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32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good, but not great, June 10, 2002
This review is from: The Epic of New York City: A Narrative History (Paperback)
As several other reviewers have noted, this book was published in 1966 and so it doesn't contain any recent history. Nonetheless, it's an excellent introduction to NY from it's founding in the early 1600s to the 1960s. I disagree with the reviewer who said that there are no colorful characters in this narrative and that the narrative is boring -- I found the book full of interesting characters (politicians like Boss Tweed, reporters such as William Randolph Hearst, and influential people like John Jacob Astor). Moreover, I found the narrative engaging enough to make it difficult to put down at times. My only complaint is that the editing job is shabby. Not so much with typos or grammatical errors, but the sentence structure and the narrative flow is a bit awkward at times. Every now and again, Ellis will switch gears without any warning or explanation. It gets a bit frustrating. Also, there are NO maps in this book. I used 4 different contemporary maps -- 2 for Manhattan/Queens, 1 for Brooklyn, 1 US map (for references to Boston, DC, and the south). At a minimum, you'll need a Manhattan street map and a NY state map to accompany your reading.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not contemporary but still informative, February 6, 2000
This review is from: The Epic of New York City: A Narrative History (Paperback)
There are many newer. more contemporary histories of NYC--but, especially if you are interested in the early twentieth century period, this is still the best overview. Especially good for those who are intrigued by NYC but have a scant knowledge of its history.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Give Mr. Ellis a Break, October 20, 2003
This review is from: The Epic of New York City: A Narrative History (Paperback)
Yes, I agree: Mr. Ellis may have bitten off more than he should've tried to chew in 1966. The book would have been best served if it had ended in 1898, at the time of the consolidation of the five boroughs into New York City. (This was what Burrows and Wallace did when writing GOTHAM, a book of similar length.) I also agree with other reviewers that a few maps and illustrations would've benefitted the work. But give the guy a break. THE EPIC OF NEW YORK CITY is as good an introduction to the long, complex history of the city as anything else out there. In fact, it's better than most, in spite of its few historical errors. This is an enormous subject that would've daunted most historians. Mr. Ellis' passion and fascination for NYC history is evident on every page. THE EPIC OF NEW YORK CITY is written in short, digestible chapters that make for sprightful, snappy reading. While uneven in terms of style, many of the segments are memorable. In particular, I enjoyed the sections that centered on Peter Stuyvesant, New York during the American Revolution, and the Blizzard of 1888. Those chapters alone were worth the price. Rocco Dormarunno, author of The Five Points Concluded, a Novel
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