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The Godmother
The Godmother: Murder, Vengeance, and the Bloody Struggle of Mafia Women | Barbie Latza Nadeau
6 posts | 2 read | 9 to read
The chilling story of one womans rise to prominence in the Italian Mafia, and the as-yet untold stories of the women who followed in her footsteps. For as long as it has gripped our imaginations, the Mafia has been tied to an ingrained image of masculinity. We read about "made men," "wiseguys," and "goodfellas" leading criminal organizations whose culture prizes machismo, with women as ancillary and often-powerless characters: trivialized mistresses and long-suffering mob wives. The reality is far more complex. In The Godmother, investigative journalist Barbie Latza Nadeau tells the stories of the women who have risen to prominence, and fallen out of favor, in the Italian mob, beginning with the most infamous of these women: Pupetta Maresca. A Mafia woman born and raised, Pupetta avenged her husbands murder, firing 29 shots at the man who killed him. Woven throughout Pupetta's story is Nadeau's diligent research, and her personal interviews with the Mafia women themselves. Nadeau takes readers inside the Mafia families to paint a complete and complex portrait of the real culture that has shaped the Mafia, and the women who are part of it. Leaving behind the stereotypes we know from Mafia movies, The Godmother shows the Mafia in an entirely new light: full-fledged, ruthless, twenty-first-century criminal enterprises led by whoever is strong enough and smart enough to take control.
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mcctrish
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I‘m going to have to find this to read after I‘m done my #sundaybuddyread this is in today‘s Globe & Mail

jlhammar Those all sound good! I've been eyeing The Forever Witness. 1y
mcctrish @jlhammar I‘m hoping I can get some on audio 🤞🏻 1y
37 likes2 comments
review
Megabooks
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Pickpick

Wow. The various mafias in Italy don‘t mess around! Much of the book reflected on Puppetta, an infamous woman who avenged her husband‘s murder in the 1950s while six months pregnant. Nadeau was among the last to interview her before her death in 2021. She also writes more briefly about other of Italy‘s mafia women, who do everything from minor drug trafficking to ordering murder, and she looks at the female victims and sexism in Italy. Note ⬇️

Megabooks Note: this is dark AF. If you don‘t want to imagine people getting eaten by acid, maybe avoid this or take multiple breaks like I did! Thank you to @penguinrandomhouse for this gifted copy! (edited) 2y
Cinfhen Not sure I‘m up for this one 🤷🏼‍♀️ 2y
LeahBergen Great review! Count me in. 😆 2y
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Megabooks @Cinfhen it was definitely more true crime than reality tv!! 🔪🔫🩸 2y
Megabooks @LeahBergen thank you! It was intense! 2y
Centique This sounds fantastic! 2y
Megabooks @Centique it was super interesting! 2y
97 likes7 stack adds7 comments
review
Monica5
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Mehso-so

Interesting. I would have enjoyed it more if Pupetta's story would have been told in one or two chapters instead of interspersed throughout.

Women in the Mafia are treated like second class citizens. Only way out is in a police car or death. There is no divorce for women.

#netgalley
#penguinbooks

Published September 6, 2022

11 likes1 stack add
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Megabooks
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Some book acquisitions this weekend!

The tagged was sent from @Penguinpress and I‘m very excited to learn more about women in the mafia! Thank you 🙏🏻

The rest are from 2NC. The Dry is a blame it on @BarbaraBB 💜 I‘m giving Manhattan Beach another try because I am loving Egan this year, but I think I panned or bailed in 2017. 😬 Ways was an impulse buy, but it‘s been on my TBR since #FoodAndLit Brazil two years ago! 🤣

MallenNC I really enjoyed The Dry. She is great at making the setting feel real to me as I‘m reading. 2y
See All 19 Comments
jlhammar I really enjoyed Manhattan Beach. Hope it works for you this time around! I liked The Dry as well. The Godmother sounds fascinating. 2y
Cinfhen I was SUPER OBSESSED with Mafia Wives - do you remember that show?? I love all things mob related!!! 2y
Ruthiella I also liked The Dry and agree with @MallenNC , she‘s very good at atmosphere and setting. 2y
LeahBergen I‘ve been eyeing The Godmother. 👍 2y
Megabooks @CBee oooo…thanks for the rec! 2y
Megabooks @Read-y_Picker thank you! That looks really interesting! 2y
Megabooks @MallenNC I agree with that because I can still see specific scenes from 2y
Megabooks @jlhammar so many people have so-so or panned MB (including me!) that I‘m not as confident I‘ll love it, but I appreciate her so much more as a writer after reading 4 of her books so far this year. I feel like I‘m in a better place to love it. 2y
Megabooks @Cinfhen no, but I used to watch all those documentaries on A&E about the mob that came on in the 1990s!! I‘m excited to read more about women now. What network was it on? Do you remember? 2y
Megabooks @Ruthiella 💯💯 agree. That was my favorite part of (edited) 2y
Megabooks @LeahBergen I‘ll tag you in my review if you‘d like! 👍🏻👀 2y
LeahBergen Yes, please! 2y
Cinfhen It was actually called Mob Wives 🤦🏼‍♀️ and it was on VH1! - Super addictive 2y
Megabooks @Cinfhen lol! I get some vh1 streaming so I‘ll keep an eye out. 👍🏻👀 2y
BarbaraBB @CBee Force of Nature is good too! And 2y
CBee @BarbaraBB I have that one on kindle, I think? I wish I could read more than one book at a time 🤦‍♀️ 2y
82 likes19 comments
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Monica5
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#weekendReading @Andrew65

The Godmother. It's about the women in the Italian Mafia.

Andrew65 Sounds interesting. 2y
9 likes1 comment
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Monica5
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Stole this from Goodwill Librarian on FB.

Love this quote. It's so true!

'The Journey of a Lifetime Starts With the Turning of a Page' ❤️📚❤️