This was a very good biography of Frank Costello. In addition you also recieved a good history of organized crime.This book
tells of Costello's leadership role in the Mafia. You are taken through bootlegging.the gambling empires that were built by
organized crime as well as the House un-American activities
hearings. The author also gives you good insight into the attempted murder of Costello by rival forces.You also get a good insight into Bugsy Seigel,Meyer Lansky, and other prominent

figures in organized crime. This isn actually a very good book.
Read it.

There has been much attention focused on this book in the last year or so. First Harold Ramis, noted "Prime Minster of the Underworld" as inspiration for his mob picture, "Analyze This". Then I read where former CBS President Tom Leahy along with Norman Twain obtained an option to do the book as a movie. It made me go out and get a copy. I was not disapointed! "Prime Minister" is the sort of book that isn't written much anymore. It is done with elan' and the subject, Frank Costello, the "capo di capo" is treated with great dignity. It is a dignity that Costello strove for in life, even as he headed an organized crime family. Costello's attorney wrote this book with the outstanding author Joseph DiMona. Together they weave an adventurous tale of an immigrant who through the din of will, grit and native intellect rose to the top of the "Cosa Nostra". Costello preferred negotiations to violence and acted as the Mob's peacemaker. "Prime Minister of the Underworld" presents a man of fundamental decency, ambivalent about life as a mobster, yet one of the most successful gangsters. It is this riddle, this internal contradiction that makes Costello compelling and drives this story. Wolf and DiMona display great restraint, they let the action speak for itself and there is not a moment gratutitous violence or moralizing. So complex is Costello's character that it needs no adornment and will bear no easy analyzation. What emerges is a clean portrait of an everyman as killer. George Wolf and Joe DiMona fashioned one of the great mob books of all time. A book as subtle and powerful as its' topic.

I enjoyed the first section on his childhood which was all new to me. But what I really enjoyed was the second section on the bootlegging days. It went into more detail than I could have asked for on how he set it up and even gave some detail on some of the gun fights men like Bugsy Seigel got into. I would have liked the book better if this section would have been a lot bigger. The rest of the book was good too and supplied an interesting theory on Lucky Luciano's infamous ride but didn't go into any real detail on how he ran and operated the crime family it focused more on his personal businessess. All in all interesting (especially the bootlegging section) and a fairly good story. I recommend at least giving it a try.

Jean Craighead George has always been a favorite author of mine, and coincidentally enough, I have always been fond of wolves, so imagine my surprise when I, the dainty little girl of the 90s received "Look to the North" from my Aunt. Immediately I fell into the outstanding illustrations, and the unique way to follow the lives in my favorite animal.
Several years later, and with a sense of higher literacy later, I am found sitting in my high school English class pulling out one of my favorite possessions from my dusty children stories-bookcase and regained my sense of wonder again for the first time since my innocent age of nine. It's a wonder that the edges wave not been torn as much as my other treasures, and looked upon it as some sort of holy artifact saved in my holy sanctuary now adorned by hundreds of photographs, oil paintings, and sketches of wolves I can know honestly blame the inspiration on this very story. Sometimes you have to wonder how something as insignificant as a children's story can effect your life.
"A Look to the North" is about, you could say, the story of a wolf pack introducing the pups from birth to adulthood. If your son or daughter takes interest in any animal, buy him or her this book. Neither of you will regret it.

In short, this is a wonderful book. Jean Craighead George, author of over eighty books for children, excellently combines her knowledge and love of wolves with her love of words. Written like a mix between the JULIE OF THE WOLVES books and DEAR REBECCA, WINTER IS HERE, this elegant story will find its way into the heart of anyone who adores and respects these magnificent animals, or anyone who admires nature. The illustrations are also spectacular and heartfelt. You can see more of my reviews at other Jean Craighead George titles.

"I love wolf pups" begins the introduction (written by the author) to LOOK TO THE NORTH. George's readers could easily have figured that after at least a page of this educational picture book.

Telling the story of Boulder, Scree, and Talus, three fictional wolf pups, it truly is a wolf pup diary, as there is a new page for every critical stage in wolfpuphood. You can learn something new about early months of wolf pups on every page, while the style and storyline of the book are brilliantly masked as fiction (for the porpose of the book appealing to young ones.)

The full-color pictures only add to the fun of this book, and the detials in them are breathtaking! The pictures alone are enough to tell the story to the very youngest readers, but the words give something the pictures cannot, as do almost all books that I have seen.

Note that older readers will also enjoy JULIE OF THE WOLVES and it's two sequels, JULIE and then JULIE'S WOLF PACK, by Jean Craighead George, the author of LOOK TO THE NORTH: A WOLF PUP DIARY.

And now I have no more to say, so, as ends the introduction....

Why do I love them so? They are wonderful. Look to the north and you will love them, too.

This book's fantastic! It docoments the story of Chuck Jones thinkin he was gonna do a better version of Peter and the Wolf than Walt Disney.It contains tons of colour and black and white photos from the film.Chuck Jones'animation,like Disney himself,is splendid.The other WB animatours,like Robert McKimson,Friz Freling and Tex Avery have animation as splendid like Disney himself.In fact,this version of Peter and the Wolf is way better than Walt Disney's version of Peter and the Wolf! Relive the moment it was first made in this book!

That master of accurate wolf storytelling, Jean Craighead George, has presented a fine picture book. Sadly, it is out-of-print, and I have to read it by checking it out from my local library. The story concerns a young wolf named Roko, who is injured during his pack's hunt and is left, helpless and dying, on an Alaskan ridge. Many Arctic animals come wanting to feast on Roko's remains when he is dead--an arctic fox, a snowy owl, a bear, ravens--thus, children not only learn about the many species of animal life in this seemingly barren, desolate land, but they also learn about ecology, how everything is connected in the natural world, and how death can really be a part of life. The ending shows how loyal wolves are to one another, when Roko's leader helps him to survive. The black and white ink drawings are nothing spectacular, but they do excellently accent the simplicity and poetry of Ms. George's words.

Jean Craighead George describes how wolves survive in the wild and what the wolf pack goes through to survive. This is a great book to learn about wolves and their actions and the relations they have with humans and other animals. I thought it was a little slow moving and it didn't keep my interest going very well. It dragged on about the wolves' lives and was very repetitive. There wasn't a lot of descriptive writing to keep the interest flowing. But learning about the wolves was interesting and I enjoyed that.

Julie's Wolf Pack, by Jean Craighead George, is a well-written, detailed story about a wolf pack's adventurous life throughout the tundra. This is an excellent book because the author writes with great detail about every aspect of an ordinary wolf pack, while including an interesting story about the danger that wolves face in their lifetime. This publication is about the many hardships that the Avalic wolf pack faces including being hunted by hunters, scoured by doctors for good reason, surviving with all of the other deadly animals, and much more. But what happens when Kapu, the Avalics alpha-male is abducted by outsiders to the wolves? Will Kapu survive? And what will the hopeless pack do without him?

This book is being recommended because of the superb detail in this story, and the point of view of this book. This book is in the perspective of the wolves, as if one is with the wolves or even is one of the wolves when reading the book. This allows the reader to understand the situation of the wolves better, whether it is danger, hunger, or even love. The incredible detail in this story is shown often throughout the book. When Raw Bones, a rebellious member of the Avalics tries to overcome the alpha-male Kapu, the facial expressions, feelings, and actions are brought out so well that it puts a clear picture of what's going on in the reader's mind. The wolves' appearance before and after the skirmish, and at other times in the book are also conveyed perfectly. This is an outstanding book because of the way certain things are described, and the wolf point of view to help the reader understand exactly what's happening in the book.

Some people might not find this book so great because they think that books about animals are boring. This is not a good enough reason why not to read this book because even if someone doesn't like animal stories, the plot is so brilliant that that it wouldn't matter. The story creates a thriller that the reader can't put down because of how well this book is put together. This recommendation is influenced by the exceedingly well-written words by George, and the perspective of the book, which makes a fascinating book worth reading.

This was an inspiring book that sometimes made me feel that I was in on the action! Jean C. G. really put to mind the feelings of the wolves in this book. I would surly recommend it to people with an interest in animals. But be sure to first read "Julie of the Wolves" as this book comes before "Julie's Wolf Pack."

When 13 year-old Julie Edwards Miyax Kapugen runs away from an arranged marriage, she gets lost in the vast and lonely Alaskan tundra. This begins the extraordinary journey of Miyax and the wolves she befriends. While struggling to survive in the harsh Arctic winter Miyax experiences something few humans ever will. She lives as one of the pack, eating from the wolves kills and communicating with them in their language of barks, yips and tail wags. Soon she grows to loves them as she would her family. But when she learns that her father, the great hunter Kapugen, lives on, she decides to go back to him. Struggling to adjust to this new way of life, she learns that the Eskimo way of life is dying, even in her father. Then hunters endanger her wolves, and Miyax must choose between her pack and her father. This engaging trilogy includes Newbery Medal winning Julie of the Wolves, and its sequels, Julie and Julie's Wolf Pack. They are written by celebrated wildlife biologist and author, Jean Craighead George. Miyax's epic quest to find where humans belong reminds us of our beginnings, and of the creatures with whom we share this world.

I bought this pack of books, and I think these are some of the greatest books I've ever read. I've read too many... and none are the best, but these are some of my favorites! Julie Edwards/Miyax Kapugen is stuck on the tundra. She learns by watching a pack of wolves the language of them. She becomes a member of the pack, led by Amoroq. They give her food and she travels with them. She becomes friends with Amoroq's pup, Kapu, and when he is the new Alpha, Julie helps the pack stay strong throughout all three books (Julie of the Wolves, Julie, and Julie's Wolf Pack). I highly recommend this to anyone that respects animals and nature. We should all appreciate them!

I love animals.. and am interested in wolves most. I am eleven years old and these books are so interesting! I learned all about a wolf's life and their own language. I strongly recommend all three of them!

First of all, I must say I was a bit disappointed when I got this book. I am a huge Jean Craighead George fan, but I am not so fond of the illustrations. I am much more fond of John Schoenherr and Wendell Minor, who illustrated the other Julie books. Also I don't think the same beautiful effect of the Julie novels is present in this young children's story. But overall, it's a fine addition to the Julie trilogy. Julie's story begins, of course, in the magnificent Newbery-Award winning JULIE OF THE WOLVES. Next comes the thought-provoking sequel, JULIE, and then, my personal favorite because of my love of wolves, JULIE'S WOLF PACK. It is in the latter that Nutik, the wolf pup, and his sister Uqaq are born and raised by Julie and her little brother, Amaroq (the main character in this story). The wolves try to take Nutik back, but Amaroq resists them. Nutik belongs to a human pack now, just as, for a long time, Julie, the human, belonged to a wolf pack. Or does he? I think one of the main reasons I actually appreciated this somewhat disappointing book was because it helps to extinguish cruel and misleading thoughts about wolves. Young children should grow up reading books like this instead of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD, and older kids should read books like JULIE OF THE WOLVES, JULIE, and JULIE'S WOLF PACK. Whichever one of Ms. George's eighty or so books one reads, one always comes away with a feeling of a deeper respect and love for our natural world.

In an Eskimo village at the top of the world lives a little boy whose name is Amaroq, so named for the great wolf leader who saved the life of his big sister, Julie. One day Julie brings home a sickly wolf pup named Nutik.

When his big sister puts Nutik into Amaroq's arms, she tells her little brother to feed & tend the pup. She also warns her brother not to fall in love with Nutik as she has promised the wolf pack that when both pups are fat & well, they will be returned.

Amaroq says he is strong & sets about feeding the bedraggled pup. Together through a magical summer, pup & boy, frolic in the tundra of the land of the midnight sun.

When, at last, the sun does set & the long dark winter comes upon them & Nutik is strong & healthy, the wolf pack comes to the edge of Amaroq's village, calling Nutik home. Amaroq is not as strong as he once thought, especially when his beloved pup takes him out into the star filled night to meet his wolf family.

This is a poignant & magical look at the love between a boy & a wolf pup, at the rightness of our actions, the pain of duty & the rewards of responsibility.

Lovely, lovely read!

When she was younger and lost and starving, Julie was saved by wolves who shared their food and kept her safe and warm. Now many years later, Julie brings her brother, Amoraq, a small sickly wolfpup to feed and take care of. She tells him, "When he is fat and well, the wolves will come and get him." Amoraq looks into the golden eyes of the pup, Nutik, and it's love at first sight. "Don't fall in love, Amoraq", Julie warns him, "be strong." As time goes by and the three months of summer light begins to fade, Nutik becomes fat and healthy and soon the wolves call for him. At first, Amoraq takes Nutik and runs away. But soon, the wolves call again and Nutik knows it's time to go home where he belongs..... Jean Craighead George has written a memorable picture book introduction to her Julie and the Wolves books, a whole new generation will treasure. Her text, full of imagery and magic will capture your youngster's heart and Ted Rand's expressive illustrations of the Alaskan tundra will mesmerize children with their vivid beauty. Together, they've authored a special book of love, friendship and respect your kids will want to read again and again. And, just like her Julie books, Nutik the Wolf Pup is sure to become a classic in the years ahead.

I enjoyed this book very much but often felt like i was reading 2 novels. I failed to see how the 2 settings and stories, although told at a parrallel, intertwined or related. I enjoyed the Vivienne/La Tour story much more than the other and found it annoying to have read both. I was hoping the book was more in the line of Chevalier's Pearl Earring - but it was not. I am left feeling like, "ok, so....." with emptiness... i did not like the ending....

LA TOUR DREAMS OF THE WOLF GIRL is my first exposure to the work of David Huddle - and he's a very talented craftsman. The transitions between present-day Vermont (and Appalachia) and 17th century France are seamless - in the hands of a less competent writer they might easily have been clumsy and disruptive to the narrative. Huddle has a discerning eye when it comes to the human psyche and its accompanying emotional baggage, and he lays out his observations for the reader in several ways - direct, subtly oblique, and various 'grey areas' in between the two.

We see La Tour through the eyes of a professor of art history at the University of Vermont, Suzanne Nelson. She is writing a dissertation on the artist, and she focuses her attention - and her imagination - on a particular painting, the last one of LaTour's life. He has chosen as his model a village girl, the daughter of the local shoemaker. We see him strut into the village with his retinue of dogs, knowing full well how the scene will play itself out before him. He will make his offer to the shoemaker, who will at first refuse to allow his daughter to pose in the nude for the artist (despite his advanced age and the unlikelihood of anything improper occurring), then the two will haggle over price and social considerations - and in the end, the deal will be made, and the girl will come to his villa to pose for him. LaTour is assured that everything will happen as he imagines it - and to a point, events unfold as he predicts. It is when the girl arrives for her first sitting, and he finds that she is both more intelligent and self-assured than he could have dreamed, that he discovers that he will indeed paint her - his advanced age and his arthritic pains had convinced him that he was merely luring her into his studio to pose for his eyes. When she disrobes for the first time before him, and he sees that she is marked on her back with a thatch of wolf-like hair, stretching from near her shoulder blade to her spine, he is transfixed - and he is further moved to discover that she knows nothing about this unique trait.

As Vivienne continues to make visits to LaTour's studio, over the course of a few months, the painting progresses. LaTour saves the addition of the wolf-patch until the last, knowing that as soon as she sees it, she will feel violated and betrayed - both by the artist and her parents. Over the course of this time, she has come to be more comfortable in the artist's presence - he has drawn her out into conversations by posing questions to her about her daily life in the village, and she has been surprised to find herself eager to talk to him. She also is amazed to realize, toward the completion of the painting, that she has been in effect lying to LaTour - that the stories she has told have been embellishments of reality, sometimes complete inventions. He has taught he to lie by giving her to opportunity to do so with impunity.

All of this is of course a product of the imaginings of Professor Nelson - as she works on her dissertation, she allows herself to be carried away into LaTour's life and times, constructing out of the facts she knows a more complete picture of a human being, all the way down to his thoughts and motives. All of this is colored by the events of her own life. Her marriage of twelve years is slowly disintegrating - eroded by time and by inattentiveness (on the part of both herself and her husband). The novel follows them from early in their lives, before they meet - the reader is given invaluable glimpses into their pasts and upbringings, allowing the forces that have formed them to be visible. They are drawn together as inexorably as they fall apart.

Unlike many contrived plots wherein spitefulness and meanness - both unfortunately common human traits - play a large part in the path lives take, there is no hard-spirited ugliness at play here. This is simply a story of lives that come together and fall apart. There is a common thread passing through the fabric of all of these characters' lives, however - LaTour and Vivienne included - they are all running from something. Not all of them are conscious of it, but it's there. Suzanne and Jack are both running from the smothering influence of their parents - his are extremely wealthy, hers are from a rural area in the Appalachians. Elly, Suzanne's acquaintance who takes Jack as a lover, is running both from and to herself - streaming away from the life she has had and toward the life she imagines she wants, all of the time actually running away from who she really is. LaTour is running desperately from death - and Vivienne is running (at least in her dreams) from the life she leads in the rural French countryside. Everybody wants something they don't think they have - and a few of them actually come to discover that they had more than they realized all along.

It is these voyages of self-discovery and longing that make this book so appealing - and the fact that Huddle has combined all of these stories into a valid whole makes this an entertaining, compelling read.

Gorgeous restraint and clairivoyant insight reside at the center of David Huddle's second (and finest) novel. How he is able to imagine and weave together the lives of an aging art history professor at the end of her marriage and a young girl entangled in a charged mental dance with a dying painter (La Tour) is nothing short of mesmerizing. I read this book in one sitting and sat stunned at the end.

It is interessting to read how a modern city like Berlin is undermined and controlled by vampires. Unfortunately it has some mistakes according Berlin's history. For example after WW2 till 1961 people could almost freely cross the border between east and west, and even after the erection of the Berlin Wall cainites could have gone to the other side. The diverse struggles for power between two princes of the city and the clans, the sects and who ever is fighting are pictured tensing. The idea of powerful elders controlling the city from torpor sounds rather strange.
The book contents a history of the city through the ages, descriptions of all districts, a couple of special quarters and several places of interest. It includes long and detailed portrays of most of the kindred in Berlin. However, if you don't know anything about Berlin and Germany, it might be difficult to role-play only by this book. It provides no hints which Clans control the places of power (Police, Government, Mafia, etc.) Many things changed over the past decade but others are still up to date.
The second part of the book contains a weird story. Some details seem to indicate that the authors never visited Berlin themselves. The old Gedaechtniskirche (Memorial Church) where the meetings are held is almost tiny inside. Not a quarter of space you need to gather Berlin's Kindred society. The Kurfuerstendamm is never, never free of mortals, even during heavy rainstorms. The story itself neither elaborated nor intriguing. A sad story!

...

Berlin by night sets up a lot of good potential story ideas. The political conflicts and the struggle between the princes is presented in an interesting fashion. The kindred are all fascinating. A few of them are even historical figures. The description of the city could have used more work as well as the general culture. Based on the descriptions it could have been any generic city. It really didn't provide a feel for the area. The sample story was a bit silly but entertaining. It did introduce a fascinating Setite character and her awesome plans. Storytellers should do some research on their own to supplement this book if they plan to use Berlin for their games.