Havana Nocturne: How the Mob Owned Cuba...and Then Lost It to the Revolution
Written by T. J. English
Narrated by Mel Foster
Havana Nocturne: How the Mob Owned Cuba...and Then Lost It to the Revolution
Written by T. J. English
Narrated by Mel Foster
ratings:
3/5 (126 ratings)
Length:
13 hours
Publisher:
Released:
Aug 11, 2008
ISBN:
9781400177691
Format:Also available as ebookEbook
Audiobook
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Description
In Havana Nocturne, T. J. English offers a riveting, multifaceted true tale of organized crime, political corruption, roaring nightlife, revolution, and international conflict that interweaves the dual stories of the mob in Havana and the event that would overshadow it: the Cuban Revolution.
Bringing together long-buried historical information and English's own research in Havana-including interviews with the era's key survivors-Havana Nocturne takes readers back to Cuba in the years when it was a veritable devil's playground for mob leaders Meyer Lansky and Charles "Lucky" Luciano. Thanks to strong ties with the island's brutal dictator, President Batista, the mob soon owned the biggest luxury hotels and casinos and launched an unprecedented tourist boom. But their dreams collided with those of Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, and others who would lead the country's disenfranchised to overthrow their corrupt government and its foreign partners-an epic cultural battle that English captures in all its sexy, decadent, ugly glory.
Bringing together long-buried historical information and English's own research in Havana-including interviews with the era's key survivors-Havana Nocturne takes readers back to Cuba in the years when it was a veritable devil's playground for mob leaders Meyer Lansky and Charles "Lucky" Luciano. Thanks to strong ties with the island's brutal dictator, President Batista, the mob soon owned the biggest luxury hotels and casinos and launched an unprecedented tourist boom. But their dreams collided with those of Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, and others who would lead the country's disenfranchised to overthrow their corrupt government and its foreign partners-an epic cultural battle that English captures in all its sexy, decadent, ugly glory.
Publisher:
Released:
Aug 11, 2008
ISBN:
9781400177691
Format:Also available as ebookEbook
Audiobook
Also available as...
About the author
T.J. English is a noted journalist, screenwriter, and author of the New York Times bestsellers Havana Nocturne, Paddy Whacked, The Savage City, and Where the Bodies Were Buried. He also authored The Westies, a national bestseller, Born to Kill, which was nominated for an Edgar Award, and The Corporation. His journalism has appeared in Esquire, Playboy, and New York magazine, among other publications. His screenwriting credits include episodes for the television dramas NYPD Blue and Homicide, for which he was awarded the Humanitas Prize. He lives in New York City.
Reviews
What people think about Havana Nocturne
3.2126 ratings / 14 Reviews
Reader reviews
- (5/5)Probably the best, most impartial book written on the subject of the Cuban Revolution.
- (5/5)A very enjoyable audiobook detailing the rise of Castro any Cuba in the 1950s and the fall of Batista with a great deal of emphasis on the mafia influences owning the seven arete big casinos on the island going back to the days of lucky Luciano and many of the Fam New York mobster is including Meyer Lansky very well written book and enjoyable read
- (4/5)I gave up on this book. It was good, I just wasn't in the mood.
- (3/5)nonfiction; Cuban history (the mob vs. Castro). Interesting, but the mobile quality of playaways often means that I will get distracted and start tuning it out (so I ended up re-listening to tracks a lot, and I still haven't got the whole story). Great for falling asleep to, though!
- (4/5)An interesting and well-focused book that gave me a better appreciation for the related historical aspects (JFK, 50's and 60's politics and the ongoing blockade) as well as it suggested areas for further historical investigation that have been neglected so far in my studies (mainly Cuban history between the Spanish American war and the revolution).
- (3/5)Readable and enjoyable.