I've hit six books so far in my quest for 50 in 2008 - falling a little bit behind schedule, but have a ton of business travel coming up so should be able to catch up a bit more. The lucky sixth book had me turn back to my roots a bit with Rat Bastards: The Life and Times of South Boston's Most Honorable Irish Mobster, the true story of John 'Red' Shea.
I believe that pretty much everyone from Boston is interested in what occurred with Whitey Bulger and members of his crew. It's a story that doesn't seem to go away, years after the horrors they committed finally stopped. For those of us interested in true crime, the stories that John discusses are very interesting. Finally when you combine those previous aspects with being from certain parts of Boston, having experiences in those neighborhoods, living through the latter stages of the Code or any other similar events - these stories hold much more weight.
Right now Southie and Whitey continue to be a hot topic. There are numerous books out on the subject, The Departed remake was crafted around these events, even Rat Bastard has been optioned into an upcoming movie by Mark Wahlberg - the point is, that these stories touch on so many emotions for people from Boston and beyond. Crime, murder, money, fighting the law, honor, integrity, hope, destruction.......every emotion can be found in the stories of South Boston.
This book provides an insight rarely seen when it comes to true crime - that of the guy who admits he did bad things, takes the high road and does his crime, then survives and tries to lead a normal life. John Shea certainly isn't trying to convince people that he is a good person or did the right thing. He even admits that he believes he'll be headed to Hell when his time is up, but it's his honor and honesty that stand out. Maybe it's the old school Boston in me, but there is something to be said about how he handled his own life choices. Shea had everything, then lost it all - only to come out on the other end as a survivor with his integrity intact.
I highly recommend this book to those people interested in true crime, the Irish Mob during Whitey's leadership or people looking for a different type of autobiography. I do feel that being from Boston will help you enjoy this book a bit more, as you know certain details of the book that others might not, but it's not a requirement.
So....Brevitt says go read Rat Bastards and tell me what you think. I'd chat some more, but I have to start plowing through book seven!
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