Leadership Principles of the American Mafia: A Bohemian Journey through the Birth of the Underworld Paperback – March 16, 2026

From the beginning, America was a land of pioneers and outlaws, and lawlessness has always been a distinctively American trait. The greatest of all outlaws have been the men of the American Mafia, an organization founded on profit and principle, crime and character, mayhem and morality, hubris and honor. Leadership Principles of the American Mafia launches you on a journey through the birth of the American Underworld and a collection of surprising life lessons you can learn from notorious villains: go-it-alone courage, toughness, grace under fire, presence, and the ability to come back from adversity. These are just a few of the many traits found in this book. Covering the most notable early leaders from Irish, Jewish, African American, and Italian organizations, these stories will entertain mob novices and experts alike. In a combination of extensive research and reimagining, attorney and author Mike Long weaves a spellbinding account of Manhattan's top bosses in the early twentieth century, including Owney "the Killer" Madden, Mary "Texas" Guinan, Arnold Rothstein, Meyer Lansky, Stephanie St. Clair, Bumpy Johnson, Salvatore "Toto" D'Aquila, and the greatest of them all, Charles "Lucky" Luciano.Call them heroes. Call them antiheroes. Their character shone brighter than their crimes. Their lives transcended their deeds. They changed American history in ways you never heard before but can discover in these pages. Read more