5 comments about Fred & Rose: The Full Story of Fred and Rose West and the Gloucester House of Horrors.

1. I don't really see how you could call a book like this good anyway. But, I have read alot of true crime stories and I definitely thought this one is the worst. I don't feel it is very thorough. You read 4 chapters at the beginning ALL about the family history and then it just kind of jumps to everything happening. In my opinion it could have been written alot better.



2. Howard Sounes' book about the West Country's most infamous couple is an enlongated bubble gum, tabloid gossip article. Whilst I'm sure Sounes spent a lot of time researching the case and fingering through the many aspects of intricacies, the book does not delve anywhere as deep as the graves of the victims the couple butchered. The glossy account of the details is, however, intensified by the awful and very humbling circumstances in which the murderous pair grew up and met, but this has nothing to do with the author. There is minimal discussion or investigation as to the reasons why the pair undertook their Road to Hell by way of torture, ... voyeuristic prostitution, despite them being up there with the best of the serial killers. The plus point of the book is that it is written in a childish journalistic format and is thus very easy to read, almostunputdownable. The pair's heinous crimes are some of the worst I have read about and it is almost unbelievable that anyone could inflict these attrocities. For pure sensationalism and an easy introduction into the wonderful world of serial killers, this book hits the mark. But for those who want to question a little further and obtain explanations or theories as to why the necrophilliac, nymphomaniac, sadistic and self-centred pair committed such crimes, best give me a ring and we can discuss over a beer. Perhaps at a pub in Gloucester!!



3. This book is a classic true crime title. The case is extraordinary: an apparently ordinary and pleasant married couple, Fred and Rose West, molest, torture and murder a series of young women and girls -- including their own daughter -- bury the dismembered remains under their house, in the middle of the city of Gloucester, and continue living happily in said house for many years. The author, Sounes, broke the story as a reporter, and this is the big book on the case, which is very well known in England. Absolutely riveting and a big seller ever since published about ten years ago in the UK, though not so well known in the US. It will make your hair curl (if it doesn't already). A classic of the genre alongside Profession of Violence, Helter Skelter, and Killing for Company.



4. I like this book because it has a family tree, a diagram of the house and useful information regarding location of the bodies. I just started this book and I find the writing to be pretty good. The author stays clear of his personal views until the end of the book. The story is horrifying to believe but reading the backgrounds of this unusual couple helps understand the crimes behind their union. They were unspeakable to say the least to include the murder of their own teenage daughter who wanted to escape. I remember watching a documentary aired on A&E with other surviving children. They knew that this didn't go on in other families and they envied families who had discipline and kept the x-rated stuff to the couples themselves rather than including their own children, strangers, and regularl visitors. The Wests' open sexuality actually probably caused more disturbances to the children who were affected most of all. They weren't loved as they should have been. They were beaten and abused physically, sexually, and emotionally. I wish the West children found solace and comfort now more than ever. They really lived in a a house of horrors beyound our imagination.



5. what a sick family, I have read many true crime books but this is one that will stay with me forever. Not for the faint of heart.
   Good writing on a very sick subject.

5 comments about King of the Godfathers: Joseph Massino and the Fall of the Bonanno Crime Family (Pinnacle True Crime).

1. Mr. DeStefano's latest book is the defining work on the Bonanno Crime Family! This book expounds on Mr. DeStefano's meticulous & compelling coverage of the Massino trial, incorporating Joe Massino's early years and rise to power, along with a concise history of the Mafia's major figures.
   His years as a respected journalist, have given Mr. DeStefano the ability to lay out the facts with total objectivity, while writing about what is often the basest of human behavior. Deftly, he also weaves in passages which give us insight into the emotional toll paid by those who are inadvertently affected by such a lifestyle.
   This riveting book gives readers entree into a secret society which continues to fascinate and affirms why Mr. DeStefano is one of the finest reporters on the beat today.
   I look forward to seeing the next organized crime book by this superb writer and mob aficionado!
   
   PS I wonder if a previous reviewer has confused this terrific book with another with a similar name, by a different author?



2. King Of The Gordfathers is an extremely well written book! I found it very deep and informative, so much so that I wondered how Anthony DeStefano got the 'members of the family' to reveal all of the inside stories. This book opens up the silence that was for so many years repressed and only speculated about. Mr. DeStefano also shows the work of the FBI and law enforcement agencies in finally putting pieces together that brought down one of the last of the 'old world' families. A big plus are the crystal clear photo section and an epilogue on 'Where They Are Now' King Of The Godfathers is a very detailed book that one needs to take the time to think about as you read through its chapters. Being of Sicilan heritage, I was very impressed, enlightened and educated, let alone a bit surprised! This book also shows why Mr.DeStefano won a Pulitzer Prize in 1991. You will not be disappointed in reading!



3. i liked the way this book gave alot of info about the wives of mob figures.I've always wondered what the wives knew about their husband's activities and how they rationalized it. The wives are a convenient way to hide and transfer the assets of mobsters and they should bear some(or alot) of the guilt.The one DA in the book was putting pressure on mobster wives and this was a tactic I was unaware of and have wondered why mobsters' wives were considered,"untouchable".After all who is too often pressuring the mobster to bring in more money?
   Joe Massino or "Joe Wagons"(nicknamed for his sandwich and coffee truck business) is represented in this book as one of the "Last Dons".Because law enforcement techniques are making the "family" less profitable and more dangerous, more and more mobsters are turning "states evidence".This book tells the tale of how law enforcement is breaking the comraderie of mobsters who previously took a "blood oath" to be faithful to the mob.Behind the facade of the "ham sandwuch guru",the story of Massino, is one filled with scams and murder.Apparently there's not much money in ham sandwiches,but it does get a person out into the working world to promote their scams.This book will keep you glued.Lots of gruesome photos which initially shock,but then as you read the history of the poor unfortunate you feel alot less sympathetic.(Just the mob's way of cleaning it's own house)!Well researched and highly readable



4. awesome book, couldn't put it down.



5. If you are like me, you thought the mafia would die out when John Gotti went to jail. That is clearly not the case, as this book perfectly illustrates. Fantastic, entertaining book about one of the bosses of one of the powerful Five Families in New York. The man only recently went to prison in 2003. Book (the softbound edition) covers his entire life of crime all the way through his trial in 2004 along with developments through early 2008. It is an entertaining, educational, informative read, covering not only the boss, but the Bonnano family and NY mafia families in general. If you want to learn what the modern day mob is like and have a good time while doing so, then buy this book.

5 comments about The Butterfly Garden: Surviving Childhood on the Run with One of Americas Most Wanted.

1. June 2, 2008. I was supposed to meet Chip St. Clair in the HCI Booth last week at the Book Expo America just to say "Hi." When I got there, he was busy and I didn't want to interrupt. My regret is that I didn't get back to that booth and missed the opportunity to meet him in person.
   
   I started to read The Butterfly Garden on the day after the Expo and couldn't put it down. Every time I did, I was compelled to pick it up and read more. There are other comments about the "meat" of the story, so I won't repeat those. I highly recommend this heartfelt story and can assure readers that once they open the book they won't put it down.
   
   The story is one that tugs at your heartstrings and it makes one wonder how he came through everything. But his dedication to literature and his escape into poetry is reflected on every page. Chip takes the reader on a journey narrated in a voice that makes the horror beyond imagination that was his childhood, extending into his young adult years, a story written so beautifully that even the squeamish of heart can read and understand what went into making Chip the person he is.
   
   This book is a must read and I have already recommended it to several people and will post it on my website.
   
   MORGAN ST. JAMES
   Silver Sisters Mysteries
   [..]



2. This book is an intimate chronicle of a man's journey through abuse as a victim and his metamorphasis into an amazing man who conquers his demons on by one with his partner Lisa by his side. It is a sad story with a satisfying ending. It is a quick and easy read, in that it is well written. Recommended!



3. I had the pleasure of meeting Chip & Lisa St. Clair a few years ago. We have since developed a lasting friendship that has taken us to countless fund raisers in hopes of raising awareness to the ugliness of child abuse. We continue to work together in an effort to help those who don't have a voice. Chip is my hero!
   
   Mark S. Ford
   President
   Risk Security & Investigations
   419 S. Main Street
   Rochester, Michigan 48307
   248-608-1712



4. I'm so glad I took the time to go through books and come across this one. An amazing true story about Chip St. Clair. This book is a real page turner that's full of surprises. Chip is a remarkable person! I highly recommend this book.



5. Chip grew up being abused and not knowing his parents were on the run. Chip didn't find out until he was in college about the secrets his parents kept from him. He realized that they were both very dangerous people and he was fortunate to have survived into adulthood.
   
   This book shows the great influence a woman can have on a man and the importance of a good woman in a man's life. Lisa helped Chip sort out his past and loved him for who he was, bringing out the best in him. Growing up, Chip found solace in poetry and art. Not until the end of the book does the reader find out the meaning of the title of the book. I agree with my husband when he says it's a real page turner and full of surprises!

5 comments about Finding Freedom: Writings from Death Row.

1. This book was deeply moving on many levels, but I was especially struck by how Jarvis Masters was able to find freedom possibly the worst situation one could be in, while many of us, with relatively good lives, never question our own imprisionment. We're all in one sort of prison or another. Jarvis was shown a path to his own freedom, and in the true Boddhisatva tradition, he makes that path clear to the rest of us. Jarvis is an inspiration and one hopes that his message will be read by all.



2. This book was an easy read, and gave me a good sense of what it was like for Masters to go from angry to peaceful in prison. It's not professionally written, but one wouldn't expect it to be. I think it would be interesting to people who study prison psychology, violence, Buddhism and meditation, and/or personal growth and transformation.



3. I first spotted this book when I had half an hour up my sleeve on the way to a visit at Bunbury Prison. It moved me big time.
   
   
   In my working capacity over the years as a teacher and facilitator within the Western Australian Prison system I have often used chapters of this book as a pivotal point in my classes.
   
   
   I am sure Jarvis would be pleased to know that this book has moved the lives of many - including that of many prisoners. To demonstrate how freedom can be found under circumstances of incarceration until death with stories that prisoners can truly relate to is an awesome feat.
   
   
   The story about the 4th of July really provoked much deep and meaningful discussion.
   
   
   'Scars', and 'My Sisters' really got them thinking too.
   
   
   
   
   
   But this book is not only of great benefit to prisoners; it's messages are universal to us all.



4. Its quite an amazing book. Just at a literary level, it is good but not spectacular. But when you combine the content and the actual context, it moves you; it fills you with hope, a sense of beauty in our existence and experiences as human beings, a sense of peace and serenity. My hats off to Jarvis! I am amazed at what he has accomplished and I am inspired to continue to try to be a better human being myself.



5. Sometimes inspiration comes from the most unlikely sources and in this case from a death row inmate! A great lesson in humility, a wonderful reminder that all life has value, and an opportunity to be reminded that each person can find a way to make a difference.

5 comments about Drug Lord: The Life & Death of a Mexican Kingpin - A True Story.

1. I've read the book and it is everything my friends told me it was. In the book Comandante Oscar Prieto is one of my friend's dad. The author gives good detail of the story of Pablo because i've heard a lot of true stories which are in the book, and of course a lot that aren't. I have family in Ojinaga and you still have the same business going on, but a lot of people from the town don't worry about it. I've seen pictures where Pablo just looks like a normal rancher from town. He always helped the people in need for food or money. He always remembered where he came from. That's why people don't remember him as a drug lord but as a person who helped the community and the poor. You will be surprised by how Pablo did his deals to cross the drugs over the border. When you read the book you will picture in your mind everything that is going on just like I did. Believe me, you will visualize.



2. In Drug Lord, Terrence Poppa manages to capture all the elements that a book about America's War on Drugs should have: engrossing, multidimensional heroes and villains, clearly-defined connections between the men and women who move oceans of narcotics across the Rio Grande and the larger governmental interests on both sides of the border that profit, one way or the other, from the trade, and guns, guns, guns. Drug Lord was an engrossing read, which I happened to read while touring the Big Bend area of West Texas. The book had such an impact on me that I made a 100-mile detour to visit Ojinaga, the stage where Pablo Acosta made his rise from dirt-poor campesino to mafia kingpin. Although Ojinaga today does its best to disassociate itself, at least to outsiders, from Acosta's legacy (even this pinche gringo knew better than to walk into a cantina and start asking questions), many of the tangible remnants of the bad old days Poppa describes, such as the smuggler's trucks with questionable propane tanks in the bed and houses surrounded by 12 foot-high cinderblock walls, are still readily visible. Although the book succeeds as narrative and will satisfy anyone interested in the drug war, the conclusion that Poppa comes to can be summed up in one sentence: it is all Mexico's fault. True, the Mexican government is rotten to the core, and six years under Vicente Fox doesn't seem to have changed much. But any honest examination of the War on Drugs must acknowledge the fact that Acosta and those who have come before and after him are only supplying a demand created by Americans; if the Mexicans don't sate that demand, then the Colombians will, and if the Colombians don't sate it, then the Cosa Nostra, or the Russians, and so on and so forth. I found Poppa's willingness to foster the blame for an unwinnable war on the shoulders of a country that has lost so much fighting a conflict whose victory will primarily benefit Americans to be a sad and myopic conclusion to an otherwise great book. Readers wanting an equally-engrossing but more balanced read should try Charles Bowden's Down By The River, about the Amado-Fuentes organization.



3. After serving in the Border Patrol in the west Texas area for the last ten years, Poppa's book is the most realistic I have read to date. I get frustrated reading many books, especially when they start blaming the US for Mexico's problems. This books explains clearly corruption in the Mexican system, how it came about, and why it will probably never go away. It also demonstrates how ridiculious our politicians can be in attempting to deal with a government built on and run by corruption.
   
   The story of Pablo is great, but you could just change the name and it would fit many of the other King Pins out there and their lives too. Mexico relishes and charishes Drug Lords as heroes, and that is a fact.
   
   Question? When you have that many millions of people crossing into the United States illegally that have accepted corruption as the way things are done, what will that eventually do to our society?



4. quisiera referirme al epilogo la pagina 357 para ser exactos en esta pagina el escritor le llama a mexico un pais que tiene envidia a EEUU por sus logros.... y que por eso los mexicanos traficamos droga.
   para el escritor:
   By now everyone has accepted that the fact that as long as there's demand,there will always be supply, and that whenever one supplier goes down, another inevitably rises up to fill the void.
   SUPPLY AND DEMAND-the bedrock principle of economics- thus ensures that the endless war on drugs will continue until EEUU stop using drugs...
   si sabes tanto escritor porque ocultas la verdad?????. benjamin(sinaloense)



5. It is interesting to me very informative. In candle wax traffic to other illicit products. I like the cover as well as the whole story. This book has the lord of the skies, Mr.Fuentes in his coffin as well. For me it is a very special book.

5 comments about Cullotta: The Life of a Chicago Cri Las Vegas Mobster and Government Witness.

1. An absolute great read! Mr. Griffin gets right to the point with his painstaking research in this book. Anyone would have to be afraid of a guy who would whack you if you looked at him wrong. A can't miss buy!!



2. Another well-written, factual and informative book by Dennis Griffin.
   
   This book details the life and crimes of Frank Cullotta before he became an informant and briefly covers his life after the witness protection program. It covers in depth the friendship between Tony Spilotro and Cullotta from their early days as juveniles on the streets of Chicago to the glitter of Vegas.
   
   The chapter on Bertha's was particularly engaging, where the robbery is first covered by the FBI/Metro's version of events and in the preceding section; Cullotta gives his account of the robbery before and after arrest.
   
   Cullotta makes the distinction between his role as informant to that of `rat' Sal Romano, as entirely different situations. His was a matter of self-preservation, while Romano's was to purposely set out and trap unsuspecting mobsters. It is Frank's belief that they would have got away with the robbery at Bertha's, were it not for Romano.
   
   While I don't condone crime, I couldn't help but feel relieved when Cullotta makes it out alive after becoming a government witness and now leads a relatively normal existence in an undisclosed location.
   
   I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in true crime, particularly in Las Vegas.



3. Denny Griffin is one of those author's whose works you want to follow. Keep writing, Denny! Rita Schiano, author of Painting the Invisible Man



4. I feel a bit dissapointed in Mr. Griffins book. Not the subject matter or the story but the way he paints Cullotta as a family man and a down on his luck bad guy gone good. Frank Cullotta is a common criminal who got off lite and was in a major motion picture that he was paid for being in. I am a bit confused as to why a retired lawman would be such a hero worshiper to a punk like Cullotta. This could have been a better book and I must disagree with the five star reviewers many of whom's opinion I respect and generally agree with. I guess this time we will just have to agree to disagree.



5. Very good book, very detailed and informative. One of the must have books for the true Mafia fan.....

5 comments about The Osama bin Laden I Know: An Oral History of al Qaeda's Leader.

1. Peter Bergen is a journalist, so it is not surprising that this book is a collection of brief interviews or quotes rather than one long narrative. The interviews are arranged chronologically, with some comments by Bergen interspersed to make a more cohesive and readable book. Bergen has clearly done his homework, and this book provides the reader with a good understanding of who Bin Laden is and where he came from. Now if Bergen could just tell us where to find Bin Laden today . . .



2. I listened to this as an audio CD. This method would of course be better since writting verbatim the way people talk is always hard to read. Just read one of the speeches that Bush makes to see the difference.



3. I enjoyed the contents of this book, it is very informative. Peter Bergen gets into deep detail regarding O. Bin Laden's past and whereabouts before 9/11. However, sometimes I felt it had too much detail that didn't really had to be included in the book. One thing is for sure, Peter Bergen is the journalist to ask about O. Bin Laden. He has credibility.



4. As a person who has long tried to understand how this person could be a part of the horrible things he did, this book is very revealing. Through the use of first-hand accounts from people who interacted with bin Laden at different phases of his life, the reader sees how a person very strict muslim views are radicalized to the point where killing innocent people becomes a real option. Mr. Bergen's work is pretty rigorous and he's to be commended for it.
   
   I purchased the audio version of this book and I thought he did a good job, although I could have done without some of the inflection he used to differentiate between Bergen's words and the first-hand experiences of those interviewed.



5. well, not this book actually, but a related book by Bergen's colleague Parag Khanna titled The Second World.
   
   Some of the various, and numerous, factual errors that riddle the book are relatively trivial, but suggest serious sloppiness and disregard for getting facts right. For example, Yugoslavia was not part of Warsaw pact, as Khanna states. Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov was appointed to office in 1992 by Boris Yeltsin, and not by Vladimir Putin. Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia, Macedonia and Albania are not all smaller by population than Manhattan, and the death toll from the civil wars in former Yugoslavia was not greater than half a million. Other obviously wrong assertions seem to be made up simply to provide lurid background color to Khanna's travelogue: the former KGB headquarters in Moscow has not been turned into "a high-class disco," expensive Moscow malls do not charge entrance fees, and police road checkpoints in Uzbekistan do not stop and check all vehicles. And other gross misstatements of fact display a simple complete lack of understanding the history and culture of the countries of which he writes: the (Orthodox) Uspenky cave monastery in Crimea is not representative of Ukraine's "proud Catholic heritage," Zoran Djindjic was not the first democratically elected leader since World War II in former Yugoslavia , and in the 1980s Yugoslav republics like Bosnia and Macedonia were not richer than Spain. Many of Khanna's wildly wrong claims sound like local myths that he has taken at face value. I can easily imagine some misguided elderly Belgrade resident waxing nostalgically for the days "when every one of our republics was richer than Spain!"
   
   Yet more of Khanna's assertions are not merely factually wrong, but far exceed the ludicrous. In the fast paced and dangerous Russian business world, "one is safe only in the sauna, where everyone is naked and no weapons are allowed." It was news to me to learn from Khanna that every winter "waves" of Russians and "thousands of Ukrainians" freeze to death in "crumbling heatless apartment blocks." And he employs gross mischaracterizations of fact to buttress his claims. For example, according to Khanna, in 2006 Greek GDP increased 25% when the government started to account for prostitution and cigarette smuggling in its figures. In fact, the government said it would include all unreported economic activity, mostly in construction and trade, but including a "small" amount for illegal activities such as smuggling. And this is merely a sampling of patently ridiculous claims.
   
   And for a "foreign policy whiz-kid," Khanna makes numerous and serious analytical mistakes, showing a clear misunderstanding of economics, international institutions, and international relations. The unhedged statement, "Russia's diplomatic position is purely residual," will surely surprise diplomats from Brussels to Tokyo. Noting that Gazprom's market capitalization is $300 billion leads Khanna to the conclusion that Gazprom is one third of the Russian economy, confusing market capitalization with GDP. And his bald assertion that "[n]one of Central Asian legal systems have evolved beyond Kakfaaesque" is belied by the numerous successful legislative accomplishments of Kazakhstan and its quite sophisticated legal code, for example.
   
   
   But the worst moments of Khanna's book are when he quotes conversations that seem of such dubious authenticity as to make me believe they may be fabricated, or at best the result of very selective reporting, only relating those comments that fit within his pre-existing views. "'Our pride has suffered'" explains a "Moscow intellectual over a narrow glass of [of course] ice-chilled vodka, `but this only drives our nationalism further.'" In Kiev, the locals "give lifts to strangers for a token fare." Why? "We suffered enough together, so we still trust each other." There are just too many such (anonymous) quotations that fail to ring true to trust in the author's integrity. And he also reports statements by national leaders as if they were heard in personal conversation, yet in a curiously indirect fashion that suggests otherwise.

5 comments about Supermob: How Sidney Korshak and His Criminal Associates BecameAmerica's Hidden Power Brokers.

1. Mr. Russo has written a book that seems to say that a mob of Russian-American Jews really ran the mob activities during the last century. In this book, he mainly discusses the life of Sidney Korshak, a lawyer working Los Angeles that was called 'The Fixer.'
   
   This was at a time when most of us thought that the Italians, especially those from Sicily, controlled the mob activities in most of the United States. And I don't see any references in this book to various centers of mob related activities such as New Orleans.
   
   Mr. Russo presents an interesting survey of mob related activities, but essentially concentrates on the LA/Hollywood scene. And this could indeed have been the case. It's a ways to go however, from there to considering this to be the SuperMob over the rest of the country, the rest of the crime. Mr. Russo certainly seems to see a major conspiracy running the country. It makes interesting reading.
   
   It is important to remember as you read the book that Sid Korshak was never arrested, never even got a parking ticket (unless of course the were all fixed).



2. Reading the life of Sid Korshack also covers an interesting saga of mob history, involving the creation of Las vegas, the entertainment industry and politics all comingled together, which the mob's hand reached into and used to great advantage for the purpose infuencing their criminal interests. There is a great amount of detail documented in this book, which at times begs belief, at the extent of the connections weaving through this mans life, blurring the line between criminal enterprise and the supposed gatekeepers sworn to uphold the law, who have no trouble acting in concert. Put together in a strong compelling narrative, a great read which flows nicely and has a definite ring of truth to it.



3. I loved this book - maybe because I knew half the people in it! It is a wonderful (true) yarn of Jewish immigrants settling in Chicago and how the succeeding generation made their way up the financial/political/power ladder, alas on the wrong side of the law. It reads like a novel and I always looked forward to getting to read more, and was sorry when it was over.



4. Sidney Korshak was one of the most secretive of powerbrokers in the 20th century, and this wonderful book finally unveils the secrets.
   Dr Peter Teiman
   Switzerland



5. America loves mob melodramas, guys getting whacked because they crossed somebody or other. No one much cares whether the culprits get caught since it's all part of the underworld game. No one in authority much cares either, that is, until some hoodlum tries to beat his income tax after the gov't has demanded its cut. Then the bloodhounds of the IRS come calling and the careless capo gets a federal number.
   
   Economists call the early stages of capital accumulation "primitive accumulation". Few academics may call 20's style bootlegging primitive accumulation, but illegal whiskey sure raised a lot of money for the Capone-led Chicago gang. And like most rising business ventures, much of that money was used by astute managers such as Murray "The Camel" Humphreys to buy influence into the over-world of politics and law. What does it matter if the money's dirty, since it's still money, as any number of corrupted Illinois officials shows.
   
   But what happens when even a big city like Chicago becomes too small for the sums flowing into gangster coffers. Well. if you're a wizard like Humphreys, you start looking for new opportunities, especially where there is little or no competition. You also look for somebody who can pass for respectable, since you're past the primitive stage and now have the money to go legit. Enter attorney Sidney Korshak, discreet, smooth, and, above all, a protege of Jake Arvey, Chicago's master ward healer and political go-between. As Russo's lengthy account shows, the mob could not have made a better choice.
   
   Horace Greeley's famous directive was to, "Go West, young man," and that's just where Korshak took the mob money and contacts, helping to turn dusty Las Vegas into the underworld's Glitter Gulch, and Los Angeles real estate into a permanent citadel of mob influence. Along the way, he picked up such powers in their own right as MCA's talent impresario Lew Wasserman and Democratic party power-broker Paul Ziffren, along with numerous union bigshots. Together, theirs was an underworld shadow cast across two big states with a network of contacts reaching all the way to the nation's capital.
   
   But muscling in at the top means knowing how to cut deals with others at the top. Here Korshak proves to be the guy to go to whether the public knows his name or not. Want top talent for your TV show, see Sid; want no union trouble at the studios, see Sid; want a good deal on a tax scam, see Sid; want a big donation for a charity fund-raiser, yeah, see Sid. And all the time, there's the whispering in the background about the guy's connections with other guys, guys with guns. But then, isn't Sinatra's Rat Pack a really cool bunch of Hollywood swingers. Yeah, just ask the public or even President Kennedy.
   
   To me, it's not a pretty picture, all the way from the yawning silence of the LA Times to the hobnobbing with Pat Brown and Ronald Reagan, plus a Hollywood establishment that could apparently care less. Scattered investigations go nowhere, while whistle-blowers like Steve Allen get black-balled for their civic duty. But then, maybe this is just another success story of primitive accumulation working its way to the top and learning to get along, even as the top learns to get along with them. I believe it was Victor Hugo who said that behind every great fortune lies a great crime. Maybe then, the Chicago mob was just more obvious than those others like old Joe Kennedy, an Irish bootlegger reborn into the white-collar world despite the sinister origins. Disturbing or not, the book is well worth the read.
   
   As a general reader, I'm in no position to gainsay any of Russo"s facts, so I try to keep an open mind toward detractors. It's vital, however, that critics not simply denounce the work in unsubstantiated fashion. Chapter and verse should be cited in order to gain credibility. Of course, the text casts aspersions onto a number of prominent and reputable people, which places a heavy load on both the book and its detractors. Nonetheless, if Russo has to follow the rules, so should the critics.

1 comments about The Spy Within: Larry Chin and China's Penetration of the CIA.

1. I debated about whether to give this book a 4 star for the information and subject matter and a 3 star for the book's organization and writing. The author is inconsistent when he shifts from a non-fiction factual style to a novelistic style of writing. The author certainly has good credentials for writing this book. He has worked in the intelligence field. I hoped that his being Canadian would give a outside party point of view as to why this deep penetration of our CIA went on for so long.
   I particularly appreciated the author's addition of information to set the historical background of the Chinese Civil War, Korean War, Cultural Revolution, and Nixon's visit to China. I felt he was weak in explaining China's role in the Vietnam War and Sino-Soviet relations during the Cold War. The author seems to jump to conclusions about reliance on Mr. Chin's spy activities by Chinese top leaders. I especially saw this lacking during the explanation of Chin's role during the Korean War.
   Although I find the information about spycraft and the recruitment of spys fascinating, I particularly wanted to find out what motivated Chin to be a spy in the first place. The author, Tod Hoffman, does a good job in the comparison and contrast of Oriental and Western European motivations and values. At the beginning of the book Hoffman briefly describes Chin's ultimate vulnerability, his children. But, there is probably not even a paragraph's worth of information about them for the rest of the book. I am fascinated with someone like Chin who does not seem to be very ideologically motivated and who has been exposed to advantages of living in the USA and yet continues to spy on behalf of the PRC. He is a much more complex person than seen in this book or he is a person who only craves money and recognition.
   The book ends with an extensive bibliography and endnotes. In particular, I referred to the endnotes numerous times while reading to find out the source of matters claimed to be fact. The conspiracy allegations in the final chapter left me curious for more information. I tried to locate a copy of Mrs. Chin's book: Death of My Husband, but I was unable to locate it through either my local library or Amazon.com or even the Library of Congress. I am rather curious about this book since Mrs. Chin alleges in the Abatement court documents that she did not speak/read/write English very well and was dependent upon her husband.

5 comments about Bloodsworth: The True Story of the First Death Row Inmate Exonerated by DNA (Shannon Ravenel Books).

1. 
   Jerry Layne Rogers, Sr. -- wrongfully convicted and innocent. From 1989 - 1992, I was his investigator at CCR [The Office of Capital Collateral Representative, a state agency representing death-sentenced persons].
   
   Mr. Rogers' case consisted in 1992 of at least 80 boxes of documents, from court files, prosecutor and law enforcement files, trial and evidentiary hearing transcripts, etc. Mr. Rogers's case was the largest and most complicated that CCR has ever represented that I am aware of.
   
   The second largest and most complicated was that of Mr. Gerald Stano, whose lead attorney during most of the development of his case was Mark E. Olive.
   
   In 1995, Mr. Rogers began receiving pro bono representation from the Washington, D.C. law firm Covington and Burling. The result was an unanimous Florida Supreme Court (FSC) 26 page opinion ordering a new trial in Mr. Rogers' case due primarily to prosecutorial misconduct, in particular Brady v. Maryland violations.
   
   To read the opinion, go to the FSC website, then at "Public Information", to the recent opinions, to the year 2001, then toward the bottom at February 15, 2001, one will find the FSC opinion.
   
   During the summer of 2002, Mr. Rogers was re-convicted, however sentenced to life upon the jury recommendation. Now twice Mr. Rogers has been wrongfully convicted.
   
   In 2004, the Florida 5th District Court of Appeal denied relief. The FSC declined to accept jurisdiction and thus denied the petition for review.
   
   Mr. Rogers' case is pending Federal review.
   
   
   
   
   For those interested in reading the narrowly decided by four to three vote Florida Supreme Court opinions regarding two more death sentenced persons whose innocence is an authentic issue, please go to the FSC website, then go to the recent opinions, then chose the correct year and scroll down to the following two cases:
   
   Roy Swafford: April 18, 2002
   
   Peter Ventura: May 24, 2001
   
   
   Additionally, the issue in the below cases is DNA testing that proves that Roy Swafford did not rape Brenda Rucker:
   
   Roy Swafford: March 26, 2004 Case Nos. SC03.931 and SC03.1153
   
   
   
   Please also read other books about Florida's death row by David von Drehle and Michael Mello - also availabe at Amazon.
   
   



2. Tim Junkin does an excellent job of recounting the horrid turn of events that led to Kirk Bloodsworth's arrest, indictment, conviction, and second conviction for a crime he didn't commit. Neither Bloodsworth nor Junkin ever lose sight of the fact that an appalling crime was committed, and Junkin is not afraid to show Bloodsworth, warts and all.
   
   The arrogance of the prosecution in this case is staggering. Even when faced with incontrovertible evidence that the wrong man had been charged, convicted, sentenced to death, and incarcerated for years on end, the prosecutor's office refused to acknowledge that it had been mistaken. Moreover, it waited a decade after Bloodsworth's exoneration to run the DNA it had through CODIS. Unbelievable.
   
   The quibbles I have with the book are few. I wish there had been a detailed index. While the bibliography is immensely helpful, I wish it had included some texts by Elizabeth Loftus or Robert Buckout on the unreliability of eyewitness testimony. In fact, Buckout was hired as an expert by Bloodsworth's defense team in his first trial, but incredibly not permitted by the court to testify. Finally, like many nonfiction books about legal cases, Junkin's book begins almost at the end of the story and then backtracks, finally picking up the story's final threads again toward the end of the book. This tack leads to some overlap and redundancy in storytelling. It may be bothersome to some readers. Is any one of these complaints enough to merit subtracting an entire star from a review of the book? No. Maybe half a star, if that.
   
   If the book Bloodsworth interests you, you might also want to look at the website [...] for more information about the wrongfully convicted and how dedicated lawyers,scientists, and lay people are helping them to see the light of day again.



3. I met Kirk Bloodsworth on an airplane ride, and what an amazing person. His perserverance and positive attitude about his experience is true. The book is a true reflection of the man.



4. I have never taken the time to review a book on this site but if any book ever deserved it, it is this book. This is the story of the first death row inmate ever exonerated by DNA evidence. I have long held the opinion that the death penalty should be abolished because our system simply isn't reliable enough to impose that ultimate punishment that can never be righted should the system have failed. This book is real, concrete, powerful, moving proof of that idea.
   
   Kirk Bloodworth spent 9 years of his life locked in prison, cockroaches crawling all over him, inmates urinating through the front grate in his cell because he was a "child killer", the guards forcing him to paint the gas chamber where he was awaiting execution. He missed his mother's funeral, lost his 20's, was forced to turn into a near animal just to survive, and had to think daily that he was going to be killed by poisonous gas or spend the rest of his life in prison for something he did not do. Can you even imagine what that must feel like?
   
   This was an incredible book and I think everyone should read it. We need to know the stories of people like Kirk Bloodworth because there are many more of them out there and we owe it to them to at least be aware. And, even though you know the main outcome of the book before you start, it still managed to have a surprise ending that literally gave me goosebumps. Definitely add this to your "to read" list.



5. BLOODSWORTH is well-written and provocative and interesting. But Kirk Bloodsworth in his youth was not a sympathetic character. Had he been executed, it wouldnt be a great loss to society. He comes across as a kid with no future, in bad company, going from one buzz to the next. I suspect the murder rap saved him from a pedestrian execution by his doper companions. His antics and histrionic emotional displays are annoying. Bloodworth's sense of entitlement is annoying. And youre compelled to wonder about what sort of criminal nonsense he got away with before the murder rap.
   
   Yet, his situation occurs all the time. When the child-savers and newspapers and cops and prosecutors get into a feeding frenzy, such as Bloodsworth experienced, they want blood. And it is a career killer for anyone in the system to champion a contrary theory that exonerates the defendant. Been there, done that.