Jimmy Breslin

Jimmy Breslin was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American columnist and author renowned for his incisive writing and focus on the lives of ordinary people. His career spanned decades, during which he penned numerous novels and columns for prominent New York City newspapers, including Newsday. One of his most famous columns, published the day after John F. Kennedy's funeral, poignantly highlighted the grave digger who prepared the president's burial site—a testament to Breslin's ability to humanize major events through the lens of everyday individuals.

Breslin's writing style was characterized by its gritty realism and sharp wit, often shedding light on the struggles and triumphs of working-class New Yorkers. His columns and books frequently explored themes of urban life, crime, and politics, earning him a reputation as a voice for the underrepresented. Beyond journalism, he authored several novels, further cementing his legacy as a storyteller who captured the essence of city life. His work remained influential until his retirement in 2004, leaving behind a body of work that continues to resonate with readers.
Standalone Novels
# Title Year
1 The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight 1971
2 World Without End, Amen 1973
3 .44 / Son of Sam (With: Dick Schaap) 1978
4 Forsaking All Others / Kill The Bull! 1982
5 He Got Hungry And Forgot His Manners 1988
6 I Don't Want to Go to Jail 2001
Non-Fiction Books
# Title Year
1 Sunny Jim 1962
2 Can\'t Anybody Here Play This Game? 1963
3 How the Good Guys Finally Won 1976
4 The World According to Breslin 1984
5 Table Money 1986
6 Damon Runyon 1991
7 I Want to Thank My Brain for Remembering Me 1996
8 The Short Sweet Dream of Eduardo Gutiérrez 2002
9 The Church That Forgot Christ 2004
10 The Good Rat: A True Story 2009
11 The World of Jimmy Breslin 2012
Penguin Lives Books
# Title Year
1 Abraham Lincoln (By: Thomas Keneally) 1960
2 Mao Zedong: A Life (By: Jonathan D. Spence) 1999
3 Mozart: A Life (By: Peter Gay) 1999
4 Marcel Proust (By: Edmund White) 1999
5 Crazy Horse (By: Larry McMurtry) 1999
6 Saint Augustine (By: Garry Wills) 1999
7 James Joyce (By: Edna O'Brien) 1999
8 Rosa Parks (By: Douglas Brinkley) 2000
9 Virginia Woolf (By: Nigel Nicolson) 2000
10 Woodrow Wilson (By: Louis Auchincloss) 2000
11 Herman Melville (By: Elizabeth Hardwick) 2000
12 Leonardo da Vinci: A Life (By: Sherwin B. Nuland) 2000
13 Dante (By: R.W.B. Lewis) 2001
14 Jane Austen: A Life (By: Carol Shields) 2001
15 Buddha (By: Karen Armstrong) 2001
16 Simone Weil (By: Francine du Plessix Gray) 2001
17 Andy Warhol: A Biography (By: Wayne Koestenbaum) 2001
18 Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Life (By: Marshall Frady) 2001
19 Joseph Smith (By: Robert V. Remini) 2002
20 Winston Churchill: A Life (By: John Keegan) 2002
21 Pope John XXIII (By: Thomas Cahill) 2002
22 Charles Dickens (By: Jane Smiley) 2002
23 Elvis Presley (By: Bobbie Ann Mason) 2002
24 Saint Therese of Lisieux (By: Kathryn Harrison) 2003
25 Robert E. Lee (By: Roy Blount Jr.) 2003
26 Frank Lloyd Wright: A Life (By: Ada Louise Huxtable) 2004
27 George Herbert Walker Bush (By: Tom Wicker) 2004
28 Napoleon (By: Paul Johnson) 2006
29 Julia Child (By: Laura Shapiro) 2007
30 Joan of Arc (By: Mary Gordon) 2008
31 Martin Luther (By: Martin E. Marty) 2008
32 Branch Rickey: A Life 2011
Jimmy Breslin Anthologies
# Title Year
1 Baseball: a Literary Anthology 2002