The Last Godfather: The Rise and Fall of Joey Massino

by Simon Crittle

As head of the Bonanno clan, Joey Massino was the last don, and ran his world with an iron hand--until he got hit with a murder rap, and turned on his own people. Here, for the first time, is his shocking true story--a glimpse inside the world of organized crime that we may never see again.

Genres: True Crime, Crime, Nonfiction, Biography, Audiobook, History

260 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 7, 2006

Reviews

[Julio The Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

They just don't make made men the way they used to anymore. The average age in La Cosa Nostra (LCN) is now 55. (On this score, an interesting parallel could be drawn between the mafia and the American left; trust me, I've known figures from both camps.) But, once upon a time in America, Joe Massino was it---the bomb, the shit, even the Forrest Gump of the mob, since he either participated or witnessed everything in that netherworld. It was Joey, acting on the orders of imprisoned Bonnano Family boss Philip "Rusty" Rastelli, who carried out the infamous "Three capos hit" that eliminated Rusty's chief rivals, including "Sonny Red" Indelicato. Massino arranged the murder of Cesare Bonventre, the king of the "Zips", Sicilian Mafiosi operating in America during the "Pizza Connection" heroin import conspiracy of the 1980s. After Rusty's death in prison, Joe took over the Family, now outcasts for having allowed FBI agent Joe Pistone into their ranks. (Yes, Joe had the men responsible for this breach, including "Sonny Black" Napolitano, killed as well.) But, Massino was now the king sitting on an ever-crumbling throne. New recruits were hard to come by, and many of the old soldiers and captains turned state's evidence rather than serve long sentences on drug and murder charges. Joe had a sense of humor about it all: Once when an FBI agent planted a bug in his social club and forgot to turn it on, he came back the next day and Joey helpfully escorted him to where the bug was hidden. If there is nothing sadder than a revolutionary without a revolution the next worst is a mafioso in a world where no one fears the mafia. If Puzo and Coppola were right and the mafia is a mirror of America, the rise, decline, and fall, this book is for you.

[Marley · Rating 4 out of 5]

My academic field is organized crime and for some reason this book passed me right by until I saw it for for $1.00 at Dollar General. The Bonano Family is my favorite NYC family,but I didn't know much about Joey Massino. There doesn't seem to be anything extraordinary about him but then one doesn't have to especially extraordinary to reach the top anymore. The days of Joe Bonnano and Joey Gallo are long gone. I found the book a little difficult to follow at times and had to go back and forth to see who and what was being referenced. The one thing I greatly appreciated about the book, though, is the author's handle on Massiho's reorganization along more realistic business lines and a recognition that this is the 21st cenutry--something John Gotti never caught on to.

[Shirley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought a bunch of books on mafiosi at a used book shop, the first was I heard You Paint Houses, which I loved. This was the second, and I didn't know I would appreciate this one even more. Sheeran could never be a made man because he was Irish. Joey Massino was more than a made man, he was the boss of the Bonanno family, one of the five of New York. This book touched on the very vital aspects of mob life all the way through to the 2000's. Joey Massino also turned government snitch, the first to do so. The book includes pictures as well, some a bit shocking. They also referenced Goodfellas, and how it was the most accurate mob movie. 5 star!

[Rick Marcello · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Last Godfather by Simon Crittle was an entertaining and fascinating read. I was stunned that in terms of stars it only averaged 3 stars. I thought that the book was well written and paced. The book details the criminal exploits of Joseph Massino, former head of the Bonnano Crime Family. The book was a pocket paperback so it was a quick read. If you are interested in true crime then read this book. If you are not interested in this genre but you are a book lover, then read this book.

[Hugo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book that covers Joey Massino career in the mafia from his beginning until he was convicted and turned government witness, I´m only giving it 3 stars because it didn´t offer practically any new information compared to other books I´ve already read and also because I really didn´t like the choice the writer made with having the narrative jump back and forth all the time.

[Raghav Srinivasan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a collection of information gleaned from court records and newspapers. For those looking for a serious biography of an organized crime figure, this book will be a huge letdown. Unfortunately, the editing is not up to standards with frequent typos. This is a good read for passing time. But for the serious history aficionado, it does not add any value.

[Mila Pool · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wasn't very long book so naturally there wasn't the amount of information that I desire. Its a decent over-view of the his life but not good enough for me. I need great detail of all crimes. I wasn't too exciting as I read it but I still finished it in less than a week. If it was great than I read these in a two days.

[Jenn Himes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hated this book. Yes I live mob books but this one seemed like it was all over the place with all different characters especially vitale. I think it should have been all about massino and how he came about . I dunno what I was expecting I guess . On to the next

[WhiteChocolateWiggle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a solid read. It wasn’t anything extraordinary, but it provided a good amount of information about Joe Massino and the Bonanno crime family. If you’re interested in that topic, I’d definitely recommend giving it a read

[Carl A. Marine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

I am a big fan of mafia books. I recommend this book to anyone who has similar interest in them.

[Caroline · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a good enough book, but I found it to be fairly similar to other similar books, which it would be, I suppose.

[Ben Pushka · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was an interesting book to say the least. I will admit that I had a hard time keeping up with all of the names, titles, and jobs, of the people the author introduced. While the author spent a great deal of time on who and how Joey Massino got his power, I felt like he rushed through the prosecution of the man, particularly from the perspective of the prosecutors. The reason I say this is because the government used some revolutionary techniques to get the information they needed to make charges stick to Massino, which had never been used in law enforcement previously. So it would have been nice to read more about how these ideas came to fruition. While a quick read, and an interesting one, the book lacked the detail that I was seeking. Overall, an ok book.

[Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

An okay book about Joe Massino the first Godfather who ever turned rat. It follows his rise up the Bonnano family tree until he becameboss. it tells how he built the Bonnano's up from the lowliest of the 5 major NYC families to one of the most powerful and also the downfall where many of the major members including Massino turned government informant.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good writing. No photos in Kindle version

The story of Joe Massino was well written and interesting.

My gripe is that there are no photos in the kindle version. The cover specifically states there are photos. Publishers and Amazon need to realize they too are subject to rules about truth in advertising.

[Nilam Fitriah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Have no comment yet for now.

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learned the true history of mob era in NY,
and "Donnie Brasco"

[Agarigi Wibowo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice point of view about a Don, high commitment to the family, story about brotherhood and human socials.

[Jaka · Rating 3 out of 5]

i'm not understand to this book, nouvel or biografi?

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great true crime Mafia book

[Peter Shovlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy read, not particularly heavy on detail but interesting nonetheless