The Family: A Novel

I'll never forget the night I saw this book for the first time at my local bookstore. "The man just couldn't stop writing Mafia novels," I snickered to myself as I picked it up and began to peruse it. Well, I was only half-right. The book was about the notorious Italian Renaissance family, the Borgias. Since I've always been interested in that part of history, and wanting to know more about the Borgias (having read about them before, but not having come across a book dedicated to them), I promptly bought it. Until I'd read _The Family_, I'd always thought Puzo modelled the Corleones, at least in part, after Joe Bonanno and his son Bill. Again, I was only partially correct. Although there are some parallels between the Corleones and the Bonanos, Puzo's real inspiration was _la famiglia Borgia_. Like Vito Corleone, Rodrigo Borgia, who became Pope Alexander VI, was a ruthless, powerful man with three sons and a daughter. None of them had any qualms about murdering their enemies "to protect the family." Michael Corleone and Cesare Borgia, whom Rodrigo elevated to cardinal, were both successful in the military. Like Michael and Fredo, Jofre Borgia had his own brother Juan (aka Giovanni) murdered. Cesare died in a hail of arrows, just as Sonny Corleone died in a hail of gunfire. Lucrezia Borgia reportedly preferred to poison her enemies, reminiscent of the way Connie Corleone killed Don Altobello with a lethal canoli in _The Godfather Part III_. And, like Michael and Connie, Cesare and Lucrezia were very, very close. Only Michael and Connie didn't have an affair with each other, let alone begin it under their father's approving eyes. Finally, if it looks like Puzo is glorifying people who do not deserve admiration, it's because, like in _The Godfather_, he's telling the story from the protagonist's viewpoint. _The Family_ is a wonderful book for anyone, and a "must-have" for historical fiction fans.

I'm a fan of historical novels and I enjoyed reading this one. While not as great as Robert Graves' "I, Claudius" or Mika Waltari's "The Egyptian," it's still a great read.I also recommend Amin Maalouf's "Samarkand."

According to Carol Gino's afterword, prior to Puzo's death, she and Puzo had discussed his unfinished manuscript of this book, and she, with his blessings, was able to fulfill his wishes and complete it. In my opinion, her efforts were successful, as I detect no stylistic differences or breaks in the continuity of the book. I feel that we, as readers, owe her our thanks for bringing his last dream to fruition. Before going into the body of the review, it should be noted that THE FAMILY is based on extensive research by Puzo, and the facts of the following are either historically accurate, or can be reasonably assumed from the facts available.In THE FAMILY, Puzo has gotten away from his usual theme of 20th century Mafia families and, instead, has built this narrative around an ordinary Renaissance era family who resided in Rome. Well, maybe not exactly ordinary. They did have a quirk or two, and, after all, daddy was the Pope. That's right, daddy was the Pope, so maybe they're not exactly an ordinary family after all. Daddy, Pope Alexander VI, was Rodrigo Borgia, the father of the Borgia clan. You know the Borgias, those playful youngsters; Cesare, Lucrezia, Juan, and Jofre. In those far off days, the Catholic clergy couldn't marry, but a great many of them had mistresses and openly acknowledged their offspring.Alexander was a truly kind-hearted man. An example of this kind-heartedness was in the way he handled a politically necessary assassination of someone he truly liked. He made sure that the assassination was carried out in the most humane, pain free way possible. A true humanitarian!Alexander might well have been called the "Education Pope." He strongly believed in education. As an example, he made sure that an enemy or traitor was tortured and maimed before being allowed to die a slow and painful death. The mutilated body was publicly displayed as an act of public education. The lesson to be learned here was that you shouldn't make Pope Alexander angry. A truly effective educational display by a believer in the power of education.Alexander also loved his children and did everything in his power to assure their future happiness. To show this concern, he would arrange marriages for them with appropriate mates who just happened to come from rich and powerful families. That these marriages usually served to enhance his power base was merely a fortunate by-product. Out of love, he also did his best to insure the success of these marriages. For instance, to make sure that his 13 year old daughter, Lucrezia, was properly prepared for her wedding night, he arranged for her older, and sexually experienced brother, Cesare, to "bed" her in advance of her marriage -- supervised by himself, or course. What greater love and concern could a father have for his children?And of his four children, it could be said that a more loving group couldn't be found. First of all, there was Cesare who fell in love with his sister, Lucrezia, when

Los borgia es un libro que nos traslada hasta la Roma renacentista y nos cuenta la historia del papa Alejandro VI y de sus hijos Cesar, Lucresia, Juan y Jofre, y la ambición del papa Alejandro por cuya sed de poder lo llevarian a la cima del mundo, pero también el alto precio que él y su familia tubieron que pagar. EL libro en general es bueno aunque diferente a lo que los fans de Puzo estamos acostumbrados,y aunque cruel y crudo en algunos aspectos y personalmente muy sangriento en otros, además de que en este libro, Puzo recurre a temas muy serios como lo es el incesto, (tema que nunca habia tocado Puezo en sus otros libros anteriores), esto es en parte por que Puzo no escribio todo el libro, Carol Gino, esposa de Puzo termino el libro y adjuntó temas de ella misma. No obstabte, el libro resulta muy entretenido y es bune para pasar el rato, y aunque no es el tipo de libro que los seguidores de puzo esperaban, el libro resulta hagradable y fresco.

He aquí una historia novelada de una de las familias más famosas del Renacimiento, los Borgia. En esta novela se nos muestra la cara más humana del Papa Alejandro VI y de sus hijos ilegitimos Lucrecia, César, Juan y Jofre. A través de sus páginas viajamos a la Italia renacentista dividida en pequeños reinos donde la pugna por el poder usando la traición, el asesinato, los matrimonios de conveniencia, el nepotismo y el absolutismo eran lo cotidiano por las clases altas para permanecer en el poder y sobrevivir. La familia Borgia no fue una excepción, el Papa Alejandro VI aprovechando su poder "temporal" trata de darles a sus hijos todo lo que pueda pues es conciente que después de su muerte poco podrán sus hijos hacer para retener las dádivas papales por lo que casa a sus hijos Lucrecia, Jofre y Juan con matrimonios ventajosos para asegurar sus vidas y patrimonios además de darle el mando de su ejercito a su hijo César, hombre cruel e inteligente con una ambición desmesurada que lo lleva a hacerce demasiado peligroso y le ocasiona la muerte. Muy bien logradas las descripciones que el autor hacer de la Roma e Italia del siglo XVI.