Central Park: An Anthology [Paperback]

Andrew Blauner (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 24, 2012

A wild night outdoors with Bill Buford. A football tradition with Nathaniel Rich. A jog around the reservoir with Mark Helprin as he "protects" Jacqueline Onassis from imagined harm. The 843 carefully planned acres of Central Park have not only crept into the hearts of its 38 million annual visitors, but also into the life and work of a diverse array of writers who come to revel in its natural remedy for urban chaos.

In Central Park, a dozen exclusive pieces commissioned especially for this book are accompanied by a handful of beloved classics. Francine Prose reflects on open-air performances by Nina Simone and James Brown; Jonathan Safran Foer writes a creation myth of the park; Buzz Bissinger meditates on how the park defined his early life; and Marie Winn definitively answers Holden Caulfield’s question of where the ducks go when the ponds freeze over.

This vibrant collection presents Central Park in all its diverse glory, with an ode on every page to a fifty-one-block swath of special New York magic. A must-read for the thousands who consider the park their own, and a keepsake for the many more who visit, it will be a standard for years to come.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A delectable collection! Central Park turns out to be more than trees and grass and paths; rather, a touchstone of Memory and Imagination."　—Cynthia Ozick

"[A] sprightly new collection… Central Park is now a dazzling reincarnation of the Edenic landscape Olmsted and Vaux envisioned more than a century and a half ago. No matter how much the park has changed… it radiates for many of the writers here a sense of timelessness and constancy: It remains a kind of memory portal to the past, a Proustian time machine."　—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

"I loved this book. Central Park is a very special place for all of us who have lived in NYC for any length of time, or who grew up here—anyone who considers NYC their spiritual if not physical home."　　—Roz Chast

"To read these reminiscences is to be struck by the role of the park not just as a compensatory blast of nature, quiet, calm and oxygen in a city with too little of all them, but also as a jointly savored event, a common currency, something possessed by everyone but owned by no one."　—Frank Bruni,　NYTimes.com

"Reading these wonderful short essays will ignite the hot season within your head, no matter what the weather’s like outside."—The Daily Beast　

“All of the contributions, from humorous to deeply moving, are worth reading, with descriptions and insights that will be treasured by anyone intrigued by Central Park, no matter their own familiarity.  This volume gives readers a sense of why the park engenders such deep emotions and wonderment in those who enjoy it.” —Library Journal

 “As varied and inviting as its namesake. Take it to the nearest spot of green, spread a blanket, and enjoy.”  —Barnes & Noble Review

 

 

 

About the Author

Andrew Blauner is the founder of Blauner Books Literary Agency. He is the editor of two previous anthologies, Coach, with over fifty thousand copies sold, and Brothers, a finalist for the Books for a Better Life Award. He is also the co-editor of Anatomy of Baseball. Blauner graduated from Collegiate School, Brown University and Columbia Business School, and he is a member of PEN and the National Book Critics Circle. He grew up, and has lived most of his life, within two blocks of Central Park.Adrian Benepe has worked for more than thirty-two years protecting and enhancing New York City's natural and historic beauty. He has continued this effort as commissioner of the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, appointed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2002.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA; 1 edition (April 24, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1608196003
• ISBN-13: 978-1608196005
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #422,570 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars 843 acres of memory July 17, 2012

By Jon Hunt

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The gem of Manhattan is without a doubt, Central Park, and this anthology, edited by Andrew Blauner, is terrific. The vignettes offered by a wide range of authors provide a rich detail to what lies inside the walls of the park. Not surprisingly, many of them harken back to childhood memories of the park...especially places like the Central Park Zoo. In fact, many of them speak of the animals in the park, both caged and uncaged. All however, remind us of a time not so long ago (the 1960s and 1970s) when Central Park had fallen into disrepair and had become a dangerous place. Thankfully, those times have been turned around.

It's easy to fall in love with the animals. Ben Dolnick speaks of a favorite goat, Newman, that he used to tend. Susan Cheever's yak symbolized forbearance. And then there was the British "birder", Donald Knowler, who recorded dozens of bird species over a cold winter, mugged not only by humans but also squirrels. Some of the authors came from wealthy families and used the park for sports and mischievous refuge. The one contribution that really caught my eye was Paul Auster's "Fogg in the Park" which really captures the essence of danger, generosity and adventure all at the same time as he struggled to get by in the confines of the park as a "resident" for a while.

Strolling through Central Park is a lovely way to escape the bustle of the surrounding streets but these chapters mark reminders of what it is like to get to know the park. It's a wonderful collection and I highly recommend it.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A rebirth June 20, 2012

By wogan TOP 50 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

This is a small book with 12 tales of Central Park, all by writers that have lived in New York. There is an introduction by Adrian Benepe, the commissioner of New York's Department of Parks and Recreation. He along with most of the other authors remember Central Park as a haven, and in many years one that was dangerous, dirty and run down. Most of the accounts also present the reassuring story of the Park's resurgence. There is a universal rejoicing at the rebirth of the Park from what it had been in the 70's.

Too many of the authors write "back then", or "in my childhood", or "years ago". It would be better and much more informative if we had more information to know when back then was. There is also a section in the back of the book with a description of each individual writer. It would allow for a better understanding of what had been written if the author's information was inserted with their story.

This is an interesting collection, especially for those of us that know Central Park, either as a visitor or a city resident and even those who have a fondness for the city itself and what this green space has meant to its citizens.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Well-Informed Artist Appreciates the detail of Central Park Anthology August 7, 2012

By Donald J. Doyle

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

A Well Informed Artist Appreciates the detail in Central Park Anthology.
Central Park:An Anthology was a gift to my artist granddaughter, Sarah Long, who lives in New York City, just off Central Park.
She has carried the book with her during travels and opens conversations with strangers at City lunch counters and coffee shops, and they are amazed at the insights and understanding she has about The City and never-ending scenes she can sketch and paint.
Donn Doyle, The Villages, Florida.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars It made me want to move to New York (actually I always want to move to New York) July 25, 2012

By Mary Lavers

Format:Paperback

Central Park is a collection of short stories and essays about one of New York's most famous locations (you guessed it--Central Park). For those of us not from New York, Central Park is an iconic landmark, the uncredited extra cast member in Woody Allen movies and Law & Order episodes. But for New Yorkers, it is so much more, as this collection makes clear. It is, as editor Andrew Blauner points out, the paradox of New York City, the calming green space in the midst of one of the world's most bustling cities, the point that "divides...separating East Side from West Side...but also unites...somehow simultaneously defines and defies the city."

Central Park contains short stories from famous authors, as well as essays from New York City Parks officials. One story of note is "The Sixth Borough" by Jonathan Safran Foer, a version of which appears in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. The fable of the sixth borough was one my favourite part of that novel, so I was delighted to see it included in this anthology.

For more reviews, please visit my blog, CozyLittleBookJournal.

Disclaimer: I received a digital galley of this book free from the publisher from NetGalley. I was not obliged to write a favourable review, or even any review at all. The opinions expressed are strictly my own.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Park stories February 16, 2013

By Barbara Grossman Cajori

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Most of the essays about Central Park were amusing and gave one the sense of
being there. Knowing the park well I wish for a few more with greater depth but it
is a good collection.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A nice concept for a collection, but imperfect execution October 4, 2012

By Neurasthenic VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

It's reasonable to think that one might paint a rich picture of New York City using the park as its focus. Unfortunately, this collection is a little too uniform in its composition and a little too repetitive in its content to achieve that goal. Most of the contributors are white men between 40 and 65 years old who grew up on the Upper-West or Upper-East sides, and their experiences of the park are fairly uniform. So many of the stories collected here relate how gritty it used to be, and how it's cleaner now but in some ways they regret the loss of edge. I'm not saying that's a false experience, but it is an obvious one and it would take more curatorial artistry than is visible here to make it worth reading six times.

That said, many of the individual essays are excellent. The problem is context, they are forced to compete for the reader's attention with too many other similar pieces. Adrian Benepe's introduction was a surprise; he's the Parks Commissioner, but his piece was better written than some of those by famous novelists and essayists. Not so Doug Blondsky of the Central Park Conservatory, whose epilogue is comparatively cliched and leaden. Mark Helperin's essay, very polished, memorable. David Michaelis's essay about raising sons in the city told via their experiences fishing in the park was a beautifully crafted little thing. It is hurt somewhat by being followed by another piece that is similarly structured, but uses the catching of turtles in the park as its central metaphor, rather than the catching of fish.

Generally, the real reminiscences like that of Francine Prose or David Michaelis work better than the bits of fiction like Jonathan Safran Foer's unreadable (self-parody?).... A few chapters, including the one by Paul Auster, are a mystery -- is this a memoir or a short story, or something in between?

David Knowler's bird watching piece was a pleasant surprise but then followed by another bird piece by Mary Winn.

A few pieces seemed incompletely edited, including John Burnham Schwartz's. For example, he mentions avoiding "landmines, real and imagined" in the park. Really, John? Even at its gritty worst in the 1970s, there were never landmines in the park. I think he was referring to patches of mud, or dog poop or something.

The collection contains 21 pieces, most by well-known writers. You'll probably find some by people whose work you've admired in the past, and the collection may introduce you to some new writers as well. Read more ›