Laughed out loud through this whole thing. It took me a whole four days to read also. This author is good. Really good. I want to read many more of his books. I just found him while looking for used jim dodge books and had just finished mr. vertigo from paul auster when I came across Doctorow. The perfect book at the perfect time once again. If you like historical fiction and a violent NYC mob story from circa 1930's with a young neighborhood boy in the Bronx coming up through the rackets to be a protege of the gang leader the great Dutch Schultz and to outlive your entire gang and go on to live a relatively peaceful and normal life after, then this whopper will keep you spellbound from intro to outro. Highest rating!