Review: Gomorrah by Roberto Saviano

The good

• An amazing insider’s reveal of the Italian mafia. It shows that the scope & scale of their operations is absolutely mind blowing. Their integration into the Italian and world economy is remarkable.

• Shows the dark, depraved nature of the mafia: all the people killed, all the lives ruined, the torture, the executions, and, perhaps most important of all, the seeming futility of fighting back or ever changing it.

The not so good

• The writing jumps all over the place. Here you have a list of mobster names; then you have the detailed story of one person in particular; then we jump to the economic impact on the clothing industry; then we jump to something else. Perhaps if you’re an Italian and these names are more familiar, this would make more sense, but to me, as an outsider, I had trouble following some of it, and, to be honest, almost none of it stuck. You read the book, you’re fascinated and disturbed, and then you forget all the details. A more linear narrative, or a more narrow focus, or a more organized, clear structure would’ve helped.

Rating: 3.5 stars