A Bad, Bad Boy ebook

As a native of San Diego CA, and having friends and family (by marriage) among the many fine Sicilian families in San Diego's "Little Italy" - I find this book to be poorly researched and given to a gross excess of imagination, conjecture, and flights of fancy; it should be categorized as fiction. The author seems to dwell on minutiae at the expense of relevant facts. I see little evidence of serious research - yes, the author DID apparently interview various relatives and witnesses, but she gets lost in her own imagination. However, it is written in an entertaining style - the reader just needs to forget about what is/was real and factual, and spit out the many fanciful "bones" to enjoy the snack of an interesting tale based on a real character (who, unfortunately, the author did not develop well).

The first biographical account of the notorious Frank Bompensiero. Released last July, I hesitated to purchase this title for months having read the bio on author Judith Moore. The reason for my indecision centered on my doubts about her ability to tackle the subject of organized crime in a manner that didn't involve rehashing all of the same old stories circulating out there based on the accounts of Jimmy Fratianno, Ed Reid or Ed Becker. My concerns weren't alleviated by the initial reviews I found on Amazon. One reviewer rated the book a dismal 1 out of five possible stars. Taking umbrance with the authors "rambling" and speculative information. The two remaining reviews both rated the book 4 and 5 stars respectively leaving me no choice but to purchase this title if for no other reason than to add it to my already substantial collection of southern California related history titles.

To my surprise and enjoyment, Mrs. Moore did an incredible job of taking on the subject in a manner and style that was all her own. The very things I figured I wouldn't enjoy about the book, turned out to be the very things that kept me reading through details that I had long ago familiarized myself with. She to her credit acknowledges her fixation on Bompensiero to the point of stalking his memory in search of truth. Indeed there are moments when I found myself thinking, "this chick is crazy," only to find her commenting on her own discomfort with her state of mind moments later. That in itself shows the rare talent was Mrs. Moore.

The hightlight of the book are the family photos obtained from Frank's only acknowledged child. They feature Bompensiero and his brother Sam, Jack Dragna, the Adamo's and a host of other Bompensiero associates in Los Angeles, San Diego and Tijuana. It was obvious "and again the author admitted," her perspective was slightly skewed by her association with Bompensiero's daughter. You can sense that she is writing to please her and tends to discount the obvious duality of Bompensiero in regard to his home life and his work life.

She earnestly wants to believe Bompensiero was a mistaken figure who enjoyed neither the violence nor the murders that he is known to have committed. She ignores the evidence that even Frank's beloved first wife suspected him of carrying on an affair with Momo Adamo's wife whom he later married. All of these things are forgiveable because the author succeeded in bringing the life of Frank Bompensiero to use in vivid detail without falling into the trap of relying to heavily on the redacted FBI files she seemed to refer to more and more as the book carried on. It is my understanding that the book was published more than 3 years after the authors death and so the reader is left to wonder if these portions of the book are the work of a ghost writer. Nonetheless this is an enjoyable title well worth the time it will take you to cover the the 360 some pages.

A sympathetic biography of a lesser-known mobster. Gives deep insight into Sicilian immigrant culture. The family warfare and family loyalty seen in Mafia life in America is shown to have been typical of Sicilian society in the late eighteen hundreds and early nineteen hundreds. Warfare on the tribal or family level along with a disobedience and distrust for conventional authority existed in the old country and was brought to America fairly intact. And the author points out that warfare waged for a "great society" or for a nation is no more noble and no less revolting than the kind waged by the Mafia. In fact, the idea of a "Mafia" is relatively new--not a concept to the Sicilian in our book. A wonderful excursion into situational ethics. An excursion that leaves you loving mankind more. My kind of book. Was so sorry to hear that Judith Moore died--plan to read her other books. She has rare daring and passion.

This book is very poorly written. It spends to much time focused on the author and not the subject. It also bounces all over the place as far as the time line is considered. The guy is alive, then he is dead, then he is a kid, then he is not yet born then is he dead again then he is alive again. Its insane. Half way through the book you know very little about him but instead you know how the author feels about him. I finally gave up on it and I never give up on a book.

As a native San Diegan residing in Pacific Beach and was just shy of 20 years old when Bompensiero was shot, I have always had a fascination with the story. I found myself being drawn back to read more, and Judith Moore presented a very balanced view of Bompensiero. It made me wonder how many times I had crossed paths with him in PB, at the grocery store, etc. On one level he seemed like such a decent guy had he not been involved with organized crime. He was definitely a study in contrasts.

If you are interested in the subject matter, I'd highly recommend it.

I expected better. The author admits that she wants you to like this guy, and she writes in a sentimental way I don't like. She enjoys writing about his wife, his family, his associates....she paints a very bias view of this killer. Chock full of dates and places, so that makes it interesting but that is about all. She doesn't talk about the main subject until later in the book, about chapter 4.