This work adds significant value to the small collection of competently crafted histories of organized crime. Historians and other interested scholars will appreciate the richness of Critchley's extensive endnotes and selected bibliography. ... All readers will acknowledge the author's research diligence. He has produced a volume that will be cited frequently. This book should be added to library collections at all campuses where departments of history and criminology share space but where they may rarely exchange ideas about how organized crime history can be improved.
-James D. Calder, University of Texas at San Antonio, Journal of American History, vol. 96 no. 3
This is one of the most comprehensive studies of the New York Mafia... Essential. - W.M. Fontane, McNeese State University, Choice
In an ideal world every writer, whether academic, professional or popular, should consult David Critchley's book before repeating assertions about the history of organized crime in New York in particular and the United States as a whole. ... Above all the depth of research in The Origin of Organized Crime in America captures the diversity and modesty of scale and outcomes that characterized New York City's Mafia in its formative years. - Michael Woodiwiss, University of the West of England, Bristol
...[W]e genuinely enjoyed reading The Origin of Organized Crime in America. We found that, overall, it proves how historical research on the topic is not merely interesting, but, more importantly, it provides the much needed means towards a re-conceptualization of 'organised crime'. Critchley's piece of work is essential reading not only for historians of crime, but also for sociologists and criminologists.
-Georgios Papanicolaou and Georgios A. Antonopoulos, Teesside University, British Journal of Criminology, Advanced Access January 2010
This book is a well-written and well-researched account of the birth of American organized crime. It might be one of the most compelling and comprehensive discussions of this time period in mob history.
-Dr. Dave Whelan, Chair, Criminal Justice Administration Dept., Delaware Valley College
Finally, a great book on the pre-history of La Cosa Nostra in the United States!
-Cyrille Fijnaut, Faculty of Law, Tilburg University, The Netherlands
