With the newly released movie “Black Mass” starring Johnny Depp and Benedict Cumberbatch, interest in Boston’s Irish mobster James “Whitey” Bulger is high. For a great book on the subject, read Whitey Bulger: America’s Most Wanted Gangster and the Manhunt That Brought Him to Justice by Kevin Cullen and Shelley Murphy, two journalists who spent decades covering Bulger’s story.

Bulger was born and raised in Southie (South Boston), and early on spent nine years in various federal facilities, including Alcatraz. Released in 1965, he returned to Southie and became embroiled in the Irish mob wars. Victorious, he then warred with the Italian mobs of the north end. 

He was then recruited by prominent FBI agent John Connolly, another Southie kid, to rid Boston of the Mafia. Connolly protected Bulger, giving him free reign to run his criminal empire. The FBI overlooked Bulger’s involvement in drugs, gambling, and even homicide to protect their source. Connolly even told Bulger about prospective informers, directly leading to multiple deaths. 

Bulger escaped justice when Connolly tipped him off about an upcoming indictment. Bulger went on the run for 16 years, 12 of which he was on the FBI’s most wanted list. He was eventually arrested at the age of 81 after a tip from the former Miss Iceland of 1974.

This book is true crime at its best. The authors explore Bulger’s complicated family life (he lived parallel lives with different women and his brother was in the Massachusetts Senate), the paranoia stemming from his prison service as a guinea pig for government sponsored LSD experiments, his support for the terrorist IRA organization, his role in the Boston busing crisis, and more. The result is a fascinating story of gangsters and cops, horrifying government malfeasance, and a manhunt that spanned the globe.

Check it out at the Kyle Public Library!