Genovese, Gambino, Bonnano, Colombo, and Lucchese. For decades these Five Families ruled New York and built the American Mafia (or Cosa Nostra) into an underworld empire. Today, the Mafia is an endangered species, battered and beleaguered by aggressive investigators, incompetent leadership, betrayals, and generational changes that produced violent, unreliable leaders and recruits. A twenty-year assault against the five families in particular blossomed into the most successful law enforcement campaign of the last century.
Selwyn Raab's Five Families is the vivid story of the rise and fall of New York's premier dons, from Lucky Luciano to Paul Castellano to John Gotti and more. The book also brings the listener right up to the possible resurgence of the Mafia as the FBI and local law enforcement agencies turn their attention to homeland security and away from organized crime.
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"I couldn’t stop listening to this audio book. with just about all the gory details of the presence of the Mafia in America, since its inception to the modern days. Truly spectacular! Most of the people that have always been fascinated by the rise, and why not, fall of the American Mafia, owe it to themselves buy this book. Hard to count the many books on the subject that I have read to this date, watched countless movies on the subject as well, and at the end of the day, this book condenses the whole can of anchovies into an epic After listening to Five Families, anyone will be able to talk Cosa Nostra like Al Pacino and Bobby De Niro. Don’t forget about it—5 Stars!"
— Celia Kent (5 out of 5 stars)
This masterpiece stands an excellent chance of becoming a bestseller with crossover appeal beyond devoted watchers of The Sopranos.
— Publishers Weekly Starred ReviewSelwyn Raab is an American journalist, author and former investigative reporter for The New York Times. He has written extensively about the American Mafia and criminal justice issues.
Paul Costanzo earned both his BA and MA from Juilliard in trumpet performance. As a freelance performer his musical credits range from the Metropolitan to the San Francisco Symphony. He has also been a voice actor for over twenty years and has performed numerous radio commercials, television promos, and narrations for major corporations nationwide. As an audiobook narrator and director, he records regularly for Brilliance Audio, Tantor Media, and Deyan Audio.