Review of "The gang that couldn't shoot straight." on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
This book tells the story of a Mafia lieutenant who wants to become the big boss. So Kid Sally Palumbo gathers together his closest allies and tries to knock off Papa Baccala and take over his gang. As you can tell by the title, things don't go smoothly and there are a lot of funerals for the upstarts.
The most amazing thing about this book is just how well it captures the time it was written. It just reeks of 1960s New York, with bad cops, corrupt officials and Mafia dons. Breslin, of course, followed the maxim of "write what you know" and he knew this turf better than anyone. He had funny swipes at everyone, from the Mayor to newspapers. Every page just drips with small time corruption and grifters trying to grift.
Oh, and it is funny as hell. So many amazingly apt descriptions that make you smile …
This book tells the story of a Mafia lieutenant who wants to become the big boss. So Kid Sally Palumbo gathers together his closest allies and tries to knock off Papa Baccala and take over his gang. As you can tell by the title, things don't go smoothly and there are a lot of funerals for the upstarts.
The most amazing thing about this book is just how well it captures the time it was written. It just reeks of 1960s New York, with bad cops, corrupt officials and Mafia dons. Breslin, of course, followed the maxim of "write what you know" and he knew this turf better than anyone. He had funny swipes at everyone, from the Mayor to newspapers. Every page just drips with small time corruption and grifters trying to grift.
Oh, and it is funny as hell. So many amazingly apt descriptions that make you smile or even break out in laughter. And I am as big a New York City hater as any Boston boy could be, but this was just a delightful read, even today.