Customer Reviews

Long Island Alive! (Hunter Travel Guides)

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We residents of Long Island will be tickled pink with the author's thorough research of Long Island's length and breadth, 100 miles long and 20 miles across at its widest point. It will also provide a sweeping view for the visitor to the island. Before it was named in 1614 by Dutch explorer Adrian Block, our island was home to Indians for thousands of years and Indian names from Amagansett "plenty of good water" to Wyandanch, the chief who befriended the white settlers, are still many across the island.

Silverman's exhaustive investigation of every aspect of Long Island gives the reader a complete picture of every area, covered and explained. From geographical details of its two counties, with Nassau and Suffolk's north and south shores, and latter's north and south forks, all readers' questions are answered, from its largest ethnic group (Italian Americans, 27 percent( to its highest point (Jayne's Hill in Melville at 400 feet above sea level). We are flat!

The author's 10 reasons to visit Long Island (and we should be proud) are 1) 23 state parks and more than 50 county parks; 2) superb restaurants; 3) scenic waterways, 4) gilded-age mansions open to the public; 5) world-class concert halls and arenas; 6) hundreds of miles of white sandy beaches; 7) more than 100 museums; 8) 7,000 structures built prior to the 20th century; 9) unique architecture and 10) animal refuges and preserves. Sounds like something for everyone.

From recreations of all sorts from biking and hiking, horseback riding and fishing to golf, tennis, boating and beaches (the 2,400-acre Jones Beach State Park and famous beach draws six to seven million visitors from around the world each summer). In this, the nation's fourth wealthiest area, residents support 1,196 shopping centers in addition to chain stores, boutiques and shops, found in virtually every town. Long Island is described as a microcosm of New York City, offering something for everyone, from restaurants and late night bars with live music, to celebrated concert halls featuring top names in entertainment, lounges, piano bars, comedy clubs and nightclubs. The book lists festivals, events, medical facilities, houses of worship, etc. in addition to accommodations and restaurants across the county, with price scales for each.

Under Nassau County's North Shore, the reader is afforded an interesting listing and description of specific "Mansions to Museums" - from the Falaise Castle to the Tee Ridder Miniature Museum. Detailed information is given as well for the county's South Shore, before venturing to the less-densely populated Suffolk County.

This lesser-known area of Long Island, its many historic sites from Stony Brook's Grist Mill to its wildlife preserves, its Film and TV Foundation and its many family-fun facilities, music, theatre and art offerings, spas, cruises, all sports, shopping, museums, accommodations, restaurants and more, are presented in detail by the author. From its South Shore's William Floyd 1724 famed Bayard Cutting Arboretum to its picturesque North Fork with its 25 wineries welcoming the public for visits and tasting and farm stands featuring fresh picked crops from the area's vast farmlands are many and popular with natives and tourists alike.

Its celebrated 32-mile Fire Island with its pencil-thin barrier beach, no more than a half mile wide from ocean to bay, with its 17 communities' 200 families year round are joined by thousands of visitors every summer. No road or cars here and it's reached by ferry.

"Let's not forget the island's famed Hamptons, which the author describes as "like nowhere else on the planet," with celebrities underfoot on the streets, markets, restaurants and shops. Like Long Island's Gold Coast, excess wealth abounds, with real estate up to "$ million a pop." All this plus award-winning beaches, museums, windmills, historic sites, water and land sports and lots of shopping, from surfboard to sand paintings and a wide choice of high-tone fashion; a shopper's paradise even for merely the "window-type." Restaurants, theatre, dancing and live entertainment are available after dark. The road to the Hamptons is a traffic nightmare during summer weekends, with tourists vying for the view of "life among the super rich on America's Riviera."

Easy-to-read maps accompany each area text, excellent advice for additional sources and a helpful index afford readers easy access to Long Island Alive!'s ample array of Long Island information, border-to-border, coast-to-coast...

Reading a guide book is usually something one does before going to the destinations it describes. Francine Silverman's Long Island Alive! is not only an informative book for prospective Long Island visitors, but it is also an entertaining read for armchair travellers. Silverman writes in a narrative form that makes the reader feel a native Long Islander is showing her around the largest island ajacent to the Continental U.S.

The book is divided into seven geographic headings: Nassau County's North and South Shores, Suffolk County's North and South Shores, Fire Island, and Suffolk County's North and South Forks. Farm markets are listed at the back of the book.

From helpful, child-friendly tips to detailed historical descriptions of various landmarks, the author offers the reader useful and timely information. Each geographic section is divided into helpful subcategories for transportation, lodging, shopping, recreation and restaurants. Above and beyond the traditional guide book, Long Island Alive! has Web site suggestions for the curious reader to learn even more than its numerous pages entail. Silverman includes enough historical background to whet the reader's appetite, all the while making him or her want to learn more by visiting the places described.

Long Island's size is not its only impressive facet: the sheer number of fascinating historical places that Silverman depicts makes the reader want to pack her bags yesterday to experience Long Island first hand. Being a masterful writer, Silverman uses clear language to detail the most intriguing tidbits about the island. She inserts trivia in an appropriate manner between more somber entries such as the Holocaust Memorial of Nassau County. "The giraffe is the symbol of Great Neck - for obvious reasons" follows philanthropic opportunities at the Friends of the Arts which sponsors various music festivals and a children's workshop throughout the year. She captures the history of Long Island while simultaneously emphasizing its contemporary offerings. From Walt Whitman's birthplace to the local bar scene, this guide has it all.

My father recently told me that I am the 12th generation descendant of Robert Jackson, one of the founding proprieters of the Hempstead settlement on Long Island. If I ever make a trip to Long Island to visit my forefathers' birthplace, Long Island Alive! is the first thing I will pack.

Christine Louise Hohlbaum
American author of Diary of a Mother: Parenting Stories and Other Stuff
http://www.diaryofamother.com

If Long Island Alive is not the definitve guide book for Long Island travel, I don't know what is. This was my first experience reviewing a travel guide, and it was a delightful surprise. Anything the traveler could possibly want or need to know can be found between these covers.

Of particular interest to me was the Long Island history. Beginning with the ice age - which created the unique topography - to the Native Algonquian Indians, progressing through early Dutch and English settlers, the island's history is fascinating. Ms. Silverman also describes the geology and geography and provides detailed maps. It is a diverse land of pine barrens and beaches, state parks and golf courses, hiking trails and woodlands. I was thinking "Wow!" before I'd finished reading the introduction.

The book is arranged rather handily into distinct areas of Long Island - Nassau County, Suffolk County, and Fire Island. The author then breaks down each area into points of interest and backs up her information with first hand impressions, phone numbers, websites, helpful tips and intriguing tidbits.

Sources of transportation available by car, rail, bus, plane, plus directions are provided. Available lodging and restaurants in each area and price ranges are clearly listed. Whether you are interested in museums, the arts, farmer markets, romantic getaways, cruises, outdoor activities, family fun, or world class night life, that information is listed. There's something of interest for everyone and choices to suit every pocket book. This guide also contains practical information, such as banks, hospitals, veterinary clinics, houses of worship, and which destinations are handicapped accessible. If you're wondering if children or pets are welcome, you'll find that information too.

Long Island Alive is complete with any information the traveler could possibly want to know. And it's entertaining reading to boot. Highest recommendation.

Pros
 In depth information about Long Island
 Geographic arrangement of chapters is very helpful
 Excellent descriptions of attractions

Cons  Maps are very small

The Bottom Line - If you are traveling around Long Island, keep this book in the car. Long Island Alive! packs a lot of information into a portable package. With a cover price of $, you'll get your money's worth.

Description
 A travel guide for visitors to Long Island and a resource guide for those who live here.
 You'll find information about places to stay, restaurants, museums, and historical landmarks.
 This book also lists houses of worship, parks, movie theaters, animal hospitals and shelters, etc.

Long Island Alive! author Francine Silverman has put together a wonderful resource both for visitors to Long Island and those who live here. You'll find information about museums, dining, houses of worship, animal shelters, shopping, and entertainment. Long Island Alive!, published by Hunter Publishing, Inc., is arranged geographically using the Long Island Expressway as the dividing line between Nassau and Suffolk Counties' North and South Shores. Looking for a museum on the North Shore of Nassau County or somewhere to get a light bite on the South Shore of Suffolk? You'll find it in this book. Do you need to find a farm market? It's in here too. Keep this chubby paperback in your car. You never know when it will come in handy. Dawn Rosenberg McKay -