The Snakehead
A powerful investigative account of organised crime in New York's Chinatown, from the bestselling author of London Falling
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
3 Months Free
Buy Now for £10.76
-
Narrated by:
-
Feodor Chin
**Patrick Radden Keefe's new book, London Falling, is on sale now**
LONGLISTED FOR THE 2024 CWA GOLD DAGGER FOR NON-FICTION
‘Reads like a mashup of The Godfather and Chinatown, complete with gun battles, a ruthless kingpin and a mountain of cash. Except that it’s all true’ – Time
In this thrilling story of real-life events, the bestselling author of Empire of Pain investigates a secret world run by a surprising criminal: a charismatic middle-aged grandmother, who from a tiny noodle shop in New York’s Chinatown, managed a multimillion-dollar business smuggling people.
In The Snakehead, Patrick Radden Keefe reveals the inner workings of Cheng Chui Ping aka Sister Ping’s complex empire and recounts the decade-long FBI investigation that eventually brought her down. He follows an often incompetent and sometimes corrupt INS as it pursues desperate immigrants risking everything to come to America, and along the way he paints a stunning portrait of a generation of undocumented immigrants and the intricate underground economy that sustains and exploits them.
‘A powerful piece of reportage about the violent underworld of New York’s Chinatown’ – The Times
Merging gripping storytelling with fearless investigative journalism, Patrick Radden Keefe is undeniably one of the great nonfiction writers of our time.
'The finest non-fiction writer we have' – Elizabeth Day
'A gifted storyteller who excels at capturing personalities – The Washington Post
'We are fortunate to have him pounding the pavement to expose real-life darkness' – The Irish Times
Critic reviews
Gripping non-fiction
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A masterpiece
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Fascinating story about smugglers and refugees
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Radden Keefe delivers again
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The author appears to have spent a lot of time and effort researching the book, yet it reads almost like a thriller.
It follows the smuggling operation of Sister Ping, who smuggled Chinese people illegally into America. Described by the FBI as ‘the most successful alien smuggler of all time’
When a cargo ship ran aground in New York and emaciated, delirious migrants were found it was discovered that Sister Ping had commissioned the ship.
Authorities started investigating and realised the extent of her empire.
There are a lot of names and people involved and I did get muddled sometimes. For me, some of the chapters were quite long and didn’t always hold my interest, but this may have been due to me rather than the book.
This is an interesting and well-researched book that I would recommend.
3.5 rounded to 4.
Well researched
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.