Gangs of New York

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View books by Herbert Asbury.

Whets the appetite for more - Rated
A most thorough resume of the diverse criminal activity of lower Manhattan from the early 1800's until circa 1920. The author paints a fascinating but shocking picture of the utter filth, hardship and depravity that was the daily life of those unfortunate enough to have no other option but to live in this area.

Mr Asbury introduces us to many gruesome villains and Gangs with names such as The Plug Uglies and Dead Rabbits and to a wide range of murderous and heinous activities. A very interesting book best read in conjunction with a detailed street map of The Five Points area.

My interest has been aroused by the contents of this book and I intend to read other related matter and next time in New York visit the area.

Great "informal" History of crime in New York - Rated
As the title of the book explains this volume written in the 1920s covers the various outlaws and villians of new york from pre-civil war years to what was then the close living memory of the eastman and five points gangs,
I agree with the reviewer who wrote how it is some-times a difficult read but on the whole i found the information interesting and worth the effort
men such as the real life "bill the butcher" owney madden and Monk Eastman are all vividly portrayed between these pages, and stick in the mind.

Content good - Style bad. - Rated
The style of writing plays a key part on the understandment and enjoyment of this book. Written in the late 20's during prohibition when gangs and gangsters were still quite underground and not so well known. The author in no way could imagine that the subject of his book could have been the early creations of Wiseguy life in New York. But that doesn't affect the book greatly. What will dissuade younger and modern readers from this book is the simple fact that the vernacular and writing style is so different to nowadays. It also employs quite a large vocabulary that had me reaching for the dictionary at times.

I enjoyed the content, the history of the five points makes for worthwhile reading but this old fashioned book was hard to get through at times.

A tedious reading - Rated
It took me real commitment to read this book beyond the first few chapters. The descriptive account of the feats of various gangs and their leaders is repetitive in its sources - mostly newspaper accounts and police reports- style and contents.
The artful mix by Scorcese in its film, ignoring any semblance of historical consistence, is clearly apparent from this reading. However, reading the entire book is in my opinion a stiff price for that piece of knowledge.

Informative, ordered, and a bit shocking - Rated
This book outlines in an ordered historical way, the history of gangs in New York. From the first settlers up until the early 20th century New York this book documents the sources of vice and violence that have plagued the city.

Written in a way that does not simply list facts, this book leads you through the extensive history of the city and its denizens. There are many people named along with their exploits, and the political chicanery that seemed to allow many of the gangs to persist.

This book was very hard to put down, once started !

I purchased this book in response to watching the film of the same name. This book clarifies many aspects of the film, and demonstrates many of the impossibilities that were built in to make a good film.

If you have watched the film, then you should certainly read this book !