101 Things You Didn't Know about the Mafia

This book is a great read. It has a lot of interesting information about the Mafia, and provides a good lense to look at other parts of history from the perspective of the mafia. I just wish they had put more into the construction of the book. This book has never left my home, and yet several pages began falling out soon after I bought it. Reading it soon became a balancing act.

Okay, I know they're fluff, but what's wrong with a little fluff? Those two guys from the East Coast may make fun of the concept, but this soccer mom from a "red state" enjoyed the short segments and small pocket size of the book. It's also very funny and full of little known facts, at least little known to little ol' me. I did notice in the fine print that this book is "adapted and abridged" from the Everything Mafia Book by the same writer. So if you've read the first book, I guess the second is something of a rehash. Shame on you, Mr. Publisher, going to the well twice for a quick buckeroo. Tsk, tsk. Well, whatever, I liked it a lot. It made me laugh, and we can all use a good laugh these days, right?

I was given this book as a gift. As a mafia buff, my initial reaction was to cringe: "101 Things"...give me a break. These days, publishers appeal foremost to an attention-deficit disordered readership. That's a fact. What's annoying is that they have the audacity to tout these titles as cutting-edge stuff. Fortunately, in this rare instance, author James Mannion's wry and informative approach to the ridiculous 101 concept makes this particular title well worth the purchase price. Let's just say that the publisher got lucky on this one--finding an author with something worth saying in these generally banal books. Mannion furnishes readers--and mafia aficionados--with many real gems of trivia on the mob. A truly fun and edifying little book.

When I saw this, I said to myself, "Just what the world needs...another 101 Things book. Is there any innovation and originality left in the publishing industry? Does anyone take risks or push the envelope anymore?" However, as these things go, this is a fun and well-written entry in the tired and lazy 101 Things genre. It has oddball facts/info and offbeat humor. I laughed aloud more than once at the writer's observations and turns of phrase. It's also the perfect bathroom book. The 101 points make for frequent breaks, and you can chuckle through as many as it takes for you to do your business. A cut above the usual man-hating, cat-loving 101 drivel out there. Take it into the john and have a big laugh.