Originally posted by Don Rico:
Puzo wrote the great American gangster novel and we should all be thankful for that. However, I can recall reading somewhere that it was written to be commercially successful, hence the gratuitous sex and violence which were considered de rigueur (and clearly still are). My favorite part of the novel is of course Michael's exile in Sicilia, a rich tapestry of intoxicating beauty and romance. The worst parts are the detailed gynecological surgery exploitation scenarios, where the reader must think that this is going somewhere or leading to something important, but it never does.
It's true i'm currently reading The Godfather Legacy (someone on this board recommended it and its fantastic so far) in which Puzo admits to 'selling out' to make the novel.
