Carmine and the 13th Avenue Boys - Surviving Brooklyn's Colombo Mob

Craig McGuire, Carmine Imbriale

Summary

Now in hiding, a former wiseguy teams up with a veteran true-crime writer to take you inside Brooklyn’s gangland at the height of its violence.   This is the true story of Carmine Imbriale—a gambler, a brawler, a bandit, a bookie, an enforcer. For two decades, Imbriale was a street-level operative in one of the most violent crews in the Colombo Family, and he endeared himself to some of the major figures of organized crime while developing deadly disputes with others. Carmine and the 13th Avenue Boys is the jarring account of his lawless lifestyle culminating in a gang war in South Brooklyn, from which he emerges a survivor.   From his first arrest at fifteem for robbing a Coney Island pimp to surviving multiple assassination attempts, Imbriale offers up dozens of too-good-to-be-true tales featuring some of the most notorious gangsters, including Joe Colombo, Christie Tick, Jimmy Ida, Joe Waverly, Sammy “The Bull” Gravano, Johnny Rizzo, as well as other lions and lackeys of La Cosa Nostra, and details a beef with none other than Greg “The Grim Reaper” Scarpa Sr.   A young streetwise hustler, Imbriale thought he found loyalty, a brotherhood. Instead, he descended into a world of treachery and deceit, where your best friend is your executioner, and no one gets out alive. But no one expected him to become the domino that helped bring it all down.

Available since: 04/26/2022.

Print length: 376 pages.

Other books that might interest you

Western Han Dynasty - The...

Rolf Hedger

The Western Han Dynasty (206 BCE – 9 CE) emerged following the collapse of the Qin Dynasty, a period marked by harsh legalist rule and widespread rebellion. The fall of the Qin created a power vacuum, leading to years of conflict between rival warlords. Among them was Liu Bang, a peasant-born general who would go on to establish one of China’s most influential dynasties. His leadership, pragmatic policies, and ability to gain the support of both the military and the common people played a crucial role in shaping the early Han state.
Liu Bang, later known as Emperor Gaozu, rose to prominence during the rebellion against the Qin. Unlike his rival Xiang Yu, a nobleman known for his military prowess, Liu Bang relied on strategy, diplomacy, and alliances to gain an advantage. In 202 BCE, he decisively defeated Xiang Yu at the Battle of Gaixia, solidifying his control over China and declaring himself the first emperor of the Han Dynasty. His rule marked a shift away from the oppressive policies of the Qin, emphasizing stability, leniency, and bureaucratic governance.
One of Gaozu’s first major reforms was the reduction of harsh legalist laws that had caused unrest under the Qin. He abolished extreme punishments, lowered taxes, and granted land to military leaders and allies. However, in order to maintain control, he adopted a semi-feudal system, granting large territories to loyal kings while keeping direct control over the central government. This system helped secure loyalty but later posed challenges as regional rulers sought more autonomy.

Show book

The Hijacking of American Flight...

John Wigger

He pulled off what some deem the crime of the century: skyjacking a commercial jetliner, collecting a ransom of $200,000, parachuting off the aft stairs of the Boeing 727 into the night, and simply disappearing. Since November 1971, “D. B. Cooper”—no one knows his real name or identity—has become a figure of enduring fascination and obsession. The FBI pursued him for over forty years, before closing the case and leaving it unsolved.

Unsolved, perhaps, but much admired. D. B. Cooper’s exploit over the skies of the American Northwest has inspired books, films, and endless speculation. What’s less known is that it inspired imitators. None were more daring than the hijacker of American Flight 119. After commandeering the flight from St. Louis with a machine gun and collecting $502,500 in ransom, he parachuted out over Indiana. Unlike Cooper, he was tracked down.

In The Hijacking of American Flight 119, John Wigger explores the wave of hijackings that swept over commercial flights between 1961 and 1972. One hijacker ran across the ramp in Reno, Nevada, with a pillowcase over his head, gun in hand, to seize a United Airlines flight.

Another collected a large ransom in Washington, D.C., before jumping over Honduras. Yet another rode a bicycle across the tarmac with a rifle strapped to the handlebars.

Motivations involved an admixture of ideology, greed, derring-do, and a desperate need to be noticed. What they had in common was that their exploits transfixed the nation’s attention, bringing about a transformation in airline security that remains with us still.

With its focus on the parachute hijackers, Wigger’s book gathers together the stories of this period of daring criminality and recounts them in gripping fashion, showing their effect on the public, the media, and law enforcement. Using never-before-published interviews and first-hand accounts, he brings to life one of the most chaotic and fascinating periods in American aviation history.

Show book

The Ballad Of The White Horse -...

Gilbert Keith Chesterton

"The Last Great Epic Poem in the English Language"- Dale Ahlquist"The ending is absurd. The brilliant smash and glitter of the words and phrases (when they come off, and are not mere loud colours) cannot disguise the fact that G. K. C. knew nothing whatever about the 'North', heathen or Christian."- JRR TolkienThe tale of King Alfred, the Christian king who in 878AD battled a Viking invasion that had conquered the rest of England and burnt some cakes. He then became the last holdout of resistance against the invaders and forced the conversion of the Danish king Guthrum to Christianity after the battle of Ethandun. Chesterton says "This ballad needs no historical notes, for the simple reason that it does not profess to be historical. All of it that is not frankly fictitious, as in any prose romance about the past, is meant to emphasize tradition rather than history. That is the use of tradition: it telescopes history."Named after the chalk horses carved into English hills (and partly set at Uffington), it begins with an exhortation to true Christianity in the face of despair and defeat, and ends with a prediction of more barbarian invasions. It focuses on the nature of faith in times of despair, and on the true strength of local kings in the face of empires."... you and all the kind of ChristAre ignorant and brave,And you have wars you hardly winAnd souls you hardly save...."In some far century, sad and slow,I have a vision, and I knowThe heathen shall return...."They shall come mild as monkish clerks,With many a scroll and pen;And backward shall ye turn and gaze,Desiring one of Alfred's days,When pagans still were men."

Show book

DBT Skills Workbook for Teens...

Joss Reed

Two manuscripts in one audiobook:DBT Skills Workbook for Teens: 101 Engaging Exercises and Activities for Handling Difficult Emotions, Increasing Awareness, and Enhancing Coping SkillsThe DBT Skills Workbook for Parents of Teens: The Ultimate Guide to Help Your Teen Manage Difficult Emotions, Increase Awareness, and Strengthen Coping Skills 
In the first part of this audiobook, you will:Learn about DBT and its benefitsDiscover mindfulness techniquesUnderstand how to balance their emotionsLearn how to express themselves freelyDiscover the secrets to controlling emotional outburstsLearn how to navigate the challenges they may face in lifeLearn how to recognize their feelingsUnderstand how DBT can help them build social skills 
In the second part of this audiobook, you will:Learn everything about DBT, including what it can offer you and how you can harness it.Learn how to nurture the positive aspects of your relationship with your teenager.Discover how to avoid triggering dangerous conflicts with your teen and stop the angry outbursts before they get out of control.Understand the real reason your teen behaves the way they do.Understand what matters in your teen’s life, what they believe in, and why it’s important to them.Discover different techniques to positively connect with your teen and relate to them in a way they understand.Learn how to help your teenager overcome their fear of failure, gain self-confidence, and discover their strengths. 
Click the “add to cart” button today to support your teen's mental health, help them grow into a self-actualized, responsible, and empathetic individual by learning skills that fix problems.

Show book

The Fifth Wing

Marcus Reed

The Fifth Wing is a haunting reflection on power, hierarchy, and the mythology of heroism. Set against the ruins of a world obsessed with conquest, it dismantles the illusion of destiny — revealing how every flight toward greatness is built upon someone else’s silence. Where the original story glorified survival, this book examines its cost: the exhaustion of living within systems that disguise control as purpose, obedience as honor, and violence as strength. 
 Through lyrical critique and philosophical clarity, The Fifth Wing explores the psychology of ambition, the militarization of imagination, and the myth of meritocracy that shapes both fantasy and reality. It speaks for those who were never chosen — the ones who stayed on the ground, who carried the weight of others’ glory, who refused to mistake endurance for freedom. 
 In the end, it’s not about flying higher, but about learning to live without wings at all — to reclaim dignity in a world that measures worth by how far you can fall.

Show book

The Australian Wars - The truth...

Mina Murray, Stephen Gapps,...

The truth about the bloody battles fought to establish a nation

For the first time, The Australian Wars brings what for too long has been considered the historical past into connection with its reverberations in the present.

It is estimated up to 100,000 people died in the frontier wars that raged across Australia for more than 150 years. This is equivalent to the combined total of all Australians killed in foreign battles to date. But there are few memorials marking these first, domestic wars.

The Australian Wars was conceived by Rachel Perkins following her award-winning documentary series produced by Blackfella Films for SBS and edited along with Stephen Gapps, Mina Murray and Henry Reynolds. This is the first book to tell the story of the continental sweep of massacres, guerilla warfare, resistance and the contests of firearms and traditional Aboriginal weaponry as Indigenous nations resisted colonial occupation of their lands, territory by territory. At stake was the sovereignty of an entire country.

Black and white writers tell the stories of these battles across three crucial time periods, and all the states and territories. It notes the lands that were unconquered, as well as the role of disease, weapons and tactics, and the story of women on the frontier.

This history is still alive in those descendants who carry the stories of their ancestors. The Australian Wars brings what for too long has been considered the historical past into the present so that we might know the truth of the origins of this nation.

'As it peels back the enduring veils of silence and denial about our shared past, The Australian Wars exposes a complex legacy of shame, pride, crime and valour. It offers us an opportunity to ask ourselves, in a spirit of humility and honesty, what it truly means to be an Australian patriot. The authors of this work have delivered a huge favour wrapped in a hard lesson.' TIM WINTON

'An inspiring, game-changing work of collective truth-telling about our shared history.' KATE GRENVILLE

‘Rachel Perkins and her fellow editors have done us all a great service in bringing this history together.' DAVID KEMP AC

'Together with the TV series The Australian Wars puts down a marker: no more denial, no more cant. These wars happened and we cannot blink them away.' DON WATSON

'This book has the best of contemporary research. It will ensure that the original people of this nation are not denied the dignity of their resistance and the truth telling has the edge it should.' KIM BEAZLEY

'A compelling call to truth-telling and national reckoning. Essential reading for all Australians.' THE HON KEN WYATT AC

Show book