macabre.....scary". This reviewer would have to say, "not reviting .... not all that macabre .... and definitely not scary", rather "same-same-same, wrong-wrong and mostly boring-boring-boring".
   
   A total hack attempt at documentary journalism. The author, Stephen Singular, is capable of much better than this.
   
   Thumbs down ... save your money ... don't waste your time. There are loads of better books on BTK than this.
   
   Densel Myers
   Yukon, Oklahoma



3. This version is very disappointing. It seems to focus more on the people within Rader's Luthern Church than on his evil pathology. When Rader's Pastor determined that the only reason for Rader's behaviors was demonic possession, I lost it. This book seemed to offer more proselytizing and Bible thumping than true crime. What a waste.



4. After reading all the negative reviews, I'm almost embarrased to write this, but I thought it was a well written book and I could not put it down. Maybe that's because I'm not a "True Crime" aficionado.



5. Since the BTK perpetrator's ex-wife and adult children are not willing to talk about life with their father, who killed 10 people over 17 years and then went another 14 before being caught, author Singular chose to emphasize the effects of Dennis Rader's confession on his pastor and friends from Christ Lutheran Church in Park City, Ks. Yet there is plenty in here about his victims, and their survivor's pain. While it would be helpful to know more about Rader's childhood, or his life behind the closed doors of his home during his killing years, all a writer can do is work with the materials he has available. In this case, the betrayed friends, along with Rader's extensive confessions, souvenir collection, dairies of his crimes, notes and drawings and photos are what Mr. Singular had to work with. Given those limits, he does a nice job of explaining BTK's saga. Dennis Rader was incredibly lucky in his career as a serial killer. He was no master criminal, and most of his murders featured mistakes and misfortune for his plans. He seems to have escaped detection only because he was so "normal" and "boring" and "unimportant" in his family and professional life. His undoing was his ego and impatience and his impulsive, compulsive need to explain how brilliant he thought himself to be. At the time of his capture, he was a city employee, supervising compliance with ordinances that required citations but not arrests---a non-professional enforcer of the most minor of laws, so to speak. He was also newly-elected president of the board of his church, to which he was devoted for decades. He led the Cub scouts, was a veteran, and voted Republican. He was exactly the kind of person one would never suspect of being compelled to kill a family of four, and then six adult women over a span of many years. How and why he did what he did, and how and why he was caught, and how and why he decided to confess, are covered here. It is not a pleasant read, but I did find it a compelling one.

No comments about The Night Runner: The Desperate Hunt for a Serial Rapist in Louisiana.

1 comments about You're Under Arrest I'm Not Kidding.

1. I bought both of Don Parker's books: "You're Under Arrest I'm Not Kidding" and "Officer Needs Assistance...Again." Both are jam packed with funny, incredibly well written stories about a cop on the beat. These stories are for anyone who likes to laugh. I am not a cop, and I've never been arrested. But while reading these books, I found myself riding with Deputy Don and laughing both WITH him and AT him. I loaned both books to a friend as MUST READ material. When he moved away without returning either book, I bought them all over again because I didn't want to be without these books in my library. Get both these books. If anyone ever asks you if you've got any good books to read, loan them these... but make sure you get them back. Otherwise, you'll miss them so much you'll have to buy them twice!

No comments about The Krays and Me: Blood, Honour and Respect. Doing Porridge With the Krays..

1 comments about Jack the Ripper - Infamous London Serial Killer (Biography).

1. All this book has is the main Wikipedia article about Jack the Ripper printed out in book form... or at least the version of that article that was online when this book was put together. While Wikipedia uses a license that allows people to republish its content, which means it's not illegal for someone to have done this, certainly as a reader there's no reason to pay $10 to get what you can get for free online. More importantly, if you look it up online you can click links to read much more detailed information that's available in several additional articles Wikipedia has about Jack the Ripper suspects, victims, books, films and so forth, which this publisher didn't even bother collecting together.
   
   Simply put, there's no reason to buy this, or the other books by this publisher, unless you just like paying good money for a watered down version of something that's available for free online.

No comments about The Story of Chicago May.

No comments about Joey Pyle: Notorious - The Changing Face of Organised Crime.