Customer Reviews

First Four Hundred : New York and the Gilded Age

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I really enjoyed this book. I've always wanted to know a little more about Caroline Astor, and this book is a very good reference source. It gives a vivid view of the time and brings much of it to life. I only have one problem with the book, and it is a large and glaring error. The author states that Alva Vanderbilt's house in Newport was nondescript. Her house(next door to Mrs. Astor's)is Marble House, one of the most opulent houses in all of Newport, closely followed by her other house, Belcourt Castle. This woman was often described as being "knee deep in mortar". It makes me doubt the rest of the authors research, although I did enjoy the book.

For those of us who are not overly familiar with NYC in the Gilded Age, Jerry Patterson's book is a wonderful introduction. In the book, he covers noteworthy personalities such as Mr. Brown, the Grace Church warden, Ward McAllister, the writer of the list that included the first four hundred, and briefly gives an introduction to Caroline Astor, leader of NYC Society. Many customs, traditions, and amusements of this lavish era are described. Overall, the book is very engrossing and informative.

This is a lovely and attractive book with wonderful pictures and even a listing of the complete "400." I highly recommend it to anyone who loves the Gilded Age in NYC. Also, you might want to join this yahoo group to discuss it further: [URL]

The book misses the personality differences between Caroline Astor and Alva Belmont. Caroline Astor could likely be reincarnated in today's Queen Elizabeth II. Alva Belmont could likely be reincarnated in today's Leona Hemsley.

This book helps unlock the mystery behind the First Four Hundred - fascinating reading and yet I would have liked to see even more juicy details about life as it was then and especially for people that live so differently from the majority of us because of their wealth, power and family history. I would definitely suggest reading this book if you are interested at all in the Gilded Age.

Caroline Astor, unlike Alva Belmont,was not a racist.Mrs Astor's values about race became the moral standard in New York and Newport high society until Alva Belmont reduced the standard. Belmont was the daughter of an Alabama cotton planter. "I was a natural dictator," Belmont wrote of herself. "I enjoyed nothing so much as tyrannizing over the little slave children on my father's cotton plantation." Patterson could have devoted a chapter to attutudes about race in the Gilded Age. This book is well written. I highly recommend this book.

Caroline Astor, unlike Alva Belmont,was not a racist.Mrs Astor's values about race became the moral standard in New York and Newport high society until Alva Belmont reduced the standard. Belmont was the daughter of an Alabama cotton planter. "I was a natural dictator," Belmont wrote of herself. "I enjoyed nothing so much as tyrannizing over the little slave children on my father's cotton plantation." Patterson could have devoted a chapter to attutudes about race in the Gilded Age. This book is well written. I highly recommend this book.