And All the Saints [Hardcover]

Michael Walsh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 2003

No crime figure of our time influenced the course of modern American culture the way Owen Madden did. Starting as the leader of the Gophers, the most violent Irish street gang in Hell's Kitchen, the immigrant Madden rose to prominence as the leading brewer and bootlegger in Prohibition New York. In due course, he also became Mae West's lover, the founder and proprietor of the Cotton Club, the owner of five heavyweight champions of the world, the man who gave his childhood friend George Raft his big break in Hollywood and more. Now, Michael Walsh has created a fictionalised memoir that uses Madden's voice to trace his life from his boyhood in England to his heyday in New York and beyond in one of the most colourful and engrossing books of the season.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

By turns fascinating and familiar, Walsh's third novel (after Exchange Alley and As Time Goes By) is a fictionalized account of the life of Owen Madden, the so-called "Irish Godfather," who became an organized crime giant during the Prohibition years, running in the same circles as Al Capone, Frank Costello and Lucky Luciano. The chapters describing Madden's early childhood in Leeds and his impoverished family's immigration to New York are boilerplate, but the story picks up considerably when Madden begins his life of crime at age 10, joining a local Irish gang in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan. Monk Eastman, a Jewish Tammany Hall boss with criminal operations on the Lower East Side, takes Madden under his wing and teaches him the business. Madden starts selling beer during Prohibition and makes a killing, though a few stints in jail and a duel with his best friend and beer-selling rival Dutch Schultz cramp his style a bit. Walsh saves his best material for the end, when Franklin Roosevelt turns up the heat on Madden during his presidential campaign, vowing to crack down on corruption. Walsh spices up the novel with cameo appearances by George Raft, Jack Johnson, Duke Ellington and Lena Horne, though these scenes are sometimes little more than opportunities for name-dropping. The subplot about Madden's attempts to keep his louche buddies away from his sister, May, is lifeless, but the novel is saved by a crisp, compelling finale. In all, a lively slice of gangster life, though the novel's weak spots make this a slower read than it should be.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Walsh, author of As Time Goes By (1998) and Exchange Alley (1997), offers a compelling novel in the guise of the autobiography of Irish gangster Owen ("Owney") Madden, raised in New York's infamous Hell's Kitchen (though born of lrish parents in England). Early on, Madden set his mind on becoming the first among the gangsters and, thus, to have the city at his feet. In the age of Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Dutch Schultz, Meyer Lansky, and Frank Costello, Madden carved out a turf that included ownership of the famed Cotton Club. A major influence with Tammany Hall and even Hollywood (he was one of Mae West's lovers and was responsible for George Raft's success), Madden later devoted his "talents" to making Hot Springs, Arkansas, a major center of gangsterism. By allowing Madden to present his own tale, Walsh offers an unusual perspective of one man's lifetime pursuit to be the best gangster of all. Fittingly, Walsh's novel is reminiscent of Roddy Doyle's novel A Star Called Henry (1999), a first-person narrative of a fictionalized underground figure. Allen Weakland
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books (March 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446518158
• ISBN-13: 978-0446518154
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,462,848 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

With five critically acclaimed novels, as well as a hit TV movie, journalist, author and screenwriter Michael Walsh has achieved the writer's trifecta: two New York Times best-sellers, a major literary award and, as co-writer, the Disney Channel's then-highest-rated show.

The 1998 publication of As Time Goes By -- his long-awaited and controversial prequel/sequel to everybody's favorite movie, Casablanca -- created a literary sensation; translated into more than twenty languages, including Portuguese, Chinese and Hebrew, the story of Rick and Ilsa landed on best-seller lists around the world.

His first novel, the dark thriller Exchange Alley, was published by Warner Books in July 1997. Hailed by critics for its moody depiction of a crumbling Soviet Union - which Walsh covered first-hand as a correspondent for Time Magazine - and a violent, dangerous New York City during the darkest days of the early 1990s, the novel was picked by the Book-of-the-Month Club as an alternate selection.

Walsh's third novel, the gripping gangster saga, And All the Saints, was named a winner at the 2004 American Book Awards; even before publication, the movie rights to this fictionalized "autobiography" of the legendary Prohibition-era gangster Owney Madden was bought by MGM.

His 2009 novel, Hostile Intent, the first in a series of five thrillers about the National Security Agency to be published by Kensington Books, was an Amazon Kindle #1 bestseller, as well as a New York Times bestseller. The eagerly awaited sequel, Early Warning, will be published in Sept.

In the spring of 2002, the Disney Channel premiered Walsh's original movie (co-written with Gail Parent), Cadet Kelly, starring teen idol Hilary Duff of "Lizzie McGuire" fame. Until High School Music, the two-hour film reigned as the highest-rated original movie in Disney Channel history, as well as the Disney Channel's highest-rated single program ever.

Walsh is also the author of Who's Afraid of Classical Music (1989) and Who's Afraid of Opera (1994) for Fireside Books, and Andrew Lloyd Webber: His Life and Works, a critical biography of the composer for Harry M. Abrams (U.S.) and Viking Penguin (U.K.), published in the fall of 1989; an updated and expanded edition appeared in 1997. With fellow TIME Contributor Richard Schickel, he is the co-author of Carnegie Hall: The First One Hundred Years, a cultural history of the great American concert hall published by Abrams in November 1987. His most recent book about music is So When Does the Fat Lady Sing?, published by Amadeus Press.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars strong biographical fiction, February 8, 2003

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: And All the Saints (Hardcover)

In 1892 Leeds, England Owney Madden was born to Irish parents who decided to cross the Atlantic and make their fortune in New York. However, Owney's dad died before he left the British Isles, but his mother went ahead with their dream. Accompanied by her three children, she moves to New York's Hell's Kitchen.

By the time Owney turned ten, he belonged to the Gophers, an intimating Irish gang. His prime lesson in Hoodlum 101 was that the real money existed in politics. So he turned to Jewish gang leader and Tammany Hall big shot Monk Eastman as his mentor. Advancing to Hoodlum 201 and 301, Owney learned the art of a well-placed bribe and what to do when the heat became too hot. He was involved with bootlegging during Prohibition and later turned to show business. Ultimately even after the Feds gave him an advanced lesson on closing the books, Owney cut a few last deals before moving to Hot Springs, Arkansas where he died in 1964.

This biographical fiction blends the known facts of Madden's life with delightful period vernacular and tidbits into a strong account of one of the more famous twentieth century gangsters. Readers who enjoy tales like the Untouchables or Scarface will want to read Michael Walsh's fast moving story that is so loaded one must keep saying this is fiction as it seems as if the author interviewed and quoted the gangster. Where is Robinson or Raft with Mae West to play herself because this character and book will fascinate the audience including Hollywood.

Harriet Klausner

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Irish Crime Boss Tells All, June 19, 2003

By 

FictionAddiction.NET - See all my reviews

This review is from: And All the Saints (Hardcover)

Owney Madden's first experience with crime occured on a beautiful autumn day when a young thug literally stole the family's dinner right from his mother's hand. Owney decides right then and there that no one will ever steal from him again.

This compelling fictionalized autobiography reveals the life of infamous Irish gangster Owen Madden. In 1902, at the age of ten, his impoverished family sets sail for New York City, minus his father who died from an injury sustained in a boxing match before their ship sailed from England.

Young Owney soon joins up with Jewish Tammany boss, Monk Eastman. Monk is fond of him and the two become almost inseparable. He takes Owney under his wing and begins to teach him "the trade."

In true gangster lingo and style, Owney works his way up through the ranks of the mob, planning one day to be at the top himself. The ruthless Madden takes care of his mother, younger brother and sister while pursuing and cultivating his life of crime. He escapes to the rooftops of their tenement building where he tenderly cares for his pigeons, but also uses these birds to practice how to quickly kill something painlessly.

Owney soon begins to rub elbows with some of the most notorious gangsters. In his 30's, Madden gets sent "up the river" to Sing Sing Prison, where he continues to make new contacts and also pursues his business dealings. Prohibition presents a blessing to Owney, who becomes a brewing king once out prison.

He buys his own clubs so he can control what and who will enter. He owns and turns the famous Cotton Club in Harlem into the best club of its time.

Owney also hires and makes famous singers and actresses like Lena Horn, Valentino, Joe Lewis, Mae West and George Raft. Duke Ellington also begins his career in Owney's Cotton Club.

Walsh's detailed writing and research brings this time period and its characters to life and paints not only a picture of gangster life, but portrays life on the streets in New York City. The corruption of the police, the pay-offs and hush money and the people of this era are revealed on the pages.

At times, Owney Madden is quite a sympathetic character. He reveals his loyalty to others, his family and his principles, but he also kills as easily as one might kill a fly.

Madden was protected by cops and journalists who turned a blind eye to his business dealing for free drinks and other benefits in his club.

In his retirement years, he moves into Hot Springs, Arkansas, where he meets a young Bill Clinton and gives his nod of approval to this ambitious young man. Wracked with emphysema and other ailments left from many surgeries to repair bullet wounds, Madden suffers in his old age. His life and legacy come to an end along with the gangsters of this colorful and tempestuous era.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Where is the Movie??, October 26, 2006

By 

Mcgivern Owen L (NY, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: And All the Saints (Hardcover)

"And All the Saints" is a superior true crime tale, tightly wrapped up in a semi-fictional autobiography. The subject is Owney Madden (a.k.a. "The Killer", a.k.a. "The Duke of the West Side"). Madden was the last of the great Irish-American gangsters and had a long career, whose high point was the New York City of the 20s and 30s. Author Walsh discovered some of Owney's papers / ledgers, constructed the bio and artfully stirred in some blatant "writers license". The result is a realistically resonating story. The first person narrative is the argot of a hardened hood. Think of a good actor/actress who maintains a foreign accent throughout a film. (Do not think, for example, of Julia Roberts' performance in "Michael Collins"). The scope of AAS is broad indeed, making it hard to write a concise review. OM ran with the major bad guys of the early to mid- 20th century: Luciano, Costello, Lansky, Diamond and even Capone are all here. He owned Harlem's famous Cotton Club, discovering Duke Ellington and Lena Horne. He controlled politicians and boxers and helped form the initial Crime "Commission". Madden's range of contacts borders on the breathtaking. As stated above, AAS is written in the authentic-sounding idiom- full of pithy and cynical comments on life in the raw. This reviewer was born in Hells Kitchen-Owney's turf-and AAS captures that halcyon Irish -American scene. Also, a sliver of the old neighborhood still exists! Saint Michael's Church and Owney's apartment house at 440 West 34th Street are still standing. AAS is highly recommended; the only reservation is to its' very "New York"- especially Irish New York- milieu. That is enough to warrant the subtraction of a star. Even so, one wonders why a movie studio has failed to snap AAS up. In the hands of a talented director and proper cast, a great movie is entwined here. The closing word from this reviewer is to urge my Amazon friends to be adventurous, AAS is not Ann Rule true crime but it is very good among the genre. And yes, the guy is my namesake. There aren't that many of us Owneys and they are certainly not making any more Owney Maddens.