Want a NOOK? Explore Now
Nicholas Pileggi’s vivid, unvarnished, journalistic chronicle of the life of Henry Hill—the working-class Brooklyn kid who knew from age twelve that “to be a wiseguy was to own the world,” who grew up to live the highs and lows of the mafia gangster’s life—has been hailed as “the best book ever written on organized crime” (Cosmopolitan).
This is the true-crime bestseller that was the basis for Martin Scorsese’s film masterpiece GoodFellas, which brought to life the violence, the excess, the families, the wives and girlfriends, the drugs, the payoffs, the paybacks, the jail time, and the Feds…with Henry Hill’s crackling narration drawn straight out of Wiseguy and overseeing all the unforgettable action.
Read it and experience the secret life inside the mob—from one who’s lived it.
"Wiseguy goes nonstop...absolutely engrossing."— The New York Times Book Review
Anonymous
Posted Tue Oct 28 00:00:00 EDT 2008
WiseGuy is one of the best books I have ever read. The book is a biography of Henry Hill¿s life in the mafia, but can almost be passed a guide book on how to survive in the mafia. I love how this book is set up where the author, Nicholas Pileggi, gives his 3rd person view on the events that occur in Henry¿s life, then Henry himself tells his side of the story, and sometimes his wife, Karen, tells what she witnessed, and at one point Henry¿s girlfriend, Linda, tells what she had seen. You need all of these points of view to completely understand how Henry and the mafia operated their business.<BR/> To love this book, you have to love the mafia. Otherwise, you will not be interested in the story at all. It can be hard to follow everything that is going on if you are not interested and believe me, there is a lot going on. Not only that, you can become confused on whose talking in the story, though Pileggi clearly states on who is narrating with big bold names. Out of all the narrators, Henry speaks about 80% of the time. Then Karen probably speaks about 10% of the time while Pileggi and Linda have narrated 5% of the time each. <BR/> Another reason I love this book is the actual story. The story is crazy, violent, romantic, smart, and exciting all wrapped up into 308 pages. There are a few curse words (as made famous by Joe Pesci great performances) and violent scenes, but I do not think it is as bad as most people would think. If you have seen the movie Goodfellas (the movie that is based off the book), you have a good understanding about what the story is about, but there are little things that you do not normally see in movies but read in the books. For instance, do you remember in the movie the part where you see a young Henry Hill break car windows and blow them up? Do you know why he was doing that? I do. To find out, you have to read WiseGuy. Most people think ¿Oh, I have already watched the movie. Why do I need to read the book?¿ Well, I can honestly say I do not enjoy reading, but I couldn¿t put the book down! I loved it and I know you will love it too, even if you don¿t read very often, or don¿t like mafia books. Nicholas Pileggi is a great author, and is now one of my favorites. I completely recommend this book.
8 out of 8 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Fri Feb 27 00:00:00 EST 2009
"Goodfellas" is a great movie and is perfectly cast. I have enjoyed watching it many times. While digging in my attic this week, I found an old tattered copy of "Wise Guy" that I didn't even know I had. I read it in a 1 day. It is true to the movie (or vice versa) and a book that I could not put down. It offers great insight into the workings of the Mafia and what that life is really like. Great read and highly recommended!
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Mon May 12 00:00:00 EDT 2003
This is one of the most engrossing books I've ever read. The writing was action-packed and forward moving. I couldn't put the book down and was sorry when I finished it.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Sun Jan 23 00:00:00 EST 2000
After becoming a fan of the Martin Scorsese film GoodFellas, I was inspired to read the book on which it is based. The book is Wise Guy, and as soon as I started reading it, I couldn't stop. The inside life of Henry Hill is ten times as exciting as any other, and makes for a fun, fast, and great read.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Fri Jul 13 00:00:00 EDT 2012
I have seen Goodfellas many times and it was amazing how closely the movie followed the book. I could not put my Nook down. The writing was so masterful that I felt I was folloing Henry around. Outstanding read that I would recommend to anyone.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Tue May 03 00:00:00 EDT 2005
if you enjoy reading mafia books, I would really recommend you to read this outstanding book.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 EST 2004
¿Wise Guy¿ by Nicholas Pileggi was based on a true story about a man named Henry Hill. He was a punk kid, who grew up poor in The Bronx dreaming of being a ¿Wise Guy¿in the mob. He began working at the age of twelve at a cab stand which led him to a job offer in the mob. It was a dream come true for Henry but it wasn¿t all it cracked up to be. This book is like a day to day documentary in the life of a mobster. I loved the book because it gave me a true insight into the life of somebody else. Nicholas Pileggi did very well on giving the exact details to this true story. Its an action packed book with many hard core characters. There is also a movie about this book called ¿Good Fellas¿ and you should definitely check it out!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Wed Apr 07 00:00:00 EDT 2004
Great mafia book, it is like the day to day journal of a mobster. Mr. Pileggi does a great job of telling the story of a low level hood who was not afraid to get into anything. From his days of parking Cadillacs to him eating mushroom and sausage pizza and drinking Orange Fanta before testifying against Jimmy Burke, this book has it all.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Wed Nov 27 00:00:00 EST 2013
Hated that i finished it
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Thu Jun 06 00:00:00 EDT 2013
A fast and furious read. You can hear Liotta talking to you as you read each word.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Sat May 18 00:00:00 EDT 2013
This book rocks plain and simple
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Fivi
Posted Sat Mar 30 00:00:00 EDT 2013
After watching the movie "Goodfellas" I wanted to read the book Wiseguy to get more details of the crimes and murders. However, I felt that the book was pretty much the movie with only details of the jobs Henry and his crew hustled. I kept reading hoping to find out hopefully something new that the movie might have critically missed. Nope! Regardless, good read.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Mon Mar 25 00:00:00 EDT 2013
Good story! Like the afterword with character update.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Mon Feb 04 00:00:00 EST 2013
Goodfellas is tied with The Shawshank Redemption as my favorite movie. I watch it at least 5 times a year. This book, for me, was nearly impossible to put down. The author has done a jam-up job at telling the story both in third-person summaries and first-person quotes. Thank you for such an awesome read.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Fri Dec 07 00:00:00 EST 2012
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.
Anonymous
Posted Fri Jul 27 00:00:00 EDT 2012
I literally could not put this book down! I knew it was the inspiration for the movie Goodfellas, but I certainly didn't think that the movie would stick so closely to the book. Incredible to think that this was someone's real life. Amazing!!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.PeachesGR
Posted Sat Jul 21 00:00:00 EDT 2012
I enjoyed the book it was true to the movie,saw the movie more time than I can count.Because of that I felt like I was part of the book.Sounds crazy but true.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.TT2135
Posted Fri Jul 13 00:00:00 EDT 2012
B&N Totally sucks as they wont stop sending me emails asking me to review books! Please stop
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Tue Apr 24 00:00:00 EDT 2012
$12.99 is the most ive ever paid for a nook book but this was completely worth it!!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.RushMaster
Posted Thu Apr 19 00:00:00 EDT 2012
I loved this book. I would compare it to the Godfather.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.
Overview
Nicholas Pileggi’s vivid, unvarnished, journalistic chronicle of the life of Henry Hill—the working-class Brooklyn kid who knew from age twelve that “to be a wiseguy was to own the world,” who grew up to live the highs and lows of the mafia gangster’s life—has been hailed as “the best book ever written on organized crime” (Cosmopolitan).
This is the true-crime bestseller that was the basis for Martin Scorsese’s film masterpiece GoodFellas, which brought to life the violence, the...