The Godfather

"Friendship is everything. Friendship is more than talent. It is more than the government. It is almost the equal of family."

The Godfather turned out being much better than I anticipated. Originally being in a long list of books I would "eventually get to," I only picked it up because it was on the floor near me when I was also on the floor organizing the book closet. Needing a break (and being lazy as usual), I decided to randomly start reading the first page. What drew me in wasn't the story nor even the opening - it was the writing style. I found out quickly that I LOVE Puzo's writing style. There's something about the way he crafts his words, blends them together, always to the point, never going into poetic territory but somehow show more always hanging over the brink of it.

The story told is a well known because of the movies. Generally I don't mention the movie form much in book reviews, but with The Godfather it's inevitable and the review wouldn't be the same without it. The story stays with the same and the adaption to the movie is spot on. They changed little, even keeping most of the dialogue and order identical for the scenes including. The exception is the flashbacks of Vito Corleone's early life, and there were of course some smaller scenes which weren't included in the movie for time and pacing sake.

Switching point of view among many can be problematic for readers (especially me, too frequent head hopping is always a pet peeve), but with this case the hopping only happens when it makes sense and is done subtly and effectively. The tale is a traditional one with extra punch - the son who doesn't want to become the father, the importance of family, and the struggles of power. I found the theories of the Italian mindset and mafia goals added into the story fascinating, a cultural difference in society that I never personally encountered (and doubtfully ever will.)

When a story has a villain, villains are usually more effective and enjoyable when they are three dimensional (they have good traits as well) Much of the book explains the godfathers mindset, reasoning, philosophies, and strict sense of his version of honor. It's not done in a preachy way; in fact, interestingly no other viewpoint is ever seen, experienced, or given from opposing characters.

The slow ascension into power by Michael Corleone is powerful. Even if the book has some slow scenes and isn't gripping in an action sense, it doesn't need to be as it's clearly a drama filled tale. Michael is realistic as the son who wishes to set apart with his own future, pulled in eventually by honor learned after tainting himself. Vito is equally fascinating with his past, his present, his philosophies. I really hold no bad thoughts toward any of the characters and when their viewpoints are used.

It's easy seeing why this one became such a seller and was made successfully into a popular movie. Even if the cultural presence isn't a reality we all personally experience, it's easily understood and to a point agreed with. The struggle among father and son and setting a person's own path is an age old story always enjoyed as it DOES affect people even today and always will. show less

I thought the movie would prepare me for reading this book. Its a favorite of mine, so I knew I would enjoy the book...but I was really taken by surprise with how involved I got with it.

My great and abiding love for Al Pacino blinded me to the real genius of the plot I think, at least to some extent. I automatically assumed my favorite character would be Michael...but I'm not sure that he was. I loved his character, don't get me wrong. There is just so much going on in this book, its hard to narrow down specific things to marvel about; the whole thing was brilliant.

Nuances of thought in the main characters and personal identities of the side characters get lost in movies, and those things really add to the experience of reading the show more book. Learning more about everyone, not just the Family, made it so much more of an epic story.

One of my favorite parts of Puzo's brilliant writing was the way he could make the "Creepy Carleone" smile come alive. I got an actual mild case of the chills every time he described Vito and Michael pulling one.

I also loved the way Michael learned about the history of the Mafia while he was living in Sicily. I think its completely understandable that the Mafia was born to try to protect the Sicilians from their corrupt government. Even the Familes in America only strive to do the same thing. You can't really fault their reasoning I don't think. I'm not saying I'm going to go hunt down an Italian family and prostrate myself before them...I'm just saying that I get where the Mafia folks are coming from to a certain extent.

Anyway, it is a fantastic story and I'm glad I read it instead of just being satisfied with the movie. As much as I love my Al Pacino, I still have to say that as great as the movie is...the book kicks its ass. show less

This novel presents well-observed and well-drawn characters, valuable information, and a wonderful narrative of family history, unfolding the saga of Mafia vendettas traveling between Sicily and America in the 20th century. Ancestral force, family bonds, Sicilian manhood, loyalty, and betrayal are central themes. Puzo's narrative has a slyly intelligent way of communicating hypocrisy, lies, and transactional undercurrents. The story bears out its epigraph from Balzac that behind every great fortune there is crime, and implies that robber barons, big business, police forces, and governments operate on principles not different from those of organized crime. For the Mafia, personal demonstrations of the power to impose one's will and to show more inspire fear are essential. This novel devotes some attention to analyzing the roots of the Mafia in rural Sicilian poverty and the history of Sicily as an Eden ruled by a succession of overlords. Food, passion, fatalism, and instinctive violence rule the feudalistic ethnic culture depicted here. show less

Until I opened up the book, I was a Corleone virgin. I have never seen any of the movies. Until this point, I had an inkling about the story line but could not tell you what happens at any point in time or why. Like most Americans over a certain age, I could recite certain lines from the movie but without understanding their true significance. I even knew of a few key scenes that occur but again without any sort of context to them. My decision to read the book versus watching the movie stems from my belief that books are always better than their visual counterparts and because I found it easier to get my hands on a copy of the book versus tracking down a copy of the movie. While The Godfather appears to be one of the few books that show more pales in comparison to its movie version, I am so glad I first read it. Without prior knowledge of the story, I could better appreciate the cold calculations and deception required to reign in the world of the Mafia. The juxtaposition of Don Corleone’s compassion for his family and his ruthless business sense was striking. What was even more apparent is the insidiously brilliant way in which Don Corleone built up his network of followers. The story itself is complex enough to be able to appreciate the time Mr. Puzo took to set the stage for later events. Now, when I watch the movie for the first time, I can appreciate the performances rather than worry about following the plot.

For those who are like me and are Corleone virgins, I say that it is a scenario you should remedy immediately. The story is absolutely outstanding; the complexities of the family bonds, the strength of those bonds, the power, the money, the battle for supremacy, the cold-bloodedness are realistic and awe-inspiring. Mr. Puzo makes the Mafia likable or at least sympathetic in their drive for power and their unusual opinions about laws and regulations. The Corleone family is a family like no other, and The Godfather gives readers a glimpse into their privileged and surreal world that is just breathtaking. show less

Set in the 1940s and 1950s in mostly New York, the Corleone family is at the heart of a well organized crime ring. Vito Corleone, the Don of the family, keeps his fingers in all the local businesses, legal or otherwise. He’s always a gentleman, holding manners and respect in high regard. However, not everyone else holds to his old Sicilian ways. When war breaks out between the Corleone family and another crime lord, known as the Turk, manners are left in dirt.

Even though I haven heard quite a bit about The Godfather (book and movie) over the years, I had never experienced either. It was a bit of a whim that I picked this book up and I’m glad I did! This story was so much richer than I expected. I’d heard people talk about all the show more violence in the movies (and indeed there is violence a plenty in this book), but I had not come across anyone who talked about the depth of this novel. I really enjoyed how much Puzo put into the main characters. Vito Corleone, who plays such a vital role in this book, is a vibrant man who comes from a culture of strict rules concerning respect. His children, Sonny, Fredo, Mike, and Connie, are all Americanized and don’t share all of their father’s cultural norms. Of course this clash of cultures becomes a key piece of drama for the book.

I was quite taken with Tom Hagen, the family’s in-house lawyer. He was informally adopted as a kid when he followed one of the Corleone kids home. He didn’t have a real place to stay, so Vito’s wife made him feel right at home. Tom is always so patient and elegant. He knows that he’s not of the family, not being Sicilian or even Italian, and yet he knows the Don best. He was often the glue that kept the family together. His informal adoption into the family is just one example of how giving the Don can be.

While the women of the story are wives, sisters, mothers, and sex objects, Puzo does give them a little more depth than I expected. I found myself taken with Lucy Mancini, though not at first. Initially, she really is a sex object, however, in the later half of the book she meets up with Dr. Jules Sagal in Nevada. Now I was quite surprised that the book went into so much detail about Lucy’s unusually large vagina, what causes that, and how to fix it but I also applaud the author for doing so. This is something that is interesting but may also serve to enlighten people about a little talked about medical issue.

There is plenty of violence throughout the story, but not nearly as much as in today’s action flicks. Also, I felt that the author did a good job of portraying realistic outcomes of each violent episode. I did feel a bit for the horse but I also understood that the Don was making a statement without the loss of human life. Then later on, the wife of one of the sons is accidentally murdered and that was a little bit of a tear jerker. Each violent episode brought some emotion out of me.

Finally, let’s talk a little about Johnny Fontane, the Hollywood star and godson to Vito Corleone. He has this life that’s been strongly influenced by the Don and yet he lives this very different and separate life out in California. I found his life a bit sad and a little dramatic. He’s surrounded by other stars who all have egos as big as his. Yet he finds his most satisfaction in visiting his ex-wife and their two children. They have an unusual and yet very practical arrangement. As side characters, I found them pretty interesting.

All in all, this novel (which was first published in 1969) was more than I expected. I’m sure several bits of this book were considered taboos in 1969 (Lucy’s large vagina, Johnny’s irregular relationship with his ex-wife, etc.) and perhaps are still considered a bit rude to talk about in public these days. The character depth for the main male characters was unexpected but definitely appreciated. Also, I thoroughly enjoyed Vito’s back story. Puzo definitely caught my eye with this classic novel and I will be reading more of his works soon.

The Narration: As you can see, there’s a huge list of narrators; full Cast directed by Michael Page: Dan Price, Lorna Johnson, Don Stroup, Terry Bozeman, Richard Lavin, Amy Sunshine, Larry Brandenburg, Rose Nadolsky, Peter Syvertsen, Jane Brody, Bob O’Donnell, Joe Van Slyke, Marie Chambers, Si Osborne, Chuck Winter, Charles Fuller, and Malcolm Rothman. Sometimes I liked that there were so many voices since this book has a sizable list of characters. However, sometimes it was clear that some parts conversations were recorded with the narrators at different times. I sometimes found that while one character was dramatically narrated, the other character in the same conversation would sound much more down to Earth. So the performance as a whole teeters on that edge between radio drama and a decently narrated novel. Quite frankly, I think I would have preferred a version narrated by 1 or perhaps 2 people. show less

My copy of The Godfather is old. It belonged to my father, and then my brother, and then I found it somehow somewhere in my house. It was already falling apart, some of the pages had holes in them and the spine was practically coming away in my hands. I read it for the first time when I was 16 and didn’t truly appreciate it. I remember thinking it was such a boring book, too full of details for my liking. Where was the action the film was known for?

I read it now, about 7 years later, and am completely blown away by what an amazing book it actually is.

This novel does include a lot of intricate details about family and character and business, yes. It can be a bit boring to get through, yes. I did, admittedly, find myself going a little show more bit hazy eyed while reading it sometimes, kind of reading but not really absorbing the words. But overall, Jesus this book is good.

The story follows the Corleone family: Vito, his wife, and their four children Sonny, Fredo, Michael and Connie. The novel begins by making you believe it’s the story of Vito Corleone – after all, everybody calls him Don, and everybody refers to him as their Godfather.

And that’s where you’re all wrong.

The book isn’t about Vito at all, while it does start with him in the beginning. Vito is instrumental to this story because without him, most of the things in the plot wouldn’t have happened. In fact, this story is an almost perfect example of a character driven novel. No, the story is about Michael, his youngest son, his most loved son, who goes from being one of the nicest and best men in the world to turning into a Don, just like his father.

There is so much plot in this story that it’s almost impossible for me to get it down in this review. There’s drama, sex, fame and fortune, people getting shot and people getting murdered, people falling in love and people lusting over the wrong person. There’s so much going on in this story because Puzo makes it a point to show you that all the characters have such vivid, colourful lives. What I loved about this novel is that every character is so engaging in their own way, in their own lives. They lead very different lives that somehow all intertwine because of one Vito Corleone, and you have to respect how effectively Puzo helps you remember everybody. He does this with the grace of G R R Martin, who must have gotten inspiration from Puzo’s writing. If he didn’t then he’s definitely just the next Puzo.

But why should you read this book? Because it’s not what it seems. Some people might dismiss this book as just a random Mafia story, and Mafia stories are boring. That’s not true. There’s intrigue and suspense and twists at almost every turn. And while I’ve told many people that writing a good story doesn’t have to mean it’s full of surprises and goings-on, Puzo manages to write all the mess of characters’ lives together in a very intricately woven Sicilian scarf. When you pull away from the whole picture at the end of the novel and look at it for what it really is, you realize just what a great book it is.

Final rating: 4/5. I could have done without all the sex scenes, I admit, but eh…that’s life, I guess? show less

The Godfather by Mario Puzo is a timeless masterpiece etched in the annals of literature and film history. Published in 1969, it immerses readers in the Italian-American mafia's dark and captivating world, brimming with intrigue, power struggles, and unforgettable characters.

At its core, it's a story of family, love, loyalty, and the corrupting influence of power. Puzo masterfully crafts the narrative around Don Vito Corleone's life, from humble immigrant to cunning mafia boss, set against post-World War II America. Characters like Michael Corleone, Tom Hagen, Kay, and many others come alive with depth and complexity.

What sets it apart is its ability to humanize characters engaged in criminal activities, blurring moral lines. The show more portrayal of organized crime's dynamics is both fascinating and chilling. Beyond a crime novel, it explores the American dream, immigrant experiences, and the price of success.

This classic is a must-read.

Read the detailed review here- Books Charming show less