Keys to the City: Tales of a New York City Locksmith [Mass Market Paperback]

Joel Kostman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1999

Called "Doctor of the Deadbolt" by The New York Times, musician-turned-locksmith Joel Kostman has been collecting stories about the New York characters he's encountered in twenty years on the job: the poor and the wealthy, the friendly and the lonely, and, of course, the eccentric. As Kostman quietly lets them into their apartments, cars, or safes, they let down their guard and let him into their lives.

Here we meet a ninety-two-year-old cousin of Eddie Cantor who urges Kostman to try on one of the singer's jackets; a doctor who was Bugsy Siegel's personal physician; a very sexy Jersey girl; and five naked old men listening to Mozart in a steaming apartment, while a 35-degree-below-zero wind blows outside. In vignettes reminiscent of Isaac Bashevis Singer, Keys to the City is an unforgettable collection of fourteen encounters with New Yorkers locked out, locked in--and a few not far from being locked up.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

YA. This collection of 14 stories is based on the author's experience as a professional locksmith in New York City. A young man, Kostman is on call at all hours. He offers aid to people locked out of cars or apartments or provides release or protection for their possessions. In the course of such duties, he encounters a variety of city dwellers old and young, housewives and gangsters, all desperate for his services and rich in those idiosyncrasies attributed to New Yorkers. He meets Eddie Cantor's 92-year-old cousin; Buggsy Siegel's doctor; and others all haggling over payment, skipping out, or (rarely) rewarding him. The appealing main character and varied sequences will attract YAs, as will the humor.?Frances Reiher, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Kostman, a licensed Big Apple locksmith, certainly gets around the city in the pursuit of his profession. In his debut as an author (no license required), he offers a view of a few of the people and sights glimpsed beyond the doors he unlocks. This slender volume is a compilation of the odd scenes Kostman has run into over the years and the peculiar dialogues in which he was a bemused participant. The slices of life are as abundant and fragrant as a Broadway deli's pastrami on rye. As he changes tumblers or replaces lost keys, the intrepid journeyman encounters human interest with a vengeance, from 11-year-old Gloria, who looks after her apparently senile Papi, to the aging Mrs. Herzog, who believes her sister is robbing her blind. Kostman releases those locked in and lets in those locked out (never, it seems, feeling the need to verify the customer's right of passage). Bedeviled by jammed doors are doctors and gypsies, musicians and welfare clients, a psychiatrist and an East Side matron who could use one, a clandestine fireworks dealer and a troupe of naked old men. All converse freely and at length with the compliant locksmith/scribe. They may live in the precincts of poverty or in areas of affluence- -with no relationship to willingness to pay the locksmith's fee-- but most of the little dramas seem to happen in dark or dank places. ``The fish and piss odors produce an overpowering stench'' in one locale. ``At the bottom,'' in another, ``the alley is dark and everything is covered with bird shit.'' These are New York kinds of tales. Short stories by a locksmith with the key to a little Pandora's box of urban yarns. Written in the present tense with a touch of tense presence, the vignettes, while not earthshaking, provide salty, easy, lively city kibitzing. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (February 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140279474
• ISBN-13: 978-0140279474
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 4.9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,049,590 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Amusing, reassuring vignettes, June 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Keys to the City: Tales of a New York City Locksmith (Mass Market Paperback)

Joel is just a nice guy -- no questions there. He's also insightful and humble so he can let a story tell itself without trying to show off his ability to write. His writing style reminds me of a baseball umpire -- an umpire is at his best when you don't even realize he's umpiring the game. Joel's stories are like that -- they just smoothly tell themselves without too much editorializing and too much dramatization. He also doesn't use his book as an opportunity to list the litany of freaks, kooks, and morons he's undoubtedly dealt with in his locksmith years in NYC. These are funny stories, but they are more about everyday people and what they do to fill their time and make ends meet. It's the type of book that reassures you about the quality of people around you and makes you realize how extraordinary an ordinary life can be. It's a quick read, a few hours at most, but it's well worth it. I only wish there were more books by this author.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Memorable characters and situations, March 13, 2001

By 

Eileen Galen (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Keys to the City: Tales of a New York City Locksmith (Mass Market Paperback)

Joel Kostman provides at least two essential services: locksmithing and storytelling. He is calm, smart, and - this unfolds with the stories - a careful observer-participant. In addition he is often saving the day for his characters, and he is humble.

These stories are great and short (as in, most are ten or fewer pages long) but each with a distinct purpose. You also find out that the narrator's brother, now schizophrenic, was once a Professor of Philosophy - and that Kostman knows an important moment when he meets one. He likes people, and they like him. You understand why.

This is a fine collection of stories that are unpretentious, elegantly simple, and very humane.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic!, April 4, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Keys to the City: Tales of a New York City Locksmith (Mass Market Paperback)

The day I moved to NYC, Joel was my locksmith, and I'm happy to say he's as brilliant a writer as he is/was a locksmith. His book is wonderful-it does exactly what you want great art to do. It's heartbreaking at turns, hilarious at others, it's a sly and witty Valentine to NYC, and it's just flat-out wonderful. I can't wait to see what he'll do next.