That's So New York
Short (and Very Short) Stories about the Greatest City on Earth
by Dan Saltzstein
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Pub Date Mar 12 2024 | Archive Date Mar 11 2024
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Description
New York Times editor and lifelong New Yorker Dan Saltzstein compiles hundreds of distinctly New York moments for this peek at the city that never sleeps. Inspired by Saltzstein’s viral Twitter thread, this illustrated book features hilarious anecdotes from locals and transplants, short essays from folks like Molly Jong-Fast and Michael Ian Black, who have seen it all, and Q&As with everyday New Yorkers from across the five boroughs. Eels wriggling through subway cars, accidentally stumbling onto the set of Law & Order, drag queens emerging from manholes—if there’s one thing New York never runs out of, it’s stories. And rats. Always rats.
INCREDIBLE TRUE TALES: These are real New York stories from real people who have lived or currently live in the city! While some are absolutely outlandish, the fact that these stories come from everyday people makes for an exciting reading experience for tourists and total relatability for locals. Topics range from the subway to celebrities, crime and grime to the New York slice, doorman dish to the (sometimes weird) rules of the city ("I'm walkin' here!"), and much more.
EXPERT AUTHOR: As a lifelong New Yorker, senior editor for the New York Times, and creator of the popular Twitter thread that inspired this book, Dan Saltzstein has a wealth of knowledge about New York and an incredible network within it. This collection brings together the voices of notables like Alexander Chee, Molly Jong-Fast, Isaac Fitzgerald, and Megan Abbott with everyday folks like sanitation workers, doormen, train operators, and bartenders who make the city run.
ULTIMATE NYC GIFT BOOK: In a highly giftable, affordably priced package, this is the perfect present for current New Yorkers, anyone who has ever lived in New York, and visitors who love the Big Apple!
Perfect for:
- People from New York, past and present
- Travelers and tourists planning or returning from a trip to NYC
- Gift-diving to NY transplants
- Birthday or holiday gift for family and friends who love city stories
Available Editions
EDITION | Other Format |
ISBN | 9781797224121 |
PRICE | $18.95 (USD) |
PAGES | 176 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
I was super excited to read this book, but I can't get the protected PDF to open on any app. My computer doesn't even recognize it. I'm so sorry I can't give a proper review!
I may be biased, since I've lived in NYC my entire life, but this collection of short stories is a wonderful love letter to a city that, in many ways, seems to have lost its spark since the start of the pandemic. There are definitely some parts in here that made me mournful of "The City That Was." But at the same time, it reminded me of why I'd never choose to live anywhere else.
that's so New York was so fun!! I love all the quotes and various writers writing about their experiences in nyc. The illustrations were great too.
This funny lighthearted collection of NY experiences is the absolute perfect thing to pick up on those hard NYC days. Daylight savings hit and now you’re commuting both ways in the dark? Not to worry, the art and tales in this book remind us why we love it here so much. There is no place like New York City and each of these stories, though I didn’t live them myself, feel so much like home. Magic is everywhere in our great city, even and maybe especially in those uniquely insane borderline unrealistic space we call home.
This is such a delightful coffee table book, and would make a great gift. Nearly anyone could enjoy this book: locals, fans of the city, even those who have left the city. It's a collection of short stories and blurbs that capture the NYC experience.
Divided into sections (rats, celebs, the subway, etc), each captures both relatable and ridiculous moments people have experienced throughout the city. The illustrations in this book are also stunning...and hilarious! They really did such an excellent job putting this book together. You can really feel the magic of pre-2020 NY here.
Being from NY this was such an enjoyable read! I loved the short story format because I was able to read it relatively quickly. It was a super fun insight to all things NY and things that are quirky about living here!
As a New Yorker, I'm super biased. but New York is the greatest city in the world. I can't wait to physically get my hands on this book. You don't have have to rush through it. Take your time. Come back to it, every here and again. GAH! This is the book I'm gonna give all my family as gifts next year.
This was a fun and quick read about NYC that people who love NYC will probably enjoy. It's full of tweets and short essays about all things NYC: rats, subways, crime, celebrities, etc. Would be a great coffee table book, too!
As someone who has always had a love affair with NYC (from a distance), I loved this tableau of New Yorkers’ stories. It was at time moving and at times amusing, but always engaging and well-paced. Would recommend!
This was a fun and informative read if you like New York as much as I do. It was interesting to see the perspective of the people, of all ages, about the city with their pros and cons!
Such a fun book! Definitely a fresh take on NYC.
Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Comment
Thank you for the EArc NetGalley and Chronicle Books. This was a fabulous journey through the culture of New York. You get fun little quips from X as well as interviews and stories from true New Yorkers. Who knew Houston was pronounced that way?!? I really enjoyed the flow of the book as well as the illustrations. Anyone who loves NY or is curious about it should pick this one up.
There are eight million stories in the naked city and this is just more than one. As a native I'm used to listening to people who like to disparage my home town, but I've always known that much of that talk was jealousy. This I think is true of any major city like Paris or London.
The area of NYC that I grew up in was Eastern Queens which is one of the most diverse ethnic area you can imagine except for Elmhurst/Corona. Corona has been an area that has attracted support staff from the UN and Embassies. For many years my family owned a grocery in the area and we were constantly getting requests for new products not found in most stores. At one time Corona was said to have over 150 different ethnic groups in the local schools.
Saltzstein has done a yeoman's job in trying to give everyone a flavor of what that is like. One of my pleasure of life was going downtown to have Asian food in Chinatown and then walking two blocks uptown and having cannolis and expresso in Little Italy.
I absolutly loved this book! As a New Yorker who is currently living in another country this book made me feel all the things I used to in NYC. It gets at a lot of the ways the city is so unexpected and amazing (celebrity encounters, unbelievable occurrences, great stories - anything can (and does) happen there!) This is truly a love story to NYC (one that so many of us have been swept up in) and I can’t wait for this to come out in print so I can get a physical copy to cherish!
This book is a delightful and insightful exploration of New York City, offering a fun and informative read for anyone who loves the Big Apple. The collection of diverse perspectives provides moving and amusing stories from people of all ages. Each story, complemented by stunning illustrations, captures relatable and ridiculous moments, beautifully encapsulating the magic of New York.
As a budding New Yorker, this collection of short stories is a wonderful love letter to a city that has undergone changes since the start of the pandemic. It's a heartfelt and engaging portrayal of the enduring spirit of NYC.
Thank you to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for my eARC. All thoughts were my own.
I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I have no desire to ever visit NYC, but I enjoy seeing the city on tv and in movies. I also enjoy reading about it, and this book was a joy! Some sections were a few pages long, but much was a paragraph or 2. Perfect! Very entertaining and fun. A short book, so I guess my only complaint is this should have been longer. Even the pictures are good.
That's So New York was such a fun book. I was laughing, giggling, and some times a little grossed out. I think any book that gets those reactions is a worthwhile book. I personally have never been to NY yet, but I also feel a little more prepared to not be so shocked, because apparently anything can happen in NY . Also the illustrations in here are great,
From the illustrations to the interviews to the tweet responses, every aspect of this fun little book was incredibly well done. I think it holds great appeal to both native New Yorkers and the uninitiated alike.
It really always will be New York or nowhere! This fun little book was such a joy to read, and it really covered so many New York-isms. I am not a New Yorker, but I have a fascination with the city that never sleeps and all things NYC culture, so this was such a fun read for me. This would make a great gift for the city slicker in your life, or a coffee table book that would pair well with the People of New York anthology series.
Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC!
I was so excited to read this book! I may be a little biased since I'm from New York City, but this book was amazing. I loved the short stories, tweets, and illustrations. The illustrations paired well with the stories and tweets.
Thanks to netgalley for this free arc.
Very colorful and many people contributing to this collection of art stories and tweets. The eel and drag queen was my favorite lmao
Illustrations by Emily Carpenter, design by Jon Glick
Anything can and does happen in New York. Some are improbable, like the person stepping on a rat and getting a sort of skateboard ride, or having Sting sit down beside you at a club show. I've never been to NYC but have friends there and have, of course, visited virtually many times via the screen, most recently an upscale area hosting the show "Only Murders in the Building". I'm leaning toward thinking I'd be more at home in the "In the Heights" area, however. I do have friends who frequent NYC and based on their stories and photos would have to say this book captures the reality, good and bad, and humor nicely.
It definitely does an excellent job of capturing random moments, both in words and artwork. To be honest, I was probably more captivated by the seemingly always in motion, colorful, diverse illustrations. The colors and vibes seemed to almost jump out at you at time. The accompanying blurbs/captions were often humorous and to the point, whether capturing street scenes or riding the subway. It was definitely interesting to discover that having a bladder of steel might be a must qualification for subway operators. And, oh, my, stories from the woman involved in pest removal. Rats! Let's just say, rats seem to be a dominant thread of NYC memories.
Oddly enough, while negative memories were frequent shares, that actually made the book all the more powerful. Heaven only knows there are plenty of commercially prepared raves about not just NYC but just about any local. The negatives somehow seemed to blur into a blurred memory of mixed feelings. Maybe a sense of "Yeah, we got rats. So what? They're our rats." Overall, of course, the book is positive, maybe not quite a love letter to New York City but definitely a positive remembrance. I mean, even Sully doing an emergency landing on the Hudson River was somehow initially momentarily viewed as an "Are they filming a movie?" scene. Yes, definitely only in NYC could a large passenger plane landing on a major river be seen as just another movie scene. Thanks #NetGalley and #ChronicleBooks for the unpredictable virtual tour. I still want to hear more about Molly Jong-Fast's haunted childhood home, of course.
And this is why I love New York! This feeling of being in a big, small space with all these other interesting people! I've only experienced New York as a visitor, but I still got to enjoy the quirkiness, the friendliness, the feeling that everyone is the same and there are no classes. The pictures are also great.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this
A charming collection of essays about New York. The author had a strong voice and I felt like I really understood what Saltzstien set out to show, the magic of New York.
I grew up in the NJ suburbs, so it went without saying that NYC was the coolest place ever. Fast forward several years, and commuting into the city for work every day rubbed that shine right off. I love that this book serves as a reminder of all the things that make NYC what it is, and unlike any other place in the world. I especially loved the tweets spanning years of memories and the illustrations (though the section about the subway brought back all kinds of memories).
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
The best thing about New York are the little moments over time that add up to the story of your time in this city. I delight in hearing those takes from others, and those that feel the same should read this book.
It’s fast, filled with great illustrations and a perfect encapsulation of what makes New York so special.
Thanks to Chronicle Books and NetGalley for the ARC.
This was a small, quaint story about a large city and I loved every single moment of it. The stories had me smiling, laughing, and pondering what it must be like to feel such community. Kudos to Dan Saltztein and all contributors of this title. Definitely going to be picking up a hard copy upon release,
Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with this Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
Chronicle Books provided an early galley for review.
Plain and simple, I love New York! The city has always been fascinating to me - ever since childhood (this is something Saltzstein and I share in common). Actually living there is not the dream I'll ever achieve. Luckily, I've visited several times but more would always be better.
This nonfiction book collects twenty-two essays about life in the city. They are organized into eight categories including ones about subways, rules of the city, animals, celebrities and more. It also features delightful color illustrations by Emily Carpenter to accompany the essays and Tweets.
This was a quick fun read. If you are a fan of the Big Apple or just fascinated by it, definitely check it out.
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