Lords of Lawndale: My Life in a Chicago White Street Gang [Paperback]

Michael Scott (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 3, 2004

Bred and defined in the 1950S era of White greaser gangs, the Gaylords steadily grew in Chicago to become a gang to be reckoned with. By the early 1980s, Spanish immigration threatened not only their reign, but the very survival of many. Michael Scott was a member of the Gaylords through this turbulent time period, and has written a story based on actual advents, to offer all of us a ticket to take a suspenseful guided tour.The book not only gives the reader a roller coaster ride of traditional gang fights, but it also gives an historical account of what it took to walk the streets of Chicago as White youth in the 1970s and 1980s.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: AuthorHouse (September 3, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1418482196
• ISBN-13: 978-1418482190
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,018,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lords of Lawndale, January 29, 2005

By 

Milton Combs (Tokyo, Japan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lords of Lawndale: My Life in a Chicago White Street Gang (Paperback)

The Gaylords were a predominately White street gang in Chicago that had its beginnings in the 1950's, and Michael Scott tells his story as a member during the early 80's. Chicago, as all major cities in the United States, experienced a dramatic shift in its racial and ethnic makeup during the 20th century. The process of assimilation is not always a smooth one and Lords of Lawndale tells a compelling story of what happens when things go wrong.

It is a violent story of people protecting their neighborhood. Innocence is lost at a young age, as is life itself sometimes. The amount of violence Michael Scott presents is disturbing and it is a sad state of affairs to realize that this is all too common for the young men of Lawndale. For Michael Scott and his fellow Gaylord members violence was what Little Leaugue Baseball was to other boys.

The reader should not worry about the grammar and punctuation mistakes that exist--no armchair sociologist would be willing to do the field research for such a book. This book was written by a warrior of the streets.

For a inside look at the all too common violence of our city streets Lords of Lawdale is a highly recommended read.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Inside Gang Life in the 80s, August 13, 2005

By 

abysinth (chicago suburbs) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lords of Lawndale: My Life in a Chicago White Street Gang (Paperback)

Michael Scott, also known as Rocker, did a great job with this book. Basically, it is a collection of stories about the ups and downs of living the 80s gangbanging life. The book is written in an oral style as if you are hearing the stories told to you over a beer. The true-to-life events are not cliche or predictable.

In Chicago, I was acquaintances with some former gangbangers due to strange circumstances. One was a former TJO, which was a white street gang also of the People Nation that had been strong in the 1970s.

TJO stands for Thorndale Jarvis Organization or Thorndale Jag Offs or Thieves, Junkies and Outlaws. They were riding with the five, but I had a friend who was formerly of the Folk Nation, too. That whole story gets really complicated, really fast-- but the point is that I have been been around some former gangbangers who have done jail time.

I'm from the suburbs and most people don't realize that street culture is such a different culture. The way Rocker writes is true to the street style. The use of similes is especially prevalent because it's a spoken and visual culture. Also the style of "jokes mixed with violence" is seen so often in cheesy action movies, but that same mix is the real deal in the book. It's how people talk and deal with events.

There are spelling and gramatical errors in the book so it could have used a good editor, but my only real complaint is that the ending should have had more detail. The ending events went so fast that I wanted to know more about certain choices that were made.

I would definitely read more books by this author.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Been There, November 4, 2005

By 

Duke "Duke" (SF, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lords of Lawndale: My Life in a Chicago White Street Gang (Paperback)

I moved to the Northwest side of Chicago with my family in 1968. I attended Kelvyn Park High from 1972-76. The book brought back vivid memerories for me. I can still remeber all the streets Michael notes and the gangs that he describes. While he came on the scene later than I, the area was already becoming a difficult place to live. I was not affiliated with any gang. The Imperial Gangsters were the prominant gang at KP High and they were basically given free run by the school administration. While some of the stories may be embellished a bit, the book is a true reflection of dealing with everyday life in the area. Shotings at school, not being able to waer my school's sweater becuase it was the colors of the Latin Kings, I was hit in the face with a gun by Spainish Cobras and the police would not even take a report. A good read if you have been there or not.