Body Mike : An Unsparing Expose by the Mafia Insider Who Turned on the Mob

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Summary: Body Mike: A great expose of the Columbo Family!
Review: After reading more than 20 mob books, I have found this book to be the most exciting. This book gives the reader an inside look at that inner workings of Brooklyn's Columbo Family and its intriguing boss, Joe Columbo. The reader finds how this man evaded taxes and kept in power for as long as he did, and it also describes loansharking in vivid details. Mr. Cantalupo's memory and survival is a blessing for mafia readers. Organized crime in Brooklyn is stupendously covered with this book. Only one regret about this book and that is it lacks detail on the Gallo-Profaci war. The only other book that holds a candle to this is "Blood Oath" by George Fresolone. I highly recommend this title.

Rating:
Summary: Good start to the book but fizzles out quickly.
Review: I'm always excited to read different stories about families you don't normally hear much about. There are a myriad of books about Gotti and Capone but this book gave an inside look into the Colombo family from a FRIEND, not a made guy. So the first few chapters are interesting, providing anecdotal info. on Colombo, Gallo, etc., then this "insider" turns stoolie because of his gambling debts. The majority of the book then describes him trying to rat out his friends. The reader is hard-pressed to feel sympathy for this self-serving individual. This book never delivers that "inside" edge because Cantalupo was never involved in anything more important than numbers running. Don't waste your time, especially if you have to search for the book.

Rating:
Summary: Wanna-be gangster wants to tell his story.
Review: This is a typical example of a wanna-be gangster who testifies against his friends and associates and then goes out looking to sell his story to the highest bidder. The problem is, there is no story. He idolizes his alleged "gangster" mentor for the first few chapters and then, once he's gone, he systematically turns informant on all his associates to eradicate his gambling debts. Thank God they didn't try to make this into a movie.