Description

In this brilliant history of Prohibition and its most notorious gangster, acclaimed biographer Laurence Bergreen takes us to the gritty streets of Chicago where Al Capone forged his sinister empire.

Bergreen shows the seedy and glamorous sides of the age, the rise of Prohibition, the illicit liquor trade, the battlefield that was Chicago. Delving beyond the Capone mythology. Bergreen finds a paradox: a coldblooded killer, thief, pimp, and racketeer who was also a devoted son and father; a self-styled Robin Hood who rose to the top of organized crime. Capone is a masterful portrait of an extraordinary time and of the one man who reigned supreme over it all, Al Capone.

About the author(s)

Laurence Bergreen is an award-winning biographer and historian. His books have been translated into twenty-five languages worldwide. Among his books are biographies of Christopher Columbus, Giacomo Casanova, Marco Polo, Ferdinand Magellan, Louis Armstrong, Al Capone, and Irving Berlin. He lives in New York City.

Reviews

Joseph Wambaugh An incredible slice of American history. Capone is not only fascinating, it's great fun to read.

Peter Maas author of Manhunt This is rich American history. There was only one Al Capone, and he and his times are brought to life in definitive and engrossing detail.

Nelson DeMille author of The General's Daughter Laurence Bergreen does a remarkable job of boring through the legends, the myths, and the misinformation, to reveal the true man. Capone: The Man and the Era is just that: an incredibly engaging look at the actual Capone, presented within a rich and evocative setting of time and place. Well written, well researched, surprising, and totally entertaining.

Vincent Patrick The New York Times Book Review Certainly the definitive biography....Mr. Bergreen has written a book objective and rigorous enough to meet scholarly standards, yet colorful enough to engross the general reader.

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