Underbelly Mk 2

“Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities” by John Sylvester and Andrew Rule

The TV series was lacklustre when compared to the original and so did the book when it came to the intriguing machinations of the underworld in the 1970’s and 80’s.

What the book offers though is interesting background information that isn’t shown on television.

From what I remember of the TV series it was very true to the facts in the book. Of course there was more to it than what was shown on TV. Many other individuals involved and many more deaths.

People state that these stories glorify the gangster lifestyle. Maybe the TV series does this to some extent as any characters still alive gain a cult celebrity status. The book definitely doesn’t promulgate this assertion. It makes clear to the reader the results of their individual life choices. Starting with paranoia when alive and usually ending in a violent death or jail time, while leaving families behind to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives.

I found the reading easy going but at times tedious. It can be repetitive, as it doesn’t follow a strict timeline of events. Rather it focuses on certain characters or events and follows them till their natural conclusion. I actually prefer this style.

There are probably better true crime stories out there (here’s one, and another) but this one was still interesting.

I do have “Underbelly: The Golden Mile” book ready to be read. Although I haven’t been watching the TV series so this might make the reading very different. Time will tell.