“The reasons for its enduring popularity aren’t easy to pin down. Of course, Francis Ford Coppola’s masterpieces, ‘The Godfather’ and ‘The Godfather, Part II,’ brought a swarm of new readers, but the book had already sold millions of copies before the first film was released in 1972. Those who read the novel today in search of a greater appreciation of the movies are bound to be disappointed; it quickly becomes apparent the book’s success isn’t based on literary merit. “