The Mad Ones
Crazy Joey Gallo and the Revolution at the Edge of the Underworld

Tom Folsom is so concerned with making each sentence laconic, spare and chock full of hard-boiled imagery that the book often seems more like a collection of pictures and gestures than a narrative, as if the reader were looking at a '40's noir frame-by-frame with no film projector to bring it to lif......more

As I get older, I try to take myself, and my reading tastes, less seriously. There was a time where I fancied myself a Very Important Book Reviewer that would choke the life out of anything I read in order to critique it with skill. It’s silly, at least from my perspective. I love reading and I love......more

This was depressing, boring, and frustrating. Joe Gallo is completely unsympathetic--he comes off as a smart, but completely inept, gangster wannabe. He and his gang threatened, kidnapped, and killed hoping to make a big enough impression to be given some of the action by the New York "family". When......more

Love the character, a beatnik gangster with movie star looks, and if you see the types of books I read, you will know I love character driven stories. Unfortunately, this book never quite delivers on the promise of what could be a great character profile. I am not sure what the author, Tom Folsom, h......more

2.5-3 stars. Here's hoping the movie is better than the book.... I was really into the book at first. The subject matter is fun (you know, as fun as documented killings and gang violence can be) and Joe is an interesting character, but the structure kind of ruined it for me. Maybe just this once, bei......more