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The Last Don (Mario Puzo's Mafia)
Mario Puzo, author of The Godfather, knows a thing or two about the Mafia and about the movie business; here he brings them together. In the prologue, a Mafia don oversees the double christening of two infant boys, Dante and Cross, into the Clericuzio family. Later, when Cross is tapped to take over as the "Hammer" of the Clericuzios, their prime hit man, he prov...more
Compact Disc, 15 pages
Published
December 1st 2009
by Blackstone Audio, Inc.
(first published January 1st 1386)
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Mario Puzo had some good ideas in this book, and I remember parts of it because they were very entertaining. But I have to agree with what some other readers have said. That it was slow and had too many unnecessary chapters. The characters are not really likeable but they're not meant to be. As someone wrote "It is a story of love, lust, loyalty, and betrayal. It reeks of cynicism and violence. It is about a world without integrity where everyone has a price. And it is written with such pac...more
I didn't know what to expect when I started this book but I was pleasantly surprised. Just going by the reviews here on Goodreads it seems that people either really like this book or are really disappointed by it. I think the reason the responses are so polarized is that people are basing this book on the Godfather book and movie which is really unfair. Believe it or not, I have never read The Godfather nor have I seen the movie. That may or may not have played a factor in my appreciation of...more
Mario Puzo's masterpiece remains The Godfather, but this is still a fun read. The mafia is more contemporary, so it isn't as intense as the heyday, and there's also a lot about the movie industry, about which Puzo undoubtedly learned a lot when the Godfather movies were being made. This is one to read at the pool.
I was really looking forward to reading this one, from the author of the brilliant Godfather series. It's a more up-to-date mirror of that theme, but not a sequel, as it involves a different family.
But the book is pretty awful. The writing style is unusual, but I managed to get into it, despite the odd few typos, which should have been ironed out for an author of this magnitude. It's a very long book, and has endless dreary passages describing this and that, which happened in days go...more
But the book is pretty awful. The writing style is unusual, but I managed to get into it, despite the odd few typos, which should have been ironed out for an author of this magnitude. It's a very long book, and has endless dreary passages describing this and that, which happened in days go...more
really not sure why this wasn't made into a movie as well.
classic puzo, one of his best books. if you have any interest in the mafia, the godfather, the sopranos, etc, grab this book.
classic puzo, one of his best books. if you have any interest in the mafia, the godfather, the sopranos, etc, grab this book.
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El Ultimo Don. So, it took me a good three and a half months to read this novel, but I did read it in Spanish and on the micro (or waiting for the micro!) in Santiago, Chile at the oddest of odd hours during a long, long day and, often, crammmed and contorted between people and trying not to fall over. That said, I really enjoyed this book, and am currently trying as I type to decide if the fact that I could be so involved in it under such adverse conditions signifies that it is a good book or a...more
In this excellent book, Puzo depicts the intricate life of a Mafia Don, a man devoted to his family which strives to prevent his relatives from knowing the "unpleasant, but necessary details that his position brings". Although he is facing his late days on earth, with all the burdens that age brings, he has to make tough decisions to keep his position and expand his empire. One of them is appointing, between two beloved grandsons, who is going to be his successor. A chain of events le...more
After having The Notebook before I started The Last Don, I was hoping for a bit of mafia violence to change things up a bit. But it turns out although this is a really thick book hardly anyone dies. It’s mostly about Hollywood movie deals and Las Vegas casinos.
I had read and adored both The Godfather and The Sicilian for their characters, gripping storylines and the crafty way Mario Puzo reveals developments to you. Thus I thought in having almost all of his books on my shelf me...more
I had read and adored both The Godfather and The Sicilian for their characters, gripping storylines and the crafty way Mario Puzo reveals developments to you. Thus I thought in having almost all of his books on my shelf me...more
Puzo has written another highly entertaining Mafia-themed novel. This work describes the Clericuzio family, who rival the Corleones (of his best-known novel, The Godfather) in the scale of their far-reaching criminal enterprises, dysfunctionality of their family dynamics, and epic arc of their rise and fall. The plot jumps around quite a bit, but everything is tied up rather nicely in the closing chapters. Lots of sex and violence, but nothing too explicit or gratuitous unless you're highly sens...more
This was the first Puzo I've read, though I've seen at least one of The Godfather movies based on his writing. In the one the Clericuzio family begins in the 1960s to attempt a departure from its underground activities and to retain its power in legitimate business. It provided an interesting inside look at the Las Vegas hotel and gambling scene and the movie-making structure of Hollywood. I learned of this novel through a tribute to the author's birthday (15 October 1920) on Garrison Keillor's ...more
The Last Don answers the question at the back of everyone's mind after the Godfather (Book and film).
What if the Don had not died while his family was still in crisis?
What if the family had successfully assimilated into legitimate society?
What if the family's assassin didn't 'sleep with the fish'?
What if the bad seeds within the family were removed?
The Last Don is Domenico Clericuzio - who like all 'good intentioned' mobsters doesn't want his children li...more
What if the Don had not died while his family was still in crisis?
What if the family had successfully assimilated into legitimate society?
What if the family's assassin didn't 'sleep with the fish'?
What if the bad seeds within the family were removed?
The Last Don is Domenico Clericuzio - who like all 'good intentioned' mobsters doesn't want his children li...more
I read this book immediately after The Godfather, I shouldn't have done that. Not only is this review skewered by my constant comparison to the Godfather, I couldn't help but trudge through this book with high expectations. None has been met.
The book dragged from the get-go, there were a few interesting parts, but those was far and in-between. Not only did I not enjoy it as much as I thought it would. It was highly predictable and suffice to say, annoying.
None of the characters were...more
The book dragged from the get-go, there were a few interesting parts, but those was far and in-between. Not only did I not enjoy it as much as I thought it would. It was highly predictable and suffice to say, annoying.
None of the characters were...more
Written by the creater of the Gofather Trilogy the one and only Mario Puzo. The Last Don is a gory story of the hatred and gang war between the two most powerful mafia in the united states, the cunning cold-minded and srong-body Clericuzio againts their sworne enemies, the vicious and sadistic Santadio.How Don Domenico Clericuzio, the head of the Clericuzio family, ended the war, turned his family into the most powerful mafia in the country and then divide the power among his sons. I'll get into...more
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I admit that I did not finish this book. I'm not sure how much of this I even read, but I read enough to completely give it up and move on to another book. This was not one of the few books that I just didn't have time to read so I let it go and forgot where I was so I gave up. I stopped this book in the middle of a day at the beach and moved to another book because I had so little interest in this. It just didn't grab my attention. It is the only Mario Puzo book that I have read an have not...more
BETTER THAN THE GODFATHER IN EVERY ASPECT!
This is Mario Puzo at his finest! The characters are beautifully well drawn, the pace is carefully controlled and the climax breath taking!
If only Coppola could turn this into a movie instead of that silly cheap TV cash in, we'd have Mafia GOLD on our hands! Cross De Lena, about the coolest character this side of Michael Corleone! Cooler in fact!
This is Mario Puzo at his finest! The characters are beautifully well drawn, the pace is carefully controlled and the climax breath taking!
If only Coppola could turn this into a movie instead of that silly cheap TV cash in, we'd have Mafia GOLD on our hands! Cross De Lena, about the coolest character this side of Michael Corleone! Cooler in fact!
I read this book a while ago but thought i'd give it a review. While I did enjoy it, I felt like it dragged on a bit. It wasnt a book that i didn't want to put down, in fact I read it as a way to lull myself to sleep. I'd suggest another Puzo novel instead of this one, however if you're looking for a genuinely ok read before bed, go with this one. You'll lull yourself to sleep.
This was a hard book to get into because of the prodigious amount of backstory that makes up the first half. The second half, although entertaining, doesn't make up for the first. If Puzo had gotten right to the actual story instead of boring the hell out of me with all that backstory on characters I had yet to make an emotional investment in, I might've rated this book higher than three stars. That said, three stars in my opinion is being generous, especially in comparison to his other works.
Puzo sets up great drama though this book had some real pacing problems. At some point, it felt like the book would go on for almost a hundred pages without really going anywhere. The racism was also hard to read but I've noticed that pattern with his characters from The Godfather though this time it felt more brutal. Also, there is a character from Fool's Die in here.
All in all, not a bad story. He's done better and I will read more but this wasn't a waste of time.
All in all, not a bad story. He's done better and I will read more but this wasn't a waste of time.
Y a Mario Puzo no se le quita la costumbra...yo creo que se hace vicio. Bien estructurada, con todos los elementos que una buena novela de gangsters debe tener: Familia, herederos, envidias, mujeres hermosas, casinos y por supuesto, asesinatos al mejor estilo de la mafia. El personaje de Pipi es seductor. Buena pero sin superar a El Padrino.
Loved it. Puzo's ability to craft such an entertaining Mafioso story is clearly shown here. The story of two opposite cousins both born privileged into a mafia family controlled by one of the most powerful Don's since Vito Corleone himself, is a page-turner that will have you on the edge of your seat up to the final amazing, climax.
I read this book when I was 15, it was probably the first adult novel I read. I enjoyed it a enormously. There were plot twists and a lot of the setting was in Sicily. The culture was so different from my own that I really took me away. I went on to read all of the rest of the set, this one was always my favorite.
Mario Puzo is a fantastic author. I recently decided to read through his stuff, having been a Godfather fan for many years. He has the ability to place emotion and motive onto paper like few more modern authors have been able to accomplish. W
Puzzo pinta un mundo de fantasía. Uno sabe que es de fantasía. Pero uno no puede dejar de soñar. La mujer bella (perfecta) el hombre varonil, el dinero a montones. Ah, los suspiros van y vienen, y la boca se hace agua. Buenísimo
Otro libro de la Cossa Nostra. Don Domenico Clericutzio tiene un plan para que sus nietos Dante y Crossifixio no se vean envueltos en los negocios de la familia, y además que "La Familia" Clericutzio se pierda dentro del mundo legal.
I loved The Last Don. I wouldn't call it a classic, but I love the way Mario Puzo transitions from scene to scene and the way he develops characters. More than any other book this one was the inspriation for my novel Instruments of the State.
Amblingbooks.com
marked it as to-read
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"The most entertaining read since The Godfather." - New York Times Book Review
Listen to The Last Don on your smartphone.
Listen to The Last Don on your smartphone.
Written long after his "Godfather", he again shows human frailties in his strong characters. Glad I finally got around to reading this. Not a lot of blood, but a lot of scheming & family interaction.
Took a bit to get into...felt it was lacking at times. Too much flash back where I felt the story got lost. However, Puzo is still revered as one hell of the best mafia writers out there.
Compared to the Godfather, this is pretty pedestrain stuff. Still it is servicable potboiler with interesting twists. But the main one? You'll see it coming a mile away.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| SPSV Mrs. Rodgers...: Gemi Griffin | 1 | 4 | Dec 09, 2011 07:51am | |
| SPSV Mrs. Rodgers...: Second Book Review | 1 | 1 | Dec 07, 2011 08:02pm |
![The Godfather / The Last Don [Paperback] By Mario Puzo](http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1188891867s/57320.jpg)
Puzo was born in a poor family of Neapolitan immigrants living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York. Many of his books draw heavily on this heritage. After graduating from the City College of New York, he joined the United States Army Air Forces in World War II. Due to his poor eyesight, the military did not let him undertake combat duties but made him a public relations officer statione...more
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“What is past is past. never go back. Not for excuses. Not for justification, not for happiness. You are what you are, the world is what it is.”
—
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“Power isn't everything ...its the only thing.”
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