No comments about John Christie: Crime Archive.

1 comments about Shoot to Kill: The True Story of an SAS Hero's Love for an IRA Killer.

1. The writing style is extremely amateur and the content is far too "Hollywood" to be fact. The story was obviously made up to try to sell books and make a buck and hopefully get the author a cheesy tv-movie deal. The only personal facts about Mairead Farrell are facts you can find in any article about her in a paper or on the internet - there is nothing personal that a person who actually knew her would be able to tell. The author probably likes the sound of his own voice a bit too much as he brags incessantly. If he reads this, please heed my advice and stop writing immediately! Drop your pen or turn off your computer and find a new job because you have no writing talent. Please don't kill any more trees for this drivel.

2 comments about Confederate Spies at Large: The Lives of Lincoln Assassination Conspirator Tom Harbin And Charlie Russell.

1. My wife is an amateur genealogist and has discovered she is related to the Queens and the Harbins of southern Maryland, who were instrumental in planning Lincoln's asassination and helping John Wilkes Booth with his unsuccessful escape. Not close enough though that she needs to exonerate her name as Tom Gates does in the movie "National Treasure II". Fascinating reading! Also see American Brutus: John Wilkes Booth and the Lincoln Conspiracies



2. Tom Harbin and Charlie Russell were two southern spies during the American civil war and through their involvement in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, became the most wanted Confederate agents of that conflict. In "Confederate Spies At Large: The Lives Of Lincoln Assassination Conspirator Tom Harbin and Charlie Russell" by John Stewart provides a fascinating account of these two men, their activities in behalf of the Confederacy, their genealogy, and their contribution to the killing of an American president. "Confederate Spies At Large" is a unique and strongly recommended addition to personal, academic, or community library Civil War reference collections and reading lists.

5 comments about Capone: The Life and World of Al Capone.

1. The definitive biography of "Scarface Al" Capone, who ruled the Chicago underworld with an iron fist during Prohibition. John Kobler is a fine writer whose flair with words will keep his readers glued to the pages, regardless of the subject matter. In "Capone," he masterfully recounts the rise and fall of the Windy City's overlord of vice and crime as only he can, presented in an honest, objective, and straightforward (but never dull) manner. This is a highly entertaining effort which any crime historian is sure to enjoy. My only regret is that Mr. Kobler didn't tackle the biographies of other gangland luminaries as well (although he did an excellent job narrating the history of Prohibition in "Ardent Spirits"). If you must read just one book about Big Al, then this is the one. As far as I'm concerned, you can skip all the others.



2. Capone: The Life And World Of Al Capone, written by John Kobler. This was a great book. It had numerous amounts of details and you can learn a lot from this biography. But to the casual reader at least in my opinoin this is not the book for you. This book has tons and tons of information and is great if you are looking for a source for a history project or something. Also if you have a high interest in the subject of Al Capone then this could be a great book for you to read.



3. THIS BOOK WAS GREAT!!!!!
   John Kobler did an excelent job with this one. The title, The Life and World Of Al Capone, really sums it up. Not only was this an extremely accurate factual book, but also was greatly engaging. I am a big fan of Capone books and have read quite a few, but this was easily the best one that I've read. This book includes minute details on Capones life and "business" as well as the long list of dives, hot spots, and other gangsters all inhabiting Chicago.

   I found no flaw in the writing of this book and thought it was marvelously written. I can't begin to tell you how great of a book this was. At different points it transformed me into a Chicago citizen reading the newspaper, to a young hoodlum in the gang, to an inmate at Alcatraz. The only thing I was disappointed with was that it went by to fast! You must read this book!




4. If you're looking for a complete picture of America's most notorious mobster, this is it. This is the definitive biography, a well-rounded study that brings Big Al into three-dimensional focus, something Schonberg only elaborated on and Bergreen failed completely at. The best book ever on the life, times and career of the father of syndicated crime.



5. This book is excellent! There aren't enough words in English to discribe this man! This book gives great insight into what really went on in Al Capone's life and his gang--RUTHLESS with TASTE! Just wish it were a lot longer.

No comments about Wanted: The Eyes Have It - Law Enforcement Mug Shots 1880-1922.

No comments about Benny Binion: The Legend of Benny Binion, Dallas Gambler and Mob Boss.

4 comments about A Dynasty of Western Outlaws.

1. The University of Nebraska Press is one of my favorite collegiate publishers. Through its Bison Books imprint, it has published important works on the history of the American West for decades. It has reprinted some of the most essential books on the old west that are in the public domain for new generations of readers. A Dynasty of Outlaws is a fascinating study of the spread of evil and outlawyerly in the historic west. While generations of newspapermen, screenwriters and novelists have glorified and romanticized the outlaw; in reality they were men - and occasionally women - who, like all criminals, preyed on their neighbors. The banks that they robbed were not the multi-nationals of today, but small local businesses that held the savings of the merchants, farmers and ranchers. While large corporations owned the trains that they held up, the money that was carried in them was not, nor were the intimate belongings of the citizens that the highwayman held up and traumatized. Paul Wellman (1898-1966) wrote is book which was first published in 1966 and his fascinating thesis is that crime has a "contagious nature" and he traces the criminal gangs of the old west back to the James-Younger gang and the training that they received from the infamous Civil War criminal William C. Quantrill. He then connects the bloody family tree of criminal gangs to the Dalton, Doolin and Belle Starr gangs that evolved from them. Wellman follows this association of criminality into this century when bank robbery re-emerged again. "A Dynasty of Western Outlaws" is not only a rich mine of western lore but an important view into the nature of criminality. Jeffrey Morseburg



2. Paul Wellman's A Dynasty of Western Outlaws is a 20th Century standard of outlaw history. It is an extremely well written work and belongs in any library of crime history or the "Old West." Wellman, who was a police reporter in Wichita in the 1920's, was one of the first authors to comprehend and explore the connections between Midwestern outlaws of the post-Civil War era and the Depression gangs of the 1930's. That makes this book a useful starting point for anyone interested in the outlaw period. Unfortunately, there are errors throughout the work: Jesse and Frank James were not cousins of the Youngers, only partners in crime; recent research by other authors make it doubtful that Cole Younger fathered Belle Starr's daughter Pearl; Henry Starr was never a member of the Cook gang; Al Spencer was not one of the Stroud bank robbers; etc., etc., etc. And the chapters on '20's outlaws Eddie Adams and Al Spencer, on which Wellman seems to have relied too heavily on his own memory, and on "Pretty Boy" Floyd, are sketchy and highly inaccurate. Wellman's insights are good and his basic premise of an "outlaw dynasty" from Quantrill to Floyd is sound but his facts need to be checked against other sources.



3. While the book contains very interesting material regarding the roots of western outlaws in the years after the Civil War, some individual facts leave a bit to be desired. All in all a good read, but I would encourage further reading on some subjects, or at least double-checking some of the facts used in the book.



4. Sometime-journalist, sometime-novelist Wellman's history of bad guys who terrorized the American Wild West from the period following the Civil War to the early half of the 20th Century is excellently written and presented. He very interestingly traces the links -- sometimes by blood, sometimes by mere acquaintance or "apprenticeship" -- between the most infamous Western bad guys from William Clark Quantrill during the Bloody Kansas period preceding the Civil War to the death of Pretty Boy Floyd. Highly recommended to fans of Western fiction and general readers who want to know more about Western history.

3 comments about Memoir of Bookie's Son.

1. Very entertaining book that details the family life of a bookie and his two sons (one of whom narrates the book). Interesting dichotomy between the son (now a professor at NYU) and his father who left school after 4th grade but had a Ph.D from the school of hard knocks. Dialogue between the family members is especially memorable.



2. I ENJOYED THIS SHORT STORY. AS I WAS ABLE TO RELATE TO MY CHILDHOOD AS MY FATHER WAS A JEWISH CHARACTER SIMALAR IN A WAY TO THE CENTRAL CHARACTER IN THIS BOOK. WOULD LIKE TO DROP A NOTE TO THE AUTHO. HOW DO I DO THIS?



3. Sidney Offit is a writer's writer. In this elegant memoir of his father the bookie, Offit has evoked the sense and sensibility of his Baltimore childhood and his father's shady dealings with a fresh and often surprising grace. It's a great read for the details and texture of time and place, but it's also a truly fine piece of writing. A very under-appreciated book by a writer who really should have written something great by now, and perhaps he still will.

2 comments about A Checkered Past.

1. Once I started this book, I couldn't put it down. It was well worth the read, though, especially what happens toward the end of the book. He is working on publishing another book, "The Third Pillar of Wisdom". I've read the manuscript and it is another excellent read. It will be available soon.



2. The author has been incarcerated in Florida for most of his life, starting at age eleven. His book is well worth the read, particularly for those who want a better understanding of such matters in Florida.

   He recounts his life, both committing crimes and incarcerated, as well as his many escapes. For a person who has been incarcerated most of his life, he is a good writer and gives very worthwhile descriptions of Florida "justice": Way too many law enforcement officers lie about him, causing him to have even less respect for our quite flawed criminal justice system.

   He also recounts the injustices that others have suffered in Florida's "correctional" institutions.

   And after he had been arrested for felony murder along with Frank Valdez, the death row inmate who was murdered by the prison guards in the late 1990s, he has a very powerful conversion experience to Christianity.

5 comments about Zarqawi: The New Face of Al-Qaeda.

1. There is obviously some factual controversy over Zarqawi, but I found this to be a very quick, accessible read. The overall facts of Zarqawi's life seem to indicate a drift from a listless life as a tattoo-laced drunkard to a radical and brutal Islamist. He was not a great brain, but he was an awful brute, and we can be thankful that he is dead. As to when Zarqawi pledged allegiance to Osama bin Laden, that may be debated. Brisard does illustrate will that the connections between Al Qaeda and Saddam's Iraq were virtually non-existent. I would recommend reading this book, and then deciding for yourself.



2. Very helpful in identifying the sort of man we were looking for in 2005. It establishes a very firm timeline for Zarqawi's involvement in al-Qaida and talks enough about his background to give you a "feel" for his mindset.
   
   It also gives you a very good idea of the sort of animal we put down for good in 2006.



3. I think Brisard should try his hand at spy thrillers. There is a market for them and they don't have to be true.
   
   Brisard has a problem with truth. He gets facts wrong and pushes his own agendas. I've read about the libel actions but this book sure shows why he has problems, he just can't deal with the idea of getting facts and presenting them clearly.
   
   I read his other book and this is more of the same, cut and paste with a bit of wild commentary thrown in.
   
   If he were freed from the need to even appear factual, this wild stuff would make for great novels or even films. Would be fun to see all of the terrorists conspiring with world leaders and rooms full of gold and jewels and so on. He could even throw in some sexy Russian girl spies to keep it interesting!
   
   But as a factual account of Zarqawi I have to say no way. Brisard has never met Zarqawi, apparently has never even met anyone who has met Zarqawi so where are the facts?



4. This is one of the few books I have ever returned.
   
   I do not have a lot to add to the other reviews. I really got upset when I learned that his Senate Testimony had been removed AND that he never really wrote a report for the UN.
   
   The writing is not good, and it is obvious that you can't trust anything he says.
   
   If you need to learn about Zarqawi, go to the BBC site and read their profile. It is not full of conspiracy theories like this book and they don't lie about what they have done.
   
   About the only good thing I can say about the author is that is blog is entertaining. Nothing to do with terrorist money but a lot to do with how much time he spends in court getting sued by rich Arabs.



5. This book is by a man who said he wrote a report for the United Nations. The United Nations said he gave them a report he already wrote.
   
   I get the idea he had his answer in mind when he wrote this book and made whatever facts he happened across fit this answer.
   
   This book is really pretty useless. The author is not reliable and the book reads like it was translated in about an hour. There are conspiracy websites with better information, and at least you know not to take them too seriously.