The Godfather by Mario Puzo: Puzo's writing style is a perfect example of how to keep the reader engaged while making absolutely no demands on them. Everything is quickly and cleanly explained, backstories or side tales are offset in their own sections and delivered in the same voice with the same presentation, and all details you might ever want to know (and many that you likely don't in the sense of "what is this doing here? why are we tracking these people for this bit? Ah well I'm in for the ride....") are given freely. If this sounds like a knock on it, it's not. There is absolutely a space for this sort of book and Puzo nails it. There are the usual possible complaints about how this romanticized the Mafia, but pretty much all Mafia fiction does that, and Puzo uses it to good effect when there's a sudden moment of brutal violence (never explicitly described, usually off screen) which knocks you back.
I had always heard that the film version of the Godfather was so much superior to the book, but having seeing the movie for the first time a couple years back (on the full screen with Pacino doing a Q&A after, which is probably the best way to have seen it) and now read the book, I don't agree. The screenplay is pretty much the book with the "why am I reading about this person?" sections cut out, with the book's utter lack of obfuscation making it clear to the actors exactly what the characters are feeling in any one moment. Sure it's a good film, but not that much better than the book. Maybe it's my lack of boomer great-director nostalgia, my general distaste for Mafia fiction, or something else. But this isn't a movie review, it's a book recommendation, and if you liked the movie, you'll like the book.
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