Wiseguy

First this book is an oldie but goodie. If you want a book that reads exactly like the movie this is it. This book is based off of fact but the story itself at times lends to fiction for most law abiding citizens. This book was a collaborative effort between Nicholas Pileggi and mobster Henry Hill.This book sort of romantizes the lifestyle of the criminal Hill and his association with the Lucchese crime family. If you want a more rounded perspective of the story read "On the Run: A Mafia Childhood: Gregg Hill, Gina Hill". ( )

New York mobster Henry Hill started his criminal career in 1955, at the tender age of eleven, running errands for the local mafia. He continued on with a rather impressive variety of illegal activities until 1980, when he realized that two remaining options were to cooperate with the FBI and enter the Witness Protection Program, or to get whacked by his supposed friends for knowing too much about a multimillion-dollar robbery. (He chose the FBI.)

This biography of Hill -- although perhaps it's at least partly an autobiography, as much of it is in his own words -- was the basis for the movie Goodfellas. I haven't seen that particular film, but I will say that I was a little surprised by just how much the people described here resembled some of the gangsters I have seen in movies and TV. I'm not sure whether I find that fact entertaining, disappointing, or kind of scary.

I did learn some things about the structure and day-to-day business of organized crime that I failed to pick up from watching The Sopranos, though. And the book also offers some insights into the psychology of career criminals, although it turns out not to be too terribly profound. Mostly it boils down to a few simple things: 1) Whatever everybody else around you is doing seems perfectly normal. 2) Money and power are nice! And 3) nobody really expects to be caught. (This belief is apparently far less irrational than it sounds, or at least it was in Hill's day.)

There are some hair-curling stories in here, but on the whole I didn't find it quite as engrossing as it seemed like it ought to be. More than anything, the staggering levels of corruption depicted here left me feeling kind of depressed. ( )

Based on evidence given while going into the witness protection program, this is a gritty view of what it is actually like to be a 'Wise Guy' or Mafia thug. I was amazed & repelled by the book. Unlike the Godfather which made a hero out of such men & touted a loyalty & honor throughout the ranks, this book shows the actual setup. How self-interest rules their lives & how little empathy they have.

I didn't like the book or the subject, but it was well written & worth reading. I just find the idea of people leeching off society the way they do repugnant. ( )

If you're a fan of the Soprano's or interested in the Mob you will really enjoy this book. It's the life story of Henry Hill from his youth and entry into the Mob ( he couldn't actually be a "made man") to his time in the witness protection plan. It's hard to believe all the cons and schemes these mobsters ran. I live close to the Federal Pen at Lewisburg PA. where Henry spent some time and it's hard to believe all of the things he got away with while serving his time. ( )

The paradox of Nicolas Pillegi's "Wiseguy" is that although it remains the quintessential gangster tale of modern times, its subject played a relatively minor role in the day-to-day operation of La Cosa Nostra. Henry Hill did not have the larger-than-life personality of a John Gotti, or the blue-chip worthy resume of a Meyer Lansky. He didn't invent Las Vegas, he wasn't a boss. He didn't even run a crew of his own. Because of his Irish blood, Henry Hill was never able to fully assimilate into the Sicilian subculture. This outsider view is precisely what makes "Wiseguy" so readable, so lacking in the pretense that the stereotypical gangster biography brings to the table. As Pileggi notes in his prologue, Hill goes against the grain of the typical mafioso figure he covered in his accomplished career as a crime reporter. Well-spoken and straightforward, "Wiseguy" breaks down mob mentality into a street level study of the inner machinations of organized crime: where and how the foot-level soldiers, middle management and CEOs operated and interacted with each other. Growing up next to a cab-stand the local mob bosses ran, Hill was given access to the powerful fist that ran the city's rackets, from hijacking to elaborate heists to loansharking - he had it all at his fingertips. And even when it all fell apart, when the party was over and the cold, harsh reality set in that he might have to just become an everyday "shnook," Hill can only glibly muse that when he tries to order spaghetti and marinara now, all he gets is egg noodles and ketchup. ( )