The Good Rat: A True Story

Jimmy Breslin

3.5

1,186 ratings by Goodreads

9781602833760: The Good Rat: A True Story

ISBN 10: 1602833761 ISBN 13: 9781602833760

Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America, 2008

Jimmy Breslin can sniff out a story like he can sniff out a rat. Here, he tells a lifetime of anecdotes in his inimitable New York voice, giving us a view through the keyhole of the people and places that define the Mafiacharacters like Sammy the Bull, the original snitch and Gaspipe Casso, named for his weapon of choice; and hangouts like Pep McGuires, the legendary watering hole where reporters and gangsters (all hailing from the same working class neighborhoods) rubbed elbows and traded stories. But best of all, Breslin captures the moments in which the Mafia was made and brokenBreslin was there the night John Gotti celebrated his acquittal, having bribed his way to innocence. In The Good Rat, Breslin brings together the most recent, most memorable, and the long forgotten stories to create a sharp eyed portrait of the mob as it lived and breathed; as it sounded and survived.

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About the Author:

Jimmy Breslin was born in Jamaica, Queens. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Distinguished Commentary in 1986. His critically acclaimed books include The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight, Can't Anybody Here Play This Game?, The Short Sweet Dream of Eduardo Guiterrez, several anthologies, and a memoir. He lives on Broadway, the Big Street, in New York City.

From AudioFile:

Richard Davidson has just the gravelly tough-guy voice to bring Breslin's Mafia story to life. But THE GOOD RAT is an unnecessarily complicated story about a good fella named Burt Kaplan who testifies against two NYPD detectives who murdered for the Mob. For authenticity's sake, Breslin has included actual testimony from the trial--which, unfortunately, slows down the pace of the story. The plot also suffers from too much jumping around. Breslin is at his best when he tells a story strictly in his own words and delivers the flamboyant language and colorful characters he's known for--like Tommy "Three-Finger" Brown and Sammy "The Bull" Gravano. M.S. � AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine-- Copyright � AudioFile, Portland, Maine

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