Underboss

Rating:
Summary: An excellent book
Review: If you are an enthusiast on the LSN subject, this is a good book. Sammy tells, in details how he got involved and why he chose to live the life he lived, and why he decided to leave. Definetely recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Perhaps the best underworld book I've read
Review: Sammy's life and times. No punches pulled. Sammy was a consumate gangster and a very astute business guy. When you read this Bio you realize that movies like GoodFellas and the like are very close to the mark. Very enlightening. Overall, a great book.

Rating:
Summary: Sammy's Bull
Review: I can't help but imagine that Sammy the Bull tends to embellish his stories a bit. But Peter Maas makes up for it with his fine writing. All in all, a good book, exciting, and easy to read.

Rating:
Summary: Better than the Sopranos
Review: I loved this book. Despite being quite knowledgable in terms of la cosa nostra, I learned a few things. Sammy the Bull takes you through the story of his life before, during, and even after his time in the mafia. Some his stories are hilarious, like the incident which occured when he was going to beauty school and he clipped the wire to some woman's hearing aid. The stories in the book give all of us non made members a groundbreaking inside look into the life. This is how things really are. In detail all of the mafia hits are described. It is quite graphic at times, no holds barred. Sammy is often labeled as a "rat" but you can judge for yourself after you read the book. Hey, he did what he had to do. Hope you are not offended by a lot of "f-words". I highly recoomend this book to anybody who is interested in learning about the real mafia life, not the Sopranos.

Rating:
Summary: Underboss
Review: I found the book very interesting after reading so much about the family from Gotti's perspective. This read is a riviting and "real" account of what it must be like in a crime family from a guy who has nothing to loose and nothing to lie about.

Rating:
Summary: UNDERBOSS
Review: I FOUND UNDERBOSS TO BE VERY INTERESTING. SAMMY EXPLAINS LIFE IN THE MOB, AS WELL AS WHAT BROUGHT HIM TO THE DECISION OF TURNING IN HIS BOSS AND HIS "FRIENDS". I HAVE READ "MAFIA DYNASTY" AND "GANGLAND" ALSO AND I FIND IT INTERESTING THAT SOME OF THE EVENTS THAT OCCURED IN THE GAMBINO FAMILY ARE MENTIONED IN ALL THREE BOOKS WITH SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT VERSIONS. THIS BOOK IS QUITE INTERESTING AND I WOULD SUGGEST CHECKING IT OUT.

Rating:
Summary: Great book to read on the plane
Review: Interesting and fast-moving account of Sammy Gravano --underboss to John Gotti and later star government witness. This book is great plane reading and is very interesting. Highly recommended because it is short and very fascinating.

Rating:
Summary: Honest memoir
Review: I like how some reviewers call him Sammy the narc. If you have romanticized notion of the mob, if you really think it's like the Godfather, you are in for a surprise. Sammy goes through the daily routine of a mob member. The problems he had as a club owner, the people he killed as a mob hit man. However, I dont' get the impression he is bragging. In any case, it makes for very interesting reading. He talks about the details of how the FBI caught up to him. Why Paul Castellano was killed etc. As for morality, hey, he helpled put Gotti behind bars, anyone who is against that is just a mob groupie. (There must be alot from the reviews...) Further, Peter Maas is the great writer of the New York crime scene. Serpico, in particular was another guy who was hated by his peers. He was a cop too. Just goes to show you, if you are relatively honest, you get in so much more trouble...

Rating:
Summary: Underboss
Review: I will not take sides here,while reading the reviews i've noticed that some have referred to Gravano as a rat saving his own skin , and some saw him as a hero well it depends on how you view the matter.As for the book its very interesting and detailed, it's all about breaking the omerta code and exposing the Mafia or Cosa Nostra.Sammy Gravano explains honestly the tough life of a mobster, how he started as a nobody to becoming the under boss of the Gambino family, also reveals the insides and rules of the Mafia. Great book full of lies, murder and betrayal.

Rating:
Summary: A Lot of Sammy's Bull
Review: Peter Maas is a very skilled writer, and has produced some excellent work. However, this work is hampered by Mr. Gravano's largely self-serving slant on everything. He attempts to convince the reader that he is essentially a nice fellow who just happens to have killed nineteen people along the way. As a reward for his testimony against John Gotti and several others, Gravano served just three years in prison. While those against whom he testified may have been reprehensible characters, one has to take into serious question Gravano's motivation for doing so. Similarly, his motivation in producing this book must also be questioned. Although there are a few interesting elements, this appears to be little more than an effort to cash in on his notoriety, one more heist (albeit a legal one, for a change). Little Sammy - Lots of Bull!