Street Soldier: My Life as an Enforcer for Whitey Bulger and the Irish Mob by Edward MacKenzie Jr., Phyllis Karas, Ross A. Muscato Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Street Soldier: My Life as an Enforcer for Whitey Bulger and the Irish Mob
Book Review: waste of time
Summary: 1 Stars
i thought that the worst book i've ever read on the mob was a book by paul dimaio's son; this one takes the cake or i should say the bull!!! eddie mackenzie is the perenial want-a-be wise guy who makes up storise as he goes along;i.e. big bunch of bull. i can't believe that a publishing company put this in print. every stool-pigon who gets cought these days trys to make a buck on lie's & as far a lies go he won a five star rating! the book is more of a seinfeld episode, about nothing, than the mob. i think he is mad that he was never more than a coffee boy for whitey.Book Review: A Heartbreaking, Fascinating and Riveting Account...
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a heartbreaking and riveting account of one man's life in the close-knit neighborhood of South Boston, and the 20th century underworld associated with it that few glimpse or know of. The temptations, codes, illegality, loyalties, betrayals, customs and excesses of New England Organized Crime under the mystique and terror of the still-missing desperate fugitive and elusive James J. "Whitey" Bulger are revealed here in very frightening terms. And yet this is also a story of a man who fought the demons of abandonment and abuse at an early age, who made his own rules, took enormous risks on both sides of the law, survived the toughest codes of Southie, and finally went straight in his middle age, in part because the FBI finally caught up with him and forced his hand, and also because of the profound love he has for his children and his community. Fascinating forward by Attorney Al Nugent, the author's lawyer and life-long friend. The author's comments on the ongoing appeal of Federal FBI Agent John J. Connelly, Jr. should be taken with a pound of salt. Be that as it may, I highly recommend this book.Book Review: good book, tough to read at times
Summary: 4 Stars
I almost stopped reading it at least three times The things that happen to this guy are tough to read about.. I think some may think it is not all true and that might be so in part. if you come from the Boston area I think it is easier to understand the Southie thing...Book Review: From across the ocean
Summary: 5 Stars
Reading Edward MacKenzie's Street Soldier has brought back a lot of memories from another place and another time. Ed's memoir has a universal, transcendent quality about it, it's a raw and insightful narrative about that ugly part of big city life that those who live behind the fences don't see or are too squeamish even to admit it exists. The story could have been about a lot of people I personally knew in Tbilisi, Georgia and Moscow, Russia. Ten thousands miles removed from Boston, entire generations of young kids grew into relentless killing machines brought into the system by the strictest recruiting mechanism with its initiation rites and sacred codes of honor. And like Edward MacKenzie, the mean streets have always been the testing ground. Many like Ed started as vicious street brawlers, then were noticed by the "the men of honor" and later inducted into the system. Their progress within the hierarchy was accomplished according to merit assessment and the decision-makers were our domestic Dons. Reading Ed's book is like reading a familiar story in which only the setting and the names are different. Ed also makes many interesting observations dealing with fear, self confidence, and the ability to stand up for oneself. Now, if I ever were to write my own version of the story on the other side of the Atlantic, I'd like to invite Edward MacKenzie as my co-author.Book Review: True or not, still a great read
Summary: 4 Stars
I'm not "in the know" so I can't comment on the veracity of the work. It certainly reads real. I found it to be a great follow up to "Black Mass." There is a wonderful chapter or two about Whitey's character that are not touched upon in Black Mass. IOW, it gives some of the characters talked about in that book more of a personal touch, rather than an outside journalistic approach. For that reason, I found the book very interesting. Also, because the book is very current, it includes many updates to the cast of characters (Flemmi, Connoly Bulger, etc.)As for Eddie's trials and tribulations; he is definitely blunt. There is no attempt to spin his stories. Much of the carnage he does is simply for the fact of doing it. You don't have that sense of Italian mafiosi creed of "we only mess with the people who mess with us." Eddie details racially-driven and gay bashing missions. There are some great character development stories in the beginning and towards the end. If the author has accomplished anything it has been to define himself and what he stands for.
If you're looking for a true street soldier piece, I think many others have been done better. Simply because many of the people chronicled ended up having a higher role in the organization later on and could provide the tales from both view points. "Wise Guy" is the all time classic (the movie Goodfellas is based on this book) and "Last Mafioso" chronicles Jimmy Fratiano's life. These are both superb in the trenches with a mobster type reading.
I'd strongly recommend reading "Black Mass." If that interests you, then "Street Soldier" provides a nice fill in the blank type piece. If I would have read "Street Soldier" without reading "Black Mass" first, I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much (maybe 3 or 3.5 stars).
In the very least, it demonstrates that we all come from different walks of life.