Bøker av John Florio

A mal mortale, ne medico ne medicina vale. A cauallo donato, non guardar' in bocca. A caualli magri, vanno le mosche. A buon'intenditore, mezza parola basta. A chi la riesce bene, è tenuto sauio. A buona seconda, ogni santo aiuta. A tutto è rimedio, eccetto alla morte. A casa mia non entrerai, se teco non porterai. Al disgratiato, il pan tempesta in forno.

1971. Brooklyn, New York. Undercover cop Frank Serpico is knocking on a drug dealer's door. His partners are there to back him up, but when the door opens, he's staring down the barrel of a gun-and his partners are nowhere to be found. For more than a century, the New York Police Department had been plagued by corruption, with cops openly taking bribes from gamblers and drug dealers. Not Serpico. He refused to take dirty money and fought to shed light on the dark underbelly of the NYPD. But instead of being hailed as a hero, he became a target for every crooked cop on the force. In Marked Man, John Florio and Ouisie Shapiro bring this true story of police corruption to life. Join Frank Serpico on his one-man crusade to clean up the largest police force in the United States. And discover the price he had to pay for being an honest cop.

The latest sequel in the Prohibition-Era crime series is "hard-boiled enough to remind readers of Hammett and Chandler," featuring the biracial bartender up against a corrupt cop (Kirkus Reviews). Jersey Leo knows what it means to be the underdog. After all, he's the guy known on the streets as "Snowball," a biracial albino working the bar at Philadelphia's Ink Well, a Prohibition joint serving up moonshine to a mostly Black clientele. So when death row inmate Aaron Garvey calls to ask for one last favor, Jersey can't say no. Aaron may be a convicted cop-killer, but he's also the childhood friend who stood up to Jersey's bullies. As a Black kid with the kind of colorless features only the mother who abandoned him could love, Jersey had a lot of enemies. And the numbers keep growing, though this time it's crooked cops looking to break Jersey's legs--or worse--after Aaron springs himself from prison just moments after he and Jersey share his last meal. But that doesn't stop Jersey from hiding the escaped convict while he uncovers the real story about what happened that night Aaron pulled the trigger. Even Jersey's father, a former boxing champ, is on his side this time, along with Jersey's childhood crush, Myra Banks. With his dad in his corner and a good-looking dame on his arm, will Jersey uncover the truth before it's too late? "Compelling. . . . Florio has an unerring feel for the era and people, and we believe in these characters. Readers will cheer for Leo, a tough guy with a heart of hurt." --Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Hits a comfortable niche between hard-boiled and breezy." --The Philadelphia Inquirer

The debut novel in a "riveting" Prohibition-era crime series "for readers who follow Kelli Stanley's Miranda Corbie series or Reed Farrel Coleman's Moe Prager books" (Library Journal). On the streets of Prohibition-era New York, Jersey Leo is one of a kind. A biracial albino known as "Snowball," he makes his living as a bartender at a mob-run speakeasy. Abandoned by his White mother and frowned upon by his Black father, a former boxing champ, Jersey's about to discover why he was always warned against working at a dive bar owned by one of New York's most notorious gangsters. Duped into purchasing counterfeit moonshine, or "sugar pop moon," with his boss's money, Jersey must go undercover to track down the bootlegger who took him in--before his boss does him in. The clues lead him to Philadelphia, where his attempt to lure out the cheat nearly gets him killed. With a price on his head, Jersey seeks help from the only man he can trust, his father. But as Jersey and his dad delve into the origins of the mysterious sugar pop moon, stunning secrets about Jersey's past come to light--truths that could pave the way to a very different future for Jersey. . . . "Funny, poignant, and thrilling. A terrific read!" --Kevin Baker, bestselling author of Dreamland, Paradise Alley, and Strivers Row "Harsh as a slug of 190-proof moonshine." --Rebecca Cantrell, New York Times-bestselling author of A City of Broken Glass "Authentic period, savvy style, and memorable characters." --Kelli Stanley, award-winning author of City of Dragonsand City of Secrets "Sure to appeal to fans of Mickey Spillane, Raymond Chandler, and . . . Robert Fate's edgy Baby Shark series." --Booklist

War in the Ring presents a riveting nonfiction book for kids about a boxing match that represented the growing tensions between the United States and Nazi Germany in the lead up to World War II.Joe Louis was born on an Alabama cotton patch and raised in a Detroit ghetto. Max Schmeling grew up in poverty in Hamburg, Germany. For both boys, boxing was a path out and a ladder up. Little did they know that they would one day face each other in a pair of matches that would capture the world's attention.Joe grew into a symbol of inspiration to a nation of Black Americans hoping to carve a slice of the 'American Dream' in a racially fractured country. Max, on the other hand, became a Nazi symbol for the superiority of the Aryan race. The battles waged between Joe and Max still resonate, and the cultural implications of the international sensation continue to reverberate far past the ring.

War in the Ring presents a riveting nonfiction book for kids about a boxing match that represented the growing tensions between the United States and Nazi Germany in the lead up to World War II.Joe Louis was born on an Alabama cotton patch and raised in a Detroit ghetto. Max Schmeling grew up in poverty in Hamburg, Germany. For both boys, boxing was a path out and a ladder up. Little did they know that they would one day face each other in a pair of matches that would capture the world's attention.Joe grew into a symbol of inspiration to a nation of Black Americans hoping to carve a slice of the 'American Dream' in a racially fractured country. Max, on the other hand, became a Nazi symbol for the superiority of the Aryan race.The battles waged between Joe and Max still resonate, and the cultural implications of the international sensation continue to reverberate far past the ring.

Highlights the intersection between American society and America's pastime during the 1960s, when the hallmarks of the sport - fairness, competition, and mythology - came under scrutiny. One Nation Under Baseball brings to life the seminal figures of the era - including Bob Gibson, Marvin Miller, Tom Seaver, and Dick Young - richly portraying their roles during a decade of flux and uncertainty.

The story of the first brothers to capture the world heavyweight title, Leon and Michael Spinks, who fought their way out of the projects, took on the biggest names in boxing (including Ali and Tyson), and made millions of dollars.... But one brother would find himself strung-out, back in the projects.