If you’re looking for a true crime approach to American history, may I recommend the book “Havana Nocturne: How the Mob Owned Cuba and Then Lost It to the Revolution” by crime writer T.J. English.

The book focuses on gangster Meyer Lansky and his associate Charles “Lucky” Luciano who, with the help of dictator Fulgencio Batista, turned Cuba into a glittering but decadent playground in the 1940s and 1950s, only to be ousted by Fidel Castro and the Communist revolution.

There is even a local connection in that Lansky gained his casino operating experience in the 1930s in Saratoga Springs. In fact, the only time Lansky went to jail was because of his operations in Saratoga.

As you might expect, people such as JFK, Frank Sinatra, Perez Prado, Albert Anastasia and George Raft make appearances in the book, along with the Castro brothers and Che Guevera.

English, author of best sellers about organized crime such as “Paddy Whacked” and “The Westies,” researched the book in the U.S. and in Cuba. English believes he gained access to the island nation in part because he strategically placed a book by Cuban revolutionary Jose Marti in his luggage that was thoroughly searched by Cuban customs agents.

To listen to my AM 1570 WVTL interview with T.J. English, click
here.