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Mr Nice. An Autobiography
by
Howard Marks
During the mid 1980s Howard Marks had forty three aliases, eighty nine phone lines and owned twenty five companies throughout the world. Whether bars, recording studios or offshore banks, all were money laundering vehicles serving the core activity: dope dealing. Marks began to deal small amounts of hashish while doing a postgraduate philosopy course at Oxford, but soon he
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Paperback
,
466 pages
Published
July 1st 1997
by Secker & Warburg
(first published 1996)
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Community Reviews
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Howard Marks was Britain's most wanted man, apparently. He was one of the world's top drug smugglers. But I missed all that because I was busy playing toys in communist Poland at the time. And my favourite drug was cough syrup.
So I got to know Howard Marks through Howard Marks' own words. His story was fascinating and the writing was surprisingly good (for an autobiography). He was at the top, he was at the bottom. He has been to the world's most luxury hotels and toughest prisons. He met fina ...more
So I got to know Howard Marks through Howard Marks' own words. His story was fascinating and the writing was surprisingly good (for an autobiography). He was at the top, he was at the bottom. He has been to the world's most luxury hotels and toughest prisons. He met fina ...more
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This is a tale of two books for me. The first half (and it's long, so it's quite the half) was very interesting, learning about how this guy set up his empire, all the wheeling and dealing, etc etc. I also enjoyed how he and I ended up at many of the same places (Palma, Patapong, etc), which might say a lot about me, hahaha. So, that was all well and good.
It goes off the rails in the latter half, though, when he gets busted for smuggling. He gets so whiny and upset (calls the DEA evil and says t ...more
It goes off the rails in the latter half, though, when he gets busted for smuggling. He gets so whiny and upset (calls the DEA evil and says t ...more
I don't know what streak of idle curiosity possessed me to read about the felonious escapades of 'legendary' (I'd never heard of him) smuggler Howard Marks. Probably the cover photo (what a nice guy, he has puppy dog eyes)and the blurbs, promising a 'frequently hilarious' and 'fascinating story [...] far stronger than fiction'. To be fair, the introduction and first chapters were promising. Then came the wall: page upon page of business as usual, from one successful dope deal to the next, filled
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The cover states " he was Britain's most wanted man. He has just spent seven years in America's toughest penitentiary. You'll like him"
Well, i didn't. He is an intelligent stoner who wants to be mega famous. He name drops and makes exaggerated claims. His wife was distraught when she got arrested, yet was happy spending the money. Boring boring boring. Get a proper life!
Well, i didn't. He is an intelligent stoner who wants to be mega famous. He name drops and makes exaggerated claims. His wife was distraught when she got arrested, yet was happy spending the money. Boring boring boring. Get a proper life!
I read this many years ago and remember being mildly disappointed, as I had high hopes. I'd seen Marks interviewed on TV and read various newspaper articles on him; in all of which he cam across as a charismatic, chancer, with an interesting background. A highly intelligent working class lad from the Welsh Valleys who had won a scholarship to an Oxbridge University who went on to lead one of the World's largest Hash smuggling rings. I was looking forward to reading the book.
Unfortunately the bo ...more
Unfortunately the bo ...more
For a man who likes to mention his famed charisma and Oxford-education at a rate of about once every seven pages (over about five hundred pages) it is startling just how dull and shallow Marks has managed to make this book. Entirely episodic, and almost entirely devoid of opinion or emotion, Marks cranks out page after page of needless detail, and it all starts to become a monotone. Marks completely fails to portray himself as being on any sort of moral crusade or being some sort of folk hero, a
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The problem with updating Goodreads after a two-year absence is that I can't recall the titles of the books I've read, let alone the content. Read this in a holiday cottage in Scotland, while I was meant to be bonding with the family. Salient points: unassuming, well-read teacher gets in with bad lot. Becomes major player in hashish smuggling trade. Felonious japes ensue. Gets caught, goes to jail. Sees error of ways, writes book. Crime doesn't pay! Says H'ard, probably writing from the veranda
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Panie Marks jesteś moim bohaterem i nawet jeśli ktoś pomagał ci to pisać to i tak zmieniłeś moje podejście do życia. Wiszę ci skręta!
amusing briefly but to be honest the guy is a bit of a muppet
Jul 01, 2010
Cwn_annwn_13
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
from-public-library
Marks was born and raised in Wales and became an Oxford academic. A combination of Marks being a hippy type and random circumstances led to becoming one of the worlds biggest hashish and Marijuna smugglers in the 1970s and 80s. He was recruited by MI6 through his Oxford connections after they found out he was smuggling Hash into Ireland with the help of a high ranking member of the IRA. They wanted Marks to spy on the IRA, although Marks knowledge of their inner workings did not go beyond their
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Very enjoyable book and some of the tales of Mark's exploits had me in stitches, as well as finding it genuinely interesting the way he and his associates dodged custom agents and other law enforcement agencies for so long.
Towards the end of the book I got a little tired of Mark's bluster, reading the book you can see that he is genuinely charming and witty and I am sure many people have great fondness for him, but theres only so many times you can essentially read 'And I walked into a room and ...more
Towards the end of the book I got a little tired of Mark's bluster, reading the book you can see that he is genuinely charming and witty and I am sure many people have great fondness for him, but theres only so many times you can essentially read 'And I walked into a room and ...more
How does a normal guy becomes an international marijuana dealer, a member of the M16, CIA, and the mafia with 43 different aliases? If you read the back of this book and chapter one, you think there's really something to this story. Being an educated Oxford man, you'd expect Marks to know how to write a decent story. Wrong. He doesn't write in incomplete sentences or anything like that, but that's about the best I can say about this book. It is a trite, emotionless account of his drug dealings a
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Generally speaking I'm not a fan of non-fiction, preferring fictional works designed to provoke thought, debate and emotion. Saying that, I did enjoy Mr Nice; perhaps because Howard Marks' is so interesting it almost read like a fictional account. It was a very easy book to read and I found myself getting through big chunks at a time (perhaps not as fast as I'd have liked due to being super busy recently). There's a great cast of characters and I enjoyed Marks' tone of voice, particularly the wa
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Occasionally funny bits went some way in redeeming this otherwise mind-numbingly boring, awfully written account of Marks's life as a large-scale importer-exporter. That his scam was hashish as opposed to, say, rugs or oil futures seemed almost irrelevant (with the exception of some really good passages about Jim Mcann, a drug-dealing IRA clown), as Marks managed mostly to make his story seem about as exciting as a rogue banker's reliving his fraternity past over and over again. While I condemn
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I think I might have liked this book a few years ago but now it just felt quite annoying. Marks' sense of entitlement, casual attitude to women and general dodginess annoyed rather than charmed me. Perhaps it was just that I was suffering from an overload of pervy old 70s throw back men at the time!
Firstly it should be said that I disagree with Howard Marks when he says cannabis is a "beneficial herb".
Although this book is at times exciting and educational, on the whole I can't say I was left with a good impression of Marks. I think he's a smug prick. Mostly on account of the fact that he blames everyone (Spanish Government, American Government, DEA, a specific DEA dude, Spanish judges, etc..) for the imprisonment of his wife, but never himself for smuggling tons of dope. And whether or ...more
Although this book is at times exciting and educational, on the whole I can't say I was left with a good impression of Marks. I think he's a smug prick. Mostly on account of the fact that he blames everyone (Spanish Government, American Government, DEA, a specific DEA dude, Spanish judges, etc..) for the imprisonment of his wife, but never himself for smuggling tons of dope. And whether or ...more
Reading this book it is hard to tell the truth from the fiction. It is deffinetely an interesting book from a man who (claims) to have had adventure all over the globe. Some of the stories he tells are quite funny and you may have trouble putting this book down. One thing, I just didn't come away liking Howard Marks or feeling any sympathy for him. Half of the time he's bragging about his illegal activities and how he outsmarted the law on several continents, and the other he's whining because h
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Thought this would be an interesting read through the eyes of a "nice" criminal with no regrets (I suspect). However I was wrong. The book is so repetitive and with the names and details of every person that has ever crossed paths (or swords) with Howard Marks, it just became boring. I didn't make it to the end as I gave up after the fourth or fifth time of reading about a similar consignment being transported to/from one place to another. I normally persevere to the end of a book, but felt I wo
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Very enlightening, witty and enthralling in places. An honest insight into a world most of us will never encounter - neither apologetic nor written as a self-defence. Uncomfortable to read in places, and seems to gloss over parts, but definitely worth sticking with. It's worth remembering that although this book reads a bit like a novel, it is an autobiography, so the end seems a bit abrupt - a worthy excuse for reading Mr. Marks' other books, if only just to find out what happens next.
Somehow, the notoriety of Marks entirely passed me by. As a consequence, this review is being written not only from the point of view of someone who knew nothing of him before reading the book, but also from that of someone who knows nothing of him but the book.
The autobiography of a big-time smuggler of marijuana, this book held out the promise of taking me into realms unknown to me and that, in approaching it, was its main point of interest.
I began to wince a little early on in the work. Mark ...more
The autobiography of a big-time smuggler of marijuana, this book held out the promise of taking me into realms unknown to me and that, in approaching it, was its main point of interest.
I began to wince a little early on in the work. Mark ...more
I was recommended this book by a friend after I mentioned I was interested in international criminals and that I like reading about them.
The first quarter of the book really captivated me and I couldn't put it down, I enjoyed learning about his experience at Oxford and what people did at university around that time.
I didn't really enjoy the second and third quarters of the book and I would read a chapter at a time before getting bored of endless names with little character descriptions and endl ...more
The first quarter of the book really captivated me and I couldn't put it down, I enjoyed learning about his experience at Oxford and what people did at university around that time.
I didn't really enjoy the second and third quarters of the book and I would read a chapter at a time before getting bored of endless names with little character descriptions and endl ...more
Many years ago I was a volunteer with St John Ambulance (sja) and we would provide first aid cover at many events including the local theater. One evening I received a call asking if I was free and could get to the local theater asap as no-one had turned up. I rang a friend who was also in sja and asked her to get ready and come as well. We had no idea what the show was we were about to see.
Well the show was Mr Nice Live!!! That night was a real eye opener to me. Mr Nice was talking about his li ...more
Well the show was Mr Nice Live!!! That night was a real eye opener to me. Mr Nice was talking about his li ...more
Mildly entertaining autobiography of a famous welsh cannabis dealer. Whilst some of the anecdotes are interesting and funny (if a bit too good to be true at times), the repetitive accounts of dealing and smuggling are a bit tedious, as is the author's obvious appreciation of his own cleverness.
Cracking good story, well told.
This is the best autobiography I have read since _Story of My Life_ by Casanova. Marks reports his observations from his international travels on just the things that interest me. The contradictions he brings up are very funny and often thought provoking. At first I found his tendency for name dropping annoying, then I realized he was a Leo so it was unavoidable. The plus side of Leo is that the delivery of the vernacular in the conversations is phenomenal. Amazingly, for an autobiography, there
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A fascinating account of the bizarre life of Howard Marks, international cannabis smuggler. At times completely unbelievable and others quite sad, this is a detailed telling of the many deals and scams he made between the early seventies and his imprisonment in the mid nineties. Occasionally the long lists of names and places become a bit of a hard slog but there are enough funny anecdotes and outrageous brushes with the law (CIA, DEA, MI5 to name just a few) to make it worth while. It seems inc
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Howard Marks is clearly a very charismatic man - the tale that unfolds demonstrates that beyond dispute.
The tale itself unwinds in an interesting fashion - starting with his release from an American penitentiary, and then dealing with the life choices he made to get himself there.
Whilst he seems to have had some morals surrounding the smuggling of hash, it's still a dark and murky world he's been in, and I suspect the darkest of events have been somewhat glossed over.
I felt sorry for some of th ...more
The tale itself unwinds in an interesting fashion - starting with his release from an American penitentiary, and then dealing with the life choices he made to get himself there.
Whilst he seems to have had some morals surrounding the smuggling of hash, it's still a dark and murky world he's been in, and I suspect the darkest of events have been somewhat glossed over.
I felt sorry for some of th ...more
The subheading on the cover says "He was Britain's most wanted man. He has just spent seven years in America's toughest penitentiary. You'll like him". This is so true. I like Howard Marks and would like to meet him.
This is his autobiography of his life of an international marijuana smuggler during the 1970's and 1980's. The business side of the smuggling operation is mindboggling. I couldn't keep the characters straight and which dope deal he was working on. At one point he had several suitcase ...more
This is his autobiography of his life of an international marijuana smuggler during the 1970's and 1980's. The business side of the smuggling operation is mindboggling. I couldn't keep the characters straight and which dope deal he was working on. At one point he had several suitcase ...more
I cannot remember where I picked up this book but it was interesting although I do remember thinking that it read as though the guy was, not so much perfect, but considered himself squeeky clean, or at least that was how the book read. Maybe he only dealt in grass/hash, although it seems unlikley, and I can understand this as being viewed as harmless, at least less harmful than tobacco or alcohol. What I found interesting is how illegal business could be conducted for so long, in so many countri
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My Nice is not a great writer and while he has a great story to tell, he doesn't do it justice. I found this book a little like reading a shopping list....I did this, then I did this, then I went here, I stayed in this hotel, I met this guy, these people were there, etc etc. About half way through it just got too annoying. Googling his former wife and reading what she has to say about him in the tabloid press was actually more titillating.
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Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Howard Marks (born Dennis Howard Marks ) is a Welsh author, former teacher and drug smuggler who achieved notoriety as an international cannabis smuggler through high-profile court cases, supposed connections with groups such as the CIA, the IRA, MI6, and the Mafia, and his eventual conviction at the hands of the ...more
More about Howard Marks...
Howard Marks (born Dennis Howard Marks ) is a Welsh author, former teacher and drug smuggler who achieved notoriety as an international cannabis smuggler through high-profile court cases, supposed connections with groups such as the CIA, the IRA, MI6, and the Mafia, and his eventual conviction at the hands of the ...more
“Expensive illogicalities and inefficiencies do not worry the monsters of American bureaucracy, and the taxpayers are enthusiastic and eager to spend fortunes in the name of fighting crime. Prison places cost the US taxpayer more than university places. The American belief that prisons are the best way to combat crime has led to an incarceration rate that is at least five times that of almost any industrialised nation. Overcrowding is endemic. Conditions are appalling, varying from windowless, sensory-deprived isolation to barren futile brutality.”
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“Decisi di diventare un beatnik a tutti gli affetti[...]. Fumai tutta la marijuana che mi passava tra le mani, lessi Kerouac, ascoltai Bob Dylan e Roland Kirk e andai a vedere film francesi che non capivo.”
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