The Brooklyn Nobody Knows
The Brooklyn Nobody Knows

Author: William B. Helmreich

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 2016-10-03

Total Pages: 425

ISBN-13: 1400883121

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A one-of-a-kind walking guide to Brooklyn, from the man who walked every block in New York City Bill Helmreich walked every block of New York City—6,000 miles in all—to write the award-winning The New York Nobody Knows. Later, he re-walked Brooklyn—some 816 miles—to write this one-of-a-kind walking guide to the city's hottest borough. Drawing on hundreds of conversations he had with residents during his block-by-block journeys, The Brooklyn Nobody Knows captures the heart and soul of a diverse, booming, and constantly changing borough that defines cool around the world. The guide covers every one of Brooklyn’s forty-four neighborhoods, from Greenpoint to Coney Island, providing a colorful portrait of each section’s most interesting, unusual, and unknown people, places, and things. Along the way you will learn about a Greenpoint park devoted to plants and trees that produce materials used in industry; a hornsmith who practices his craft in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens; a collection of 1,140 stuffed animals hanging from a tree in Bergen Beach; a five-story Brownsville mural that depicts Zionist leader Theodor Herzl—and that was the brainchild of black teenagers; Brooklyn’s most private—yet public—beach in Manhattan Beach; and much, much more. An unforgettably vivid chronicle of today’s Brooklyn, the book can also be enjoyed without ever leaving home—but it’s almost guaranteed to inspire you to get out and explore one of the most fascinating urban areas anywhere. Covers every one of Brooklyn’s 44 neighborhoods, providing a colorful portrait of their most interesting, unusual, and unknown people, places, and things Each neighborhood section features a brief overview and history; a detailed, user-friendly map keyed to the text; and a lively guided walking tour Draws on the author’s 816-mile walk through every Brooklyn neighborhood Includes insights from conversations with hundreds of residents

When Brooklyn Was Queer
When Brooklyn Was Queer

Author: Hugh Ryan

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2019-03-05

Total Pages: 255

ISBN-13: 1250169925

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The never-before-told story of Brooklyn’s vibrant and forgotten queer history, from the mid-1850s up to the present day. ***An ALA GLBT Round Table Over the Rainbow 2019 Top Ten Selection*** ***NAMED ONE OF THE BEST LGBTQ BOOKS OF 2019 by Harper's Bazaar*** "A romantic, exquisite history of gay culture." —Kirkus Reviews, starred “[A] boisterous, motley new history...entertaining and insightful.” —The New York Times Book Review Hugh Ryan’s When Brooklyn Was Queer is a groundbreaking exploration of the LGBT history of Brooklyn, from the early days of Walt Whitman in the 1850s up through the queer women who worked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard during World War II, and beyond. No other book, movie, or exhibition has ever told this sweeping story. Not only has Brooklyn always lived in the shadow of queer Manhattan neighborhoods like Greenwich Village and Harlem, but there has also been a systematic erasure of its queer history—a great forgetting. Ryan is here to unearth that history for the first time. In intimate, evocative, moving prose he discusses in new light the fundamental questions of what history is, who tells it, and how we can only make sense of ourselves through its retelling; and shows how the formation of the Brooklyn we know today is inextricably linked to the stories of the incredible people who created its diverse neighborhoods and cultures. Through them, When Brooklyn Was Queer brings Brooklyn’s queer past to life, and claims its place as a modern classic.

Walking Brooklyn
Walking Brooklyn

Author: Adrienne Onofri

Publisher: Wilderness Press

Published: 2010-01-01

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 0899975585

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Adrienne Onofri has created an exceptional guide to and through Brooklyn’s most interesting and notable neighborhoods, providing a mix of information about culture, history, architecture, places to eat, venues to visit, and more. From a walk through the Russian-influenced Brighton Beach, to the expansive Prospect Park, and out to Red Hook, Walking Brooklyn reveals the many layers and sites of Manhattan’s lesser-known neighbor. This two-color book features 30 routes, a clear neighborhood map for each walk, black-and-white photographs, and critical public transportation information for every trip. Route summaries make each walk easy to follow, and a “Points of Interest” section outlines each walk’s highlights.

The New York Nobody Knows
The New York Nobody Knows

Author: William B. Helmreich

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 2015-08-25

Total Pages: 474

ISBN-13: 0691169705

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"As a kid growing up in Manhattan, William Helmreich played a game with his father they called "Last Stop." They would pick a subway line and ride it to its final destination, and explore the neighborhood there. Decades later, Helmreich teaches university courses about New York, and his love for exploring the city is as strong as ever. Putting his feet to the test, he decided that the only way to truly understand New York was to walk virtually every block of all five boroughs--an astonishing 6,000 miles. His epic journey lasted four years and took him to every corner of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island. Helmreich spoke with hundreds of New Yorkers from every part of the globe and from every walk of life, including Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former mayors Rudolph Giuliani, David Dinkins, and Edward Koch. Their stories and his are the subject of this captivating and highly original book. We meet the Guyanese immigrant who grows beautiful flowers outside his modest Queens residence in order to always remember the homeland he left behind, the Brooklyn-raised grandchild of Italian immigrants who illuminates a window of his brownstone with the family's old neon grocery-store sign, and many, many others. Helmreich draws on firsthand insights to examine essential aspects of urban social life such as ethnicity, gentrification, and the use of space. He finds that to be a New Yorker is to struggle to understand the place and to make a life that is as highly local as it is dynamically cosmopolitan."--Publisher's description.

Walking Queens
Walking Queens

Author: Adrienne Onofri

Publisher: Wilderness Press

Published: 2014-07-21

Total Pages: 266

ISBN-13: 0899977316

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Home to more than 2.3 million people who speak at least 150 different languages, Queens is heralded as the most multicultural place on Earth. People go there to watch Major League Baseball or the U.S. Open. Perhaps they venture just across the river, to check out a trendy new restaurant, bar, or performance space in Long Island City or Astoria, or ride the train all the way out to the beach on a summer's day. Now, with Walking Queens by local author Adrienne Onofri, readers get to know the whole borough. Each walk tells the story of a neighborhood: how it developed originally and how it's transformed over the years. Readers are pointed to distinctive architecture, landmark buildings, popular eateries, ethnic enclaves, celebrity residences, art and performance spaces, and natural scenery. There are tours that reveal forgotten moments in Queens history, or position you for a stunning view, or immerse you in all the sights, scents, and sounds of a melting pot. Maps and transportation directions make it easy to find your way. Whether you're looking for an afternoon stroll or a daylong outing, grab this book and start walking Queens!

The World According to Fannie Davis
The World According to Fannie Davis

Author: Bridgett M. Davis

Publisher: Little, Brown

Published: 2019-01-29

Total Pages: 253

ISBN-13: 0316558710

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As seen on the Today Show: This true story of an unforgettable mother, her devoted daughter, and their life in the Detroit numbers of the 1960s and 1970s highlights "the outstanding humanity of black America" (James McBride). In 1958, the very same year that an unknown songwriter named Berry Gordy borrowed $800 to found Motown Records, a pretty young mother from Nashville, Tennessee, borrowed $100 from her brother to run a numbers racket out of her home. That woman was Fannie Davis, Bridgett M. Davis's mother. Part bookie, part banker, mother, wife, and granddaughter of slaves, Fannie ran her numbers business for thirty-four years, doing what it took to survive in a legitimate business that just happened to be illegal. She created a loving, joyful home, sent her children to the best schools, bought them the best clothes, mothered them to the highest standard, and when the tragedy of urban life struck, soldiered on with her stated belief: "Dying is easy. Living takes guts." A daughter's moving homage to an extraordinary parent, The World According to Fannie Davis is also the suspenseful, unforgettable story about the lengths to which a mother will go to "make a way out of no way" and provide a prosperous life for her family -- and how those sacrifices resonate over time.

A Walk Through Brooklyn
A Walk Through Brooklyn

Author: Rashaun Allen

Publisher:

Published: 2012-05-01

Total Pages: 56

ISBN-13: 9780578047669

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“A Walk Through Brooklyn†is a collection of nineteen poems that express the black experience from a vivid point of view of an African American man who has experienced growing up in American society without a father and losing a loving mother. “A Walk Through Brooklyn†covers a range of topics such as self-motivation, love, friendship, abandonment and loss. Rashaun J. Allen's poems attempt to ask and answer questions such as: How does self motivation lead to success? What’s the difference between love and lust? Can a friendship be repaired? And how does a parent’s addiction affect a child?

Hasidic Williamsburg
Hasidic Williamsburg

Author: George Kranzler

Publisher: Jason Aronson, Incorporated

Published: 1995-01-01

Total Pages: 351

ISBN-13: 1461734541

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Hasidic Williamsburg recounts the dramatic emergence of this unique community in the face of major crises. It is the story of the loyalty of its members to their rebbes and their teachings and to the milieu they created in an old Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. Based on his previous book Williamsburg: A Jewish Community in Transition, which reported the transformation of this moderately Orthodox Jewish community and its rise to prominence after the influx of numbers of refugees from Nazi persecution and the Holocaust, George Kranzler presents the findings of a decade of research into the survival and life-style of Hasidic Williamsburg as a functioning community. Hasidic Williamsburg portrays the desperate struggle and relentless efforts of its leaders, foremost among them the Rebbe of Satmar and other prominent hasidic rebbes, to stem the progressive disintegration of the Jewish neighborhood. It presents their valiant attempts to provide the vital resources for its survival in the face of persistent poverty and other grave problems and to develop programs that would secure the future of this unique hasidic community. Kranzler concludes with the assertion that at the beginning of the '90s its inhabitants are hopeful of being able to weather the present crisis and to continue to function as one of pluralist America's viable religious communities.

New York in Stride
New York in Stride

Author: Jessie Kanelos Weiner

Publisher: Rizzoli Publications

Published: 2020-02-18

Total Pages: 186

ISBN-13: 0847866602

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A locals' treasure map to the secret spots favored by true New Yorkers. The "must-visit, must-see" travel list given to you by the New Yorker friend you wish you had. Vibrantly illustrated throughout, this practical guide transports readers to discover an insider's view of the Big Apple. The vivid watercolors illustrate destinations of the architectural marvels, cultural hubs, food and drink spots, and music venues that make New York so exciting. Cultural musings, accessible histories, anecdotes, and informative details accompany the illustrations throughout, making this volume as practical as it is beautiful. The book features eleven curated neighborhood destination walks--guiding the reader through the energetic New York streets, passing restaurants and coffee shops, historical sights, museums and galleries, parks, and the kind of authentic and timeless sites that one hopes to find when imagining the city. Interwoven throughout are insider guides on how to eat like a New Yorker; explore the city's most beautiful parks and gardens; navigate transit via ferry, subway, and bike; visit some of NYC's most iconic TV and film locations.