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Books to read if you're planning a vacation in "Cleveland", sorted by average review score:
Torso: The Story of Eliot Ness and the Search for a Psychopathic Killer
Published in Hardcover by John F Blair Pub (May, 1989)
Author: Steven Nickel
Average review score:

Very good book
Not long after his "Untouchables" days, Eliot Ness experienced many successes as Public Safety Director of Cleveland (OH). Unfortunately, capturing the 'Torso Murderer' was not among them. A relatively little known crime, this serial killer haunted Ness' time in Cleveland. This book is both a look at Ness himself after his Chicago accomplishments, and an examination of one of America's greatest unsolved serial killings. If you are interested in either subject, this is an excellent purchase.

A surprising book!
Thinking I'd purchased simply a true crime book, I was astonished to find that this book weaves the later career of Eliot Ness with politics in Cleveland in the l930's and 1940's with the unkown identity of a gruesome serial killer at that time. The author's sense of time and place is terrific. I was swept back to that time in history, almost against my will. And I found this to be far more horrifying a book than it appears. When I was two-thirds of the way done, I found that I absolutely had to close and lock my bedroom window. These crimes may have been committed before I was born, but they're still shocking and terrifying. See if you agree with me that Eliot Ness's take on who committed these crimes is the right one! Horrifying, historical, accurate, mesmerizing, all at once. I recommend it to anyone interested in terrific reading.

Cleveland, Elliot Ness, Murder and Politics come together!
History, intriging information on Elliot Ness and murder come together in the wake of a political election that makes Cleveland history. As a decendent of Frank Dolezal framed for the "Torso murders" this book hits home. The crime remains unsolved to this day....Can you figure out this "Who done it"? while everyone has theories it has yet to be proven who killed 13 people in the late 1930's. This book and story is as alive today as it was over 60 years ago. A must read!

The Curse of Rocky Colavito: A Loving Look at a Thirty-Year Slump
Published in Hardcover by Simon & Schuster (April, 1994)
Author: Terry Pluto
Average review score:

the curse of rocky colavito
This book brought back some fond and also bittersweet memories. It is a "must read" for anyone who suffered along with the author and anyone else who dared to root for this group of hapless,yet lovable "has beens" and "never weres".I thouroughly loved every page!

Another superb book by Terry Pluto
Terry Pluto wrote two of my favorite sports books, "Loose Balls" and "Our Tribe", this one makes three. Reading this will be great entertainment for the casual or die-hard Indians fan. Those who don't fit those two classifications will probably enjoy it also.

The Tribe...this is my team!
A wonderful trip down memory lane, as I appear to be a contemporary of Terry Pluto in that I really relate to the Indians troubles from the mid-60's to their resurgence in 1995. As a youngster growing up, my favorite Indian was Sam McDowell and it was exciting and at the same time troubling to read how his personal problems affected his amazing potential. I, like Pluto, became a Tribe fan by listening to my father and went through all the frustration of watching a team that just did not appear to want to win...we were just happy if they were not in last place by July 4th every year! Pluto brought back many memories when he went into discussions like the Ken Harrelson trade, the deal that brought Gaylord Perry to Cleveland, the Dennis Eckersley era where my then favorite player George Hendrick prospered (and this is my only somewhat selfish critique of the book in that Hendrick is barely mentioned), the Wayne Garland fiasco and Len Barker's perfect game. These are all milestones for Tribe fans in an otherwise desulatory period of baseball watching. The purchase of the team by the Jacobs brothers and the day-to-day general management from Hank Peters and John Hart sets the stage for his next book on the Tribe's wonderful 1995 season where they finally put it all together. (Just a side note from a frustrated fan...if the Indians had played the 1995 World Series against the Braves in June of that year, we'd have smoked them!!!). In summary, this is an excellent book for the average baseball fan and a must-read for any Tribe fan who can remember the frustrations of the 60's and 70's. Go Tribe!

Shoot in Cleveland
Published in Mass Market Paperback by St. Martin's Press (April, 1999)
Author: Les Roberts
Average review score:

Almost Instantly Forgetable!
Boring! Cliche, trite, what else can I say. It baffles me how this book got into print. The main character is one dimensional. The plot is weak with obvious red herrings. Watch out! You'll be dropping this one off at the used bookstore pronto!

A well-crafted book!
Local detective Milan Jacovich is a big, square kind of guy. In more ways than one. He tends to see things in black and white, strongly filtered through his own unique sense of ethics. Would there more people everywhere like him.

This book, in particular, also abounds with terrific philosophical sayings such as: "Michael Jordan says that you always miss the shot you don't take." Yup. You do. Which ought to convince folks to make more attempts at the things that mean the most to them. Six pages earlier was my favorite: "A very wise Clevelander once told me that gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues but the parent of all the others."

As a devoted reader of this series, I was very upset when, in the previous book, Milan's boyhood pal, Lt. Marko Meglich took a bullet intended for Milan. (Not that I wanted to lose Milan, because I certainly didn't. I just didn't want to lose Marko, either.) It was somewhat appeasing that six months later, Milan is also still suffering the loss. It is in order to shake him up some that another old friend, the newspaperman Ed Stahl, recommends Milan for a job with a Hollywood film company that's shooting in Cleveland. The job is as a glorified baby-sitter for the young male star of the film - the 24 year-old Darren Anderson.

Darren, however, resents the 'tending' and point blank tells Milan to leave him alone for one particular Sunday, the end of which sees Darren in a new role--that of corpse. Milan takes it personally, and sets out to find the killer, even if he no longer has a real client. Along the way, we meet some familiar folk from previous books, as well as a new love for Milan. This is good, as he definitely needed one.

If you've ever wondered about Cleveland, the Milan Jacovich books will show you the real thing, warts and all, but subtly mixed in with the rest of the cityscape that those of us who live here, love as much as Milan does. His descriptions of the places he visits should endear him to the Chamber of Commerce, while the taut story lines, unique characterizations and marvelous writing should endear him to readers of all kinds of books.

GREAT CHARACTERS IN A FASCINATING PLOT AND SETTING
By juxtaposing the glitz and glitter of a major Hollywood film shoot with the no-nonsense, working-class city of Cleveland, Les Roberts has managed to blend tension, action, and humor into a most enjoyable reading experience.

His Hollywood-type characters ring true, and he manages to make the spoiled young movie star, Darren Anderson, sympathetic and appealing all the while he is being a louse. And hulking, tattooed muscle-for-hire Albert Wysocki is one of those indelible bad guys you love to hate - - quirky and funny while being chillingly sinister.

It is Cleveland private op Milan Jacovich, in his ninth and best-yet outing, whose presence is the glue that holds it all together. His wry wit is in full throttle, and his often rigid principles cost him dearly here, as they usually do, and we find ourselves rooting for his budding relationship with a bright, funny woman who matches his strength and determination.

A fast-action and highly entertaining entry in a superior series.

Cleveland Amory's Compleat Cat: The Cat Who Came for Christmas: The Cat and the Curmudgeon, the Best Cat Ever
Published in Hardcover by Black Dog & Leventhal Pub (November, 1995)
Author: Cleveland Amory
Average review score:

Excellent read
Personally, I enjoyed Amory's tale of Polar Bear for several reasons. First of all, the storyline is interesting and realisting, drawing in the reader and never failing to entertain. Second of all, Amory's writing style allows you to feel as if you are the owner of Polar Bear, which is truly amazing because you are no longer simply reading a book about somebody written by somebody, you are in the book itself. Lastly, Compleat Cat is not a heavy read. It is something that you would read when you have some time to spare, without the necessity of becoming deeply involved in it, which can be cumbersome on occasion when you simply want to relax a bit. In a way, Amory's Compleat Cat is like a kid's book for adults. The story is sweet and interesting, not depressing, and light enough to read at any time. Amory is able to put a smile on our faces and keep us turning the pages.

Could identify with the CRF "Sub q's" the whole 9 yards
I found I could identify with the CRF,"Sub q's," the whole 9 yards and even the eventual euthanasia, for I had to go through that with Midnight about 2 and 1/2 years ago and unlike Polar Bear who was the "incredible shrinking kitty," Midnight had to be put down because of nausea and he was 15.

Cat lovers--You'll be able to relate
Cleveland Amory's 3 books about his beloved cat available in ONE VOLUME!! What a great deal. You will come to know a love the person and his little boy as he shares their lives together. If you like cats, this is pure catnip!!

Whatever Happened to Jacy Farrow?
Published in Hardcover by University of North Texas Press (November, 1997)
Authors: Ceil Cleveland and Larry McMurtry
Average review score:

Tediously finding out whatever happened to Jacy Farrow
The tiny town of Archer City produced Larry McMurtry isn't that enough? I can only hope Ceil has purged herself from those Texas demons with this book and has now taken up skydiving or something other than writing. Gee, now I wished I hadn't found out what happened to her.

"...this river remembers its source..."
After a recent visit to Archer City (Thalia) Texas, I read Whatever Happened to Jacy Farrow, expecting a light-hearted rebuttal to Larry McMurtry's The Last Picture Show, a sort of "comin' back atcha" kind of book. This work, however, is at once, a serious reflection of a life, a social and cultural commemtary, and a source of great wisdom, insight, and humor. I was unprepared for the depth of emotion that it triggered, and for the way I interacted with it. I was not simply an observer, but a participant. I sat up late at night thinking of my own story, and the stories of my mother and grandmother. Ceil's memoir has encouraged and helped "this river remember its source". I read many reviews that claim "the book will be remembered long after the last page is turned". I usually scoff at that because it is often untrue. However, it is surely something that should be written about this one...it is being remembered and continues to be thought-provoking. I recommend it highly.

Funny, moving, insightful
Through word of mouth, this book is slowly becoming a classic. I ran across a whole classful of university students reading this book in New York recently. I just re-read it recently, and still find it funny, moving, insigthtful, full of thoughtful philosophical musings on the vagaries of life. A profound book cast in three phases: the author as a young girl; the author in her thirties, and the author in her fifties. A unique life, a unique voice. Highly recommended.

First and Last Seasons: A Father, a Son, and Sunday Afternoon Football
Published in Hardcover by Doubleday (19 September, 2000)
Author: Dan McGraw
Average review score:

Can you go home again?
Dan McGraw returns to his hometown to write about the return of a Cleveland Browns team. Somewhat a prodigal son, he also returns to a father dying of cancer. This is the anti-Morrie book, the story of a father and son who didn't ever seem to remain on common ground for long, and their coming to grips with death and their differences. It is not a feel good book, it is filled with depression, fear, profanity, pain, drinking and self examination seems to be closer to self-loathing at times. It is the story of a father and son and the differences that could completely tear them apart, and the compassion and struggle that binds them. It is an honest book, the feelings expressed by McGraw about seeing his father laid out for the wake and the confusion, relief and anger that accompany the grief of death ring true. Paralell to this story is the story of the Browns struggle to reestablish their place in pro football...not a pretty sight.

a great book about a father and a son, and funny too.
This is kind of the anti-Morrie. Nothing against that book, but this is not a warm and fuzzy kind of story. It's very unsentimental, and more effective because of that. IF you're not into honesty, don't read this--it's easily the most honest look at a father-son relationship I've ever read, and I've read a lot of them. So many American men and their fathers have a curiously aloof relationship, often based on doing things together instead of talking and sharing feelings . . . and sports is often one of those activities. I think almost every guy in America will identify with Dan McGraw and his memorable and terminally ill dad, who, when his son tells him he's writing a book about the two of them, asks, "When would it be good for me to die? You know, for the book?" The process of McGraw making peace with his father, with the "expansion" Cleveland Browns' season in the background, is by turns awkward, painful, corrosively funny (there's no shortage of drinking and profanity here), and beautiful. The elder McGraw is simply one of the most unforgettable characters I've ever read about. I just can't recommend this book highly.

This ex-Clevelander loved Dan McGraw's book
I must admit being prejudice about this book. This book was written for me.

I grew up in Cleveland in the 70's and 80's and was a big Cleveland Brown's fan. I actually attended the last Championship game a professional Cleveland team won...the 1963 NFL title game. So, I understand the pain Clevelander's have experienced for the past 40 years.

McGraw moves back to Cleveland to spend time with his Father who is dying and to cover the first year experience of the "new" Browns. It sounds like a smaltzy experience, but it is anything but.

The power of the book is the complete honesty that McGraw relates about his Dad and himself. There is no sugar coating of the "good and bad" about their character and their relationship.

McGraw also gives an accurate description of how Cleveland has been homogenized into "any town" USA and gives a feel for today's predictable NFL machine. I'm one of those "don't care about the new Browns" type.

I would love to sit down and have a beer with Dan in one of those old crappy Cleveland bars.

The Rise and Fall of the Cleveland Mafia: Corn Sugar and Blood
Published in Hardcover by Barricade Books (October, 1995)
Authors: Rick Porrello and Rick Porello
Average review score:

Excellent book!
This book was an outstanding read. I couldn't put it down. I gave it four stars simply because I felt it should have discussed the Cleveland Syndicate further. For example what about Moishe Wexler? He owned the Theatrical Grill, a great club in its day. As a born and raised Clevelander, It was very interesting to find out more about stories that I have heard since childhood. I would recommend this book, and in fact I am planning on putting it on the reading list for my criminology classes at Kent State.

History of the Cleveland Mafia
If you are from Cleveland and you are interested how the mafia started up and how it changed throughout the decades, then check this book out. I thought this was a very interesting read and the book kept my attention 99% of the time. Great details on how the mafia started in Cleveland.

Very Easy Reading
It kept my attention!Couldn't put it down!

Just Here Trying to Save a Few Lives: Tales of Life and Death from the Er
Published in Hardcover by Warner Books (July, 2000)
Author: Pamela Grim
Average review score:

Occasionally interesting but often depressing
While the middle third of this book is interesting, the rest of it is rather dull and depressing. That's not surprising since the author's pilgrimage was precipitated by her melancholy and disappointment with life as an ER physician in America. As an ER doctor, I can certainly sympathize with her discontent, but I am nevertheless shocked that such a glum book was published. Although it is true that any accurate portrayal of ER medicine is bound to include much negativity, Dr. Grim (how utterly apropos, by the way) could have tempered her pervasively gloomy account with an occasional ray of sunshine.

In addition to making readers reach for their Prozac, there's a lot about this book that I didn't like. First, the quality of writing was annoying. Second, I repeatedly had the feeling that her smattering of interesting stories were overly embellished and hence not entirely believable. Third, Dr. Grim leaves readers wondering if she's still working in the ER or is now doing hair transplants. The central question in this book is whether Grim can shake her disaffection with ER medicine and keep working in that field, or whether she decides to accept a job offer from a friend to perform hair transplants and other cosmetic procedures. Fourth, this book is by no means a complete or even passably complete narrative of what it is like to be an ER physician.

A great collection of tales
If you are a doctor, medical student, or someone interested in life in the ER, you will love this book. It's a collection of short episodes that take place in various ERs during various times in the author's life. They are written in the first person, and as far as I know are true stories. They are reminicent of the TV show ER, but go much deeper into the situations. The language is both medical and in regular language at the same time, which is great. It makes you feel like you are a student standing behind Dr. Grim trying to follow along with the procedures. She has led such an interesting life. The book keeps you rivited, and isn't much of a commitment because for the most part because the stories really aren't linked, so you can read one on a Monday night and another the following Saturday afternoon without having to remember details from Monday. It's full of joy and sorrow, and doesn't have any boring spots. I hope she writes more stuff like this.

Honest, Affecting, Great Read
The world needs more doctors like Pamela Grim, and we need more writers like Pamela Grim. Grim never stands down from the gritty realities of emergency room medicine, and the devastating effects and heartbreaking aspects of the lack of healthcare in the third-world and wartorn countries where she spent time providing medical care through Medicins San Frontiers.

At the same time, there's no egotistical I'm a doctor bravado...you get a sense that Grim is smart, but at times muddling her way through this -- guided by a combination of knowledge, luck, and circumstance -- as most of us would be in similar circumstances.

Well written, fast-paced, this was one of those books I felt compelled to kept going back to, even though I had other things to do, and read in my spare moments over just two days...

I'll never watch ER or any of the medical shows the same way again, nor will I ever take it so lightly when they start yelling "we're gonna have to crack the chest..." after reading Grim's real account.

Grim's a writer with heart and soul and smarts...I hope we hear more from her.

Mary Shomon, Author of "Living Well With Hypothyroidism: What Your Doctor Doesn't Tell You...That You Need to Know"

Cleveland Local
Published in Mass Market Paperback by St. Martin's Press (December, 1998)
Author: Les Roberts
Average review score:

Les Roberts gets better & better
It's a shame that Les Roberts' Cleveland mysteries are not more widely available. The series is growing in complexity and depth. His detective, Milan Jackovich, is a hard-boiled detective with a heart of gold who can compete with the best of them. Best of all is his portrait of a complex city in transition. I recommend!

A great mystery...snowstorm reading!
This is the first Les Roberts mystery I've read, and I immediately ordered all the others available. Milan is a good hero--big, smart, and believable. Cleveland is a delightful backdrop--I guess I missed the city in toto during the four years I lived there. Now I want to go back for a visit! The novel is well researched, and provides significant insights into social behavior. The ending is disturbing, yes: but in Milan's world, nothing is easy and human life is unpredictable.

A SHOCK ENDING THAT WILL HAUNT YOU FOR A LONG TIME
THE CLEVELAND LOCAL is perhaps the "darkest" of Les Roberts' novels about Cleveland private eye Milan Jacovich. It's about families - that of a young man shot down on a secluded Caribbean beach, of a Holocaust survivor who guards her daughter with Draconian intensity, of Jacovich's own family, the "family" of blue-collar union workers who band together in search of a better life, and the all-important extended family of friendships and loyalties.

The city of Cleveland, with its working-class milieu and its stately mansions and sweeping lawns, comes so vibrantly alive that it's almost one of the characters.

Much has been said of the shocking ending. It is unexpected, sad, and completely unforgettable. Only a writer with Les Roberts' craft, control and confidence could have carried it off. He's at the top of his form here.

Deviant Way: A Novel
Published in Hardcover by Simon & Schuster (April, 1999)
Author: Richard Montanari
Average review score:

A stunning debut erotic thriller.

"Every large city has its sexual underground," Richard Montanari writes in his debut thriller, DEVIANT WAY, "its network of gender misfits, tomcats, he/shes, pedophiles and assorted other deviants - people who, for the most part, don't function very well in the sunlight."

One would like to think Montanari knows this territory as a result of the writing he has done for The Chicago Tribune, Detroit Free Press and a host of other publications, as opposed to having come by it by other means. He knows the topic well and, thankfully, he knows how to write.

Most of the hype surrounding this book has concerned itself with the author's creative descriptions of kinky violence, but I don't think this is the book's best point. Rather, we are treated to a remarkably sensitive, brutally honest portrayal of a cop, a veteran detective in a depressingly crime-ridden province of Cleveland. Jack Paris feels more like an Everyman than a cut-out hero, a painfully flawed, borderline alcoholic divorcee with enough vestigial perspective to still get sick at horrific crime scenes. He has indeed seen it all, but some part of him still can't believe it, until it is thrust uncompromisingly into his face as the events of the novel unfold. Then, everyone becomes a suspect, and there are sufficient red herrings tossed around to warrant his encroaching paranoia, along with our dawning perception concerning the truth of the notion that a paranoid is simply someone who knows all the facts.

A serial killer(s) is on the loose in Cleveland. The police are not sure if it's one person or two, but we know better, because interspersed throughout the book are chapters written in the first person from one of the killers' perspective. We know how he thinks, and pretty much what the game is; what we don't know is who he and his partner are. Neither does Jack, but he's got a lot of suspicions, and these only escalate when the case is declared officially closed following an apparent suicide.

Complicating matters is the seemingly innocent game-playing of a closet voyeur and his increasingly adventurous wife, a couple who think they are boldly exploring the subterranean caverns of depravity without realizing that they are only lightly skimming its edges.

The plot races along adroitly - you might get the impression that you missed a reel if you don't pay careful attention - and is neatly wound up with one of those great final chapters that requires you to re-think what you thought you were sure of (I immediately went back and re-read Chapter 36, with great delight). But in the end, it's not the plot but Jack Paris that will linger with you.

I think Richard Montanari is a coming force in popular fiction. His writing has the kind of finger-popping flair that makes you want to re-read passages just for the style and rhythm, especially the dialogue of its more colorful characters.

I have a sneaking suspicion - and a fervent hope - that we will hear from Jack Paris again. I highly recommend this book.

--Lee Gruenfeld, author of THE HALLS OF JUSTICE

A book that doesn't give its secrets away--until the end!
Deviant Way by Richard Montanari is full of surprises! Throughout the multiple murder investigation there are secrets that add to the "who done it?" possibilities. Suspense builds throughout until you almost have to read the last page long before you get to it... but it won't help! Saila and Pharaoh are an extraordinary team; beautiful people who kill for the thrill of the game. Jack Paris, an alcoholic cop, learns to fit into this glamorous night life. It is the only way to catch the pair. That he is an alcoholic is important, for he cannot drink on the job - and the job takes him into high class nightclubs and bars. The life style is repulsive yet compelling; especially for a divorced man who suddenly finds that he is attracting beautiful younger women. Will one of them lead him to the killer? Will she be the killer? Jack fights his personal demons in order to fight the demons that are turning the nightlife into a deathtrap for the Cleveland elite. It is not only the elite who are in danger, but it is too late when he discovers this and his young daughter is thrust into the fray. Deviant Way grabs and holds your attention from page one; you are not free even when the book ends - for it lingers in your imagination!

A Must Read
Very Dark, Very Erotic and Very Intense. This book had my pulse in my throat , definately not for the faint hearted looking forward to reading the next Jack Paris book. Well done Richard.

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