Here is New York

E.B. White, the author of the classic THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE, shows off that style brilliantly in this highly literate, amusing, and passionate memoir of New York City in 1948. Although the surface details of New York have changed in sixty years, the spirit remains the same, and that's what White is really writing about. White is also disturbingly prophetic when he writes, "The subtlest change in New York is something people don't speak much about but that is in everyone's mind. The city, for the first time in its long history, is destructible. A single flight of planes no bigger than a wedge of geese can quickly end this island fantasy, burn the towers, crumble the bridges, turn the underground passages into lethal chambers, cremate the millions." I doubt that a book such as this could be written today. Some editor would "dumb it down" and politically correct it. But how refreshing it is to read such wonderful prose. This is really a 56-page essay between hard covers, rather than a "book." As such, it's a very easy and exhilarating reading experience and would make a wonderful gift for anyone who loves New York or would like to visit it someday. Five stars, absolutely.

E.B. White was a very accomplished writer. His books and essays are some the best literature we have. His short book "Here Is New York" provides a good example of his gift as a generator of beautiful prose. He wrote this piece in 1948 and as the writer of the introduction, Roger Angell states White confronts the task with the knowledge that what he writes at his time will not endure because the city is ever changing metropolis. White likes to write with a heavy use of metaphor and he constantly anthropomorphizing what the city of New York has to offer us. He speaks of three basic types of individuals who spend their day in the city: the commuter who never really gets to know the city, the native individual who takes the city for granted and the ones who move in later in life who are in love with the city and enthralled with it's bill of fare. I enjoyed the book. It was fascinating to hear him speak of the boroughs that have evolved with the city. If he were to write the essay today I think he would be dismayed by the further disappearance of the places that he cherished and yet he would continue to express the belief that it is the greatest city in the world.

A classic from the 1940's, "Here is New York," is well thought and well penned. What was fundamentally true about New York City yesterday, is still true today and will likely be true again in 2040 when this little novella turns 100. Since any town is really a reflection of it's people, White describes NY as three towns made up of three distinct groups. The first elite circle is the establishment, it includes those select families that keep guard of the famous (and infamous) institutions of New York City. The second set represent the public hordes of daily commuters, without this faceless, massive mobile workforce the city would screech to a halt. Finally, White describes the magical third group, right-off-the-boat immigrants both domestic and foreign. Men and women arriving with nothing more then their robust hearts and minds. White romantically and justifiably concludes that without this third injection of new blood, new ideas, and new dreams, New York City would never be as colorful and successful as it is. He wraps up his charming tale by dicing New York City up from another angle. He describes the 100's of small micro towns within a town. Each 2 block set is truly a self contained neighborhood as distinct and self contained as the smallest country hamlet. I live in Roscoe Village within downtown Chicago and this rings so true to me. EB White's nostalgic classic short should be treasured for it's turn of phrase and it's timeless turn.

A nice period essay which, as a gift, pleased my brother-in-law. As others note, it's just one essay that is also complete within the collection The Essays of E.B. White. Small hardback. As long as the buyer knows that the collected essays are in one volume, cheaper. His pieces are either "timeless" (great ones about a range of observations, weather, farming, and delightful ones about animals) or amazingly apt when applied to today's politics.

I've loved E.B.White's writing ever since a grade school teacher read Charlotte's Web aloud to the class, chapter by chapter. His writing is unique, clear and memorable, whether he is writing about what he sees out his window or about life in New York walking down a busy sidewalk, masses of people all around him. While life in New York has changed significantly since E.B. White first wrote the words contained in this book, readers will find his writing also timeless in spirit and inspirational in invoking a renewed appreciation for New York and the little details that make it special. White once said of his writing: 'Writing to me is not an exercise in addressing readers, it is more as though I were talking to myself while shaving'. If only we could all be as articulate, memorable and even humorous while talking to ourselves and others! A very special book, worth reading and re-reading.

Ein sehr interessantes Buch über Leben in New York, wie der Einheimische es empfindet, genauso wie der Tourist. Ist empfehlenswert.

10 dollars for a 45 minute read. No books that good.

What a great read from a period of time when New York was going through a hot hot summer. Written eloquently and with great care to explain his views, this is a creative classic.

Absolutely charming and still relevant today. What makes New York City captivating is the history and people rolled into the contradiction of grit and enchantment.

A super essay and a nostalgic peek into New York of the '40's.