Night of the Sicilian Vespers


Book Description

Joseph Pulaski is an honest cop in turn-of-the-century New York City. A tough badge to wear, along with the one he serves for, the City of New York. But it gets even harder when probably the best friend he has turns up missing. Lt. Gus Petrano has been Pulaski's friend since their days in Five Points. Now his dwelling has been ransacked, and his famous Italian Squad has been disbanded. The daughter of the commissioner of police (Petrano's boss) has been kidnapped. He finds the United States Secret Service is involved, along with a mafia don from Sicily, a Chinese Tong leader, and the most powerful street gang leader in the city of New York. If that's not enough, he has pissed off Tammany Hall, who may be the most dangerous of them all. What ensues is a battle of wits that puts Pulaski and his team of Kelly Donaher and Noah Weber in a fight for their lives. It entails the Sicilian list, the Black Hand, and a battle for control of New York City's rackets.




The Mafia Encyclopedia


Book Description

More than 500 alphabetical entries provide information on the people, places and events associated with the Mafia.







The Sicilian Vespers


Book Description

On 30 March 1282, as the bells of Palermo were ringing for Vespers, the Sicilian townsfolk, crying 'Death to the French', slaughtered the garrison and administration of their Angevin King. Seen in historical perspective it was not an especially big massacre: the revolt of the long-subjugated Sicilians might seem just another resistance movement. But the events of 1282 came at a crucial moment. Steven Runciman takes the Vespers as the climax of a great narrative sweep covering the whole of the Mediterranean in the thirteenth century. His sustained narrative power is displayed here with concentrated brilliance in the rise and fall of this fascinating episode. This is also an excellent guide to the historical background to Dante's Divine Comedy, forming almost a Who's Who of the political figures in it, and providing insight into their placement in Hell, Paradise or Purgatory.




Midnight In Sicily


Book Description

A New York Times Book Review Notable Book of the Year A New York Public Library Best Book of the Year From the author of M and A Death in Brazil comes Midnight in Sicily. South of mainland Italy lies the island of Sicily, home to an ancient culture that--with its stark landscapes, glorious coastlines, and extraordinary treasure troves of art and archeology--has seduced travelers for centuries. But at the heart of the island's rare beauty is a network of violence and corruption that reaches into every corner of Sicilian life: Cosa Nostra, the Mafia. Peter Robb lived in southern Italy for over fourteen years and recounts its sensuous pleasures, its literature, politics, art, and crimes.




New York Magazine


Book Description

New York magazine was born in 1968 after a run as an insert of the New York Herald Tribune and quickly made a place for itself as the trusted resource for readers across the country. With award-winning writing and photography covering everything from politics and food to theater and fashion, the magazine's consistent mission has been to reflect back to its audience the energy and excitement of the city itself, while celebrating New York as both a place and an idea.







The Cockatoos


Book Description

An essential story collection from one of the foremost novelists of the twentieth century, now a part of the Text Classics series




The Sicilian


Book Description

After Mario Puzo wrote his internationally acclaimed The Godfather, he has often been imitated but never equaled. Puzo's classic novel, The Sicilian, stands as a cornerstone of his work—a lushly romantic, unforgettable tale of bloodshed, justice, and treachery. . . . The year is 1950. Michael Corleone is nearing the end of his exile in Sicily. The Godfather has commanded Michael to bring a young Sicilian bandit named Salvatore Guiliano back with him to America. But Guiliano is a man entwined in a bloody web of violence and vendettas. In Sicily, Guiliano is a modern day Robin Hood who has defied corruption—and defied the Cosa Nostra. Now, in the land of mist-shrouded mountains and ancient ruins, Michael Corleone's fate is entwined with the dangerous legend of Salvatore Guiliano: warrior, lover, and the ultimate Siciliano. Praise for The Sicilian “Puzo is a master storyteller.”—USA Today “The Balzac of the mafia.”—Time “An accomplished and imaginative writer.”—Los Angeles Times