Rating: 
Summary: It's all about bravery
Review: This is quick and entertaining reading. Although it is predictable and unrealistic at the same time the author creates a quick and easy read that is exciting and entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: Quick Reading
Review: This is quick and entertaining reading. Although it is predictable and unrealistic at the same time the author creates a quick and easy read that is exciting and entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: Very disappointing--desperately searching 2nd movie deal
Review: This is the third Carcaterra book that I have read (Sleepers, Apaches) and by far the worst. The scenes in this book are so unbelievable, I found myself stressed about finishing the final 1/3 of the book. There is a stead-fast rule in this book: If a character has a name, he/she is probably not going to die. I feel Carcaterra realized this in coming to the end of writing, so he kills off several characters in a matter of pages.I also feel that Carcaterra remembered that he introduced the idea of conspiracy from the other street boys in the late rounds of writing and realized that he had to kill their leader before moving forward. Overall, I would not recommend this book to anyone. I regretfully picked this book up in an airport bookstore based on my past experience with Carcaterra novels. This will be my last based on the fact that I felt he was whoring his writing out and begging for a movie deal with his latest work.
Rating: 
Summary: Concept Good, execution terrible
Review: This nearly became one of the handful of books I've put down before finishing it. I stuck it out, but it really wasn't worth it. The idea is a fantastic one, and as a lover of WWII fiction I was really looking forward to something different. But the language and events are all over the place. The action is very hard to follow and in just about every battle I had a hard time telling what was going on. It also could have benefitted from a map of Naples--I've never been to Naples, and his descriptions of locations left me baffled. One moment some kids are chasing a tank down an alley, the next moment they're in a castle. Huh? Where did a castle come from? I was lost. He also builds up some major character only to have them fizzle out later, as if they were never really imporatant.
On top of all that, the Germans are portrayed here like the bumbling idiots that chase down Indiana Jones. Everybody knows the German's were horrible and intelligent, and there's no way they would have gone out like they did in this book. True, a fight in the streets of Naples did take place, but many lost thier lives. I think only two kids die in the book, at least that you witness. That's just not realistic.
Anyone who wants a good WWII story should read The Good German by Joseph Kannon. Skip this
Rating: 
Summary: Best book ever! people who don't like it are stupid.
Review: this was a very entertaining and emotional book. some readers said it was devoid of emotion, but i totally disagree. carcaterra does not claim this book to be an accurate portrayal of WWII events, but it is based on the brave actions of street fighters. the characters were wonderful and NOT one-sided. the main characters had depth and each had their own unique qualities, fears, and emotion.
Rating:
Summary: Best book ever! people who don't like it are stupid.
Review: this was a very entertaining and emotional book. some readers said it was devoid of emotion, but i totally disagree. carcaterra does not claim this book to be an accurate portrayal of WWII events, but it is based on the brave actions of street fighters. the characters were wonderful and NOT one-sided. the main characters had depth and each had their own unique qualities, fears, and emotion.
Rating:
Summary: What a waste, and knock-off.
Review: What a disappointment! There is very little in this book that merits even one star, but that's as low as I could find. Carcaterra knows virtually nothing of military tactics or equipment, and very little of the events in Naples that this book tries to portray. He is completely out of his element in writing this story, and anyone who has ever served in the military will be unable to finish the book Perhaps Carcaterra should stay with the "Sleepers" theme, which he seems to know about.
Rating:
Summary: Poorly researched and poorly written
Review: What a disappointment! There is very little in this book that merits even one star, but that's as low as I could find. Carcaterra knows virtually nothing of military tactics or equipment, and very little of the events in Naples that this book tries to portray. He is completely out of his element in writing this story, and anyone who has ever served in the military will be unable to finish the book Perhaps Carcaterra should stay with the "Sleepers" theme, which he seems to know about.
Rating:
Summary: Reads like a Bruckheimer-Bay action flick
Review: When I read somewhere that Mr. Carcaterra was the author of the book on which the film "Sleepers" was based, I thought that I would at the very least get a well-structured, exciting story about one of my favorite topics, WWII. Boy was I wrong! Instead the novel turns out to be something akin to a script for a Jerry Bruckheimer-Michael Bay production. Here's why: 1. The characters are hollow and one-dimensional. I felt no attachment to any of the lead characters, and the one most interesting to me is never fleshed-out and is wasted three-quarters of the way through. 2. There are so many inconsistencies, I had to force myself to finish the book midway through. Unless everyone in Naples, from the American to the Neopolitans to the Germans, all spoke one language, how were they able to understand everything and communicate so clearly to one another? How exactly did those street boys in the zoo understand what was said between the two German snipers? 3. Most of the action is ludicrous and so cliched. The setups, I swear, seem like they were lifted from some Bruce Willis action flick. Am I really to believe that an army of 200 tykes could actually take on one of Germany's lauded Panzer divisions, who were both feared and respected as the best fighting armored army of the war, and affect as much damage as they did? And the way Carcaterra writes the Nazi soldiers is straight out of a propaganda action flick during the war. 4. The romance between Steve and Nunzia feels tacked on and is incredibly formless and dull. 5. The dialogue is as cheesy as it gets. I'm talking groan-inducing. And everyone sounds the same; I had a hard time distinguishing the voices of each character. To sum it up, the book is lazy, phony and sloppy. It starts out okay, but by the halfway point it becomes a struggle to get through without thinking of that other book you could have been reading instead. I can't really recommend the book to anyone, especially to fans of WWII historical novels or to those of the action genre.
Rating:
Summary: Street Boys - L. Carcaterra
Review: While waiting to board on my last flight from Houston to Europe, I bumped into this last work by Carcaterra. I did not read "Sleepers", so this was my first experience, but, regretfully, I am not going to account as a memorable one. I am Neapolitan and the memory of the stories told by my Grandma of the famous "Quattro Giornate" (the four days of Naples)are still vivid in my memory. Maybe my expectation was different, maybe to high, considering how sacred is this event in our minds: the conclusion was rather disappointing. I noticed several criticisms already (the confusing geographical description, the mispelled Italian words) and I share this view, although I do not account for these to be crucial points in the assessment of the value of this book. However, everything is so artificial and fake. I accept the romance between Nunzia and Connors, but the real story is a story of misery, starvation, blood and (how many) tears. The Nazis look like puppets, falling under the shots of the clever Neapolitan kids: that is not true! How many died because of the ferocity of the German soldiers! The whole plot seems to be taken from a Travel Guide. Only the most historical and touristic places are mentioned in the book. And how many common sayings about Neapolitans: the truth is the opposite; we hide our virtues and talk mainly of our flaws! And then, it was not just kids: let's be realistic! There were several adults still around and, absolutely not mentioned in the book, the fundamental role of women (the mammas) was absolutely neglected: they were the logistic supply and the field hospitals at the same time. There is a lot to say about the 4 giornate: Carcaterra scratched just the top rusty part of the lid .....
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