You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
17 reviews for:
The Incorruptibles: A True Story of Kingpins, Crime Busters, and the Birth of the American Underworld
Dan Slater
3.61 AVERAGE
17 reviews for:
The Incorruptibles: A True Story of Kingpins, Crime Busters, and the Birth of the American Underworld
Dan Slater
3.61 AVERAGE
dark
informative
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racial slurs
Minor: Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry
This book is kind of wild and the narration is compelling. I lost the thread at some points, but the overall story, particularly the historical explanatory commas therein, was quite fascinating.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
I was pretty excited for this book. It had a topic that was right up my alley and a historical context that I find fascinating. And both things remained true! I especially enjoyed reading about the history of the Jews in New York and how local/machine politics affected everyday life for New Yorkers. My only beef with this book is that there were large sections that read like lists of facts and details rather than information that pointed to the overarching story. I found myself at different points asking “Wait, what is the main topic of this book again…?” There was so much good research and so many interesting people the author introduced, but it wasn’t always clear how everything fit together, and that made parts of a book very slow. But overall? A really interesting and well-researched book.
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Interesting look at the rise of the Jewish mob, from the late 1800s through to Prohibition in New York City.
The book focuses on Arnold Rothstein, but we also meet the mobsters, the politicians, and the reformers who were active during his hold on organized crime in the city. I was fascinated with the breadth of the biography/history and learned quite a bit beyond Rothstein's life story.
Here are just a few things I learned: there were different laws for different social classes, horse poisoning was an extortion tactic, Jewish prostitution was a big problem, and the Garment District was at the heart of the Jewish mobs.
Rothstein himself was a complex man. He traveled as freely in "regular" society as he did in the underworld. He was a ruthless gangster, but he was also a philanthropist and believed in helping others. Rothstein and his cronies are, as you can imagine, a source of mixed feelings for American Jews--weighing the crimes against the rise to power and wealth.
Slater gives historical context for the rise of the mobs and the reform movement, addresses gambling (horse racing & the White Sox World Series), and describes life for immigrants to New York.
This was a well-rounded and easy-to-read account of the rise of the Jewish mob and the life of Arnold Rothstein.
The audiobook book was performed by Jonathon Todd Ross, who was expressive without being overly dramatic and held my attention throughout. Though I'm no expert, I think his accents were fine. I have to praise Hachette Audio for including a PDF with the audiobook. The file contained photos and a glossary of period and Yiddish terms. I wish every audiobook--especially nonfiction--came with the visuals found in the print edition; it's tremendously helpful and enhances the reading/audio experience.
Thanks to publishers for review copies in various formats.
The book focuses on Arnold Rothstein, but we also meet the mobsters, the politicians, and the reformers who were active during his hold on organized crime in the city. I was fascinated with the breadth of the biography/history and learned quite a bit beyond Rothstein's life story.
Here are just a few things I learned: there were different laws for different social classes, horse poisoning was an extortion tactic, Jewish prostitution was a big problem, and the Garment District was at the heart of the Jewish mobs.
Rothstein himself was a complex man. He traveled as freely in "regular" society as he did in the underworld. He was a ruthless gangster, but he was also a philanthropist and believed in helping others. Rothstein and his cronies are, as you can imagine, a source of mixed feelings for American Jews--weighing the crimes against the rise to power and wealth.
Slater gives historical context for the rise of the mobs and the reform movement, addresses gambling (horse racing & the White Sox World Series), and describes life for immigrants to New York.
This was a well-rounded and easy-to-read account of the rise of the Jewish mob and the life of Arnold Rothstein.
The audiobook book was performed by Jonathon Todd Ross, who was expressive without being overly dramatic and held my attention throughout. Though I'm no expert, I think his accents were fine. I have to praise Hachette Audio for including a PDF with the audiobook. The file contained photos and a glossary of period and Yiddish terms. I wish every audiobook--especially nonfiction--came with the visuals found in the print edition; it's tremendously helpful and enhances the reading/audio experience.
Thanks to publishers for review copies in various formats.
informative
slow-paced