Honor Thy Father.

TALESE, Gay.

$600.00

Item Number: 63039

New York: World Publishing, 1971.

First edition of Talese’s classic true story of the rise and fall of New York’s notorious Bonanno crime family. Octavo, original boards, illustrated, pictorial endpapers. Inscribed by the author to Rod McKuen, “For Rod With my very best – from one of his admirers- Gay Talese September 1971.” Rod McKuen was an American poet, singer-songwriter, and actor. He was one of the best-selling poets in the United States during the late 1960s. Throughout his career, McKuen produced a wide range of recordings, which included popular music, spoken word poetry, film soundtracks and classical music. He earned two Academy Award nominations and one Pulitzer nomination for his music compositions. Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Jacket design by Milton Charles. A nice association.

On New York's Park Avenue on a rainy Tuesday night in October 1964, the famous Mafia chieftain Joseph Bonanno was kidnapped by two mobsters and reported by the police as dead on the following morning. More than a year later, Bonanno mysteriously reappeared, setting off a bloody mob feud that came to be known as the “Banana War.” In this monumental work—packed with intimate details and brilliant reporting—bestselling author Gay Talese first brought to the American consciousness a world and a life previously known to only a few. No other book has done more to acquaint readers with the secrets, structure, wars, power plays, family lives, and fascinating, frightening personalities of the Mafia.