MAFIA SON The Scarpa Mob Family, the FBI, and a Story of Betrayal

This true account of a Mafioso and his son is almost unbelievable—and makes the mythical Corleone family seem like novices. Narrator Oliver Wyman is neither too heavy-handed nor too flip in his delivery of the story of the elder Greg Scarpa, who for 30 years killed over 50 people (mostly hoodlums) for the Mob and got away with it because he was also an FBI informant. At the same time, he corrupted his two FBI handlers. And finally, when the chips were down, he even compromised his first-born son. Wyman tells the story mostly from the son's point of view in a dispassionate but highly credible performance. Wyman and the author let you answer the hard questions yourself. But Wyman's sometimes astonished tone often tells you what he believes. A.L.H. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2009]