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Summary: History as dime novel
Review: Herbert Asbury's "Gangs of New York" was an expose first published in 1927. Its style shows its age: reading this book is like listening to an old 1920's newspaper reporter from the far end of the bar after he's had too many drinks: lots of exotic tall tales of life in the gritty city; countless names and places rise and disappear never to be heard again. The overall effect is entertaining but completely unbelievable, as though Paul Bunyon had moved to the Lower East Side of 19th-century Manhattan.One illustration will suffice: the early gangster "Mighty Mose" is describe as 'at least 8 feet tall' wearing boots studded with inch-long spikes.On one occasion Asbury has Mose pulling an oak tree out of the ground by its roots to 'smite' some of a rival gang, the Dead Rabbits. On another the author claims Mose swam underwater from Manhattan to Staten Island without coming up for air. It comes off as the kind of book a boy would have hidden in a corncrib to read when it was first published in 1927: lowlife fun, but if you're looking for the real history, you will be disappointed. You will be even FURTHER disappointed if you expect the book to resemble the new Scorcese movie in any manner. Although Scorcese borrows the names of characters from the book - Bill the Butcher, Jack Scirocco, Vallon, Everdeane - and sets the movie around the time of the 1863 Draft Riots, which really occured - in the book these characters are sometimes separated by 50 years and 100 pages. The character played by Leonardo diCaprio, Amsterdam Vallon, does not appear at all in the book. I first read the book before the movie was filmed, because of my interest in New York history. It's entertaining although the writing style is pretty archaic. But if you came to this page looking for the 'true story' behind the movie, you won't find it here.
Rating: 
Summary: Great to see this classic re-released
Review: Here is Asbury's book, back in circulation, and all is right with the world. Written during the roaring 20s, when New Yorkers wanted to live the good life, Asbury's book came along to show the dirt under the carpets: the crime and savagery that made up so much of New York's history. With neighborhoods like Hell's Kitchen, the Tenderloin and the Five Points populated with such criminals as Monk Eastman and Humpty Jackson, the reader is introduced to a New York City that contemporaries cast a blind eye on, and our generation will never see. True, some of Asbury's sources are undoubtedly questionable. But this is an "Informal" history, remember. For me, even those passages which seem doubtful in fact, remain truthful to the spirit of the time and place. I recommend this highly!
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Summary: Fascinating reading and jaw-droppingly shocking in spots
Review: I agree with the reviewer from Brooklyn that some stories in this book may be exaggerated or inaccurate but it's a fascinating read nonetheless. The simple facts of the time period that Asbury presents are by truns gripping and appalling. The sheer brutality of the lower East Side, in particular, before the rise of social services, is truly disturbing to read about but impossible to trurn away from. I do have to wonder, however, how Scorsese hopes to film such a collection of seemingly disconnected stories. I'm guessing he'll focus on such stand-out characters and Monk Eastman and Kid Twist (who I'm betting is played by DiCaprio).
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Summary: looking for a copy
Review: I am currently looking for a copy of the book The Gangs of New York by Herbert Asbury. If you know of a copy please email details.
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Summary: It's all about the movie
Review: I don't think this book would have a chance at notoriety if not for the movie. It's written in a trite style and I always felt as if I couldn't count on the stories as being true rather than hearsay or exaggeration. As someone else said, the book reads as if it were being told at a bar. I couldn't finish it. Maybe I was looking for something more historical or scholarly but then I received it as a gift. I understand the movie plays loose with the book, so where are we at?
Rating:
Summary: Interesting read as a history book
Review: I must admit right up front that this was an impulse purchase, and that I knew nothing of the contents inside. All I knew was that it was being made into a movie by Martin Scorsese. As a result, this book was not what I expected, but I found it interesting nonetheless. I thought it was a nonfiction novel, but instead its a history book with anecdotes about early gang warfare. While there is no particular structure or storyline, save the fact that it is told more or less in linear fashion, I found the history to be quite interesting. I was probably at a disadvantage in that I've never been to New York, so the geographical references (street names, district locations, etc) flew right over my head. Still, I found it interesting, and would recommend it. I would caution, however, that this is not a standard novel with plot, character development, dialogue, climax, and denouement. If you buy it knowing that its a history book and not a novel, I think you will be entertained. I'll be interested to see what Scorsese does with the material. There's definitely material to work with here. You could make a dozen movies with the different storylines and characters. TV series, maybe?
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Summary: Not merely a supplement to the film.
Review: It would be obtuse to begin a review without acknowledging the fact that Martin Scorsese, one of America's finest directors, has recently completed and released a motion picture version of this book. Herbert Asbury's book, however, is much more than a worthy companion to this film. It is a brilliant historical document whose characters and events are so unbelievably fantastic, where it not for Asbury's mind-bending research and documentation, they would not be believed. His book is an easy read for those inexperienced with early 1900's rhetoric. Even young adults would take great pleasure in the 'smoking lounge' storytelling, though it may be to violent at times for younger teens. It should be noted, however, that readers hoping to find a print version of Scorsese's film would be disappointed. 'Bill the Butcher,' a prominent character in the film, was in reality a small and relatively inconsequential part of New York's history. History buffs, give this book a read. It will fascinate you and expose you to another side of America's most violent decade. For those who enjoyed this book, I recommend Asbury's other efforts as well as Cormac McCarthy's 'Blood Meridian.'
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Summary: a glimpse of the floris writing style of the 20's
Review: Long regarded as a cult favorite The Gangs of New York is soon to be made into a movie. This book is a long ago chronicle of the rise of native born gangs that were the products of the poverty and ignorance of the slums of New York in the late 1880's and early 1900's. Some unbelievable characters are put to paper, both male and female. The is also a unforgiving look into the brutality and unforgiving nature if crime during the times. Along withthte crime was the graft and the police. A real eye opener. A slice of long ago New York , a bit of a challange to read due to the over the top florrid writing, but enjoyable bit of New York history.
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Summary: Remember: It's Informal. But Still Great!
Review: Re-reading Asbury's classic "Gangs of New York" was sort of like re-reading Homer's "Iliad" with its litany of battles and combatants, and because of its epic sweep. But also like "The Iliad" beware that these stories are terribly difficult to verify, and many border on myth. Having said that, I would still recommend this book to anyone wishing to get a sense of what 19th Century downtown NY was like. And I would also recommend it for the joyful flavor beneath Asbury's story-telling.
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Summary: Gets old pretty fast.
Review: Readers who purchase this book because they enjoyed the movie of the same name might find it challenging to determine just how the two works are connected (besides both being set in New York, and both involving gangs). It is more accurate to say that the Martin Scorcese film was "inspired by people and events" portrayed in this book. The book itself lacks the unifying narrative thread of the movie; it rushes and swerves frantically among countless colorful vignettes and covers many decades in the history of the New York City underworld. The book is a superb example of journalism from the 1910s and 1920s, i.e. fast and loose with the facts and interested primarily in generating a "sensation." However, to modern readers this style may prove frustrating, even distracting. I think that this book will remain far more interesting to historians of journalism than to fans of the DiCaprio movie.
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