A Very New York Christmas (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Cynthia Nixon (Foreword)
Key Phrases: New York, United States, Santa Claus (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Nobody celebrates Christmas like New Yorkers. And no town gets dressed up like New York at Christmastime. It's a feast for the eyes. It's happiness and good cheer on every corner and Michael Storrings has captured it all for you in this book---A Very New York Christmas." ---Regis Philbin

"This remarkable book gives visitors and residents alike the chance to take home with them the many wonders of the holiday season in New York. From the tree at Rockefeller Center to the illuminated animals at the Bronx Zoo---Michael Storrings shows us New York City at it's glittering best." ---The Honorable David N. Dinkins (Mayor of New York, 1990--1993)

 

"A Very New York Christmas is the perfect holiday gift." ---Roger and Sally Horchow, authors of The Art of Friendship.

Product Description

The experience of New York City at Christmas time has enthralled residents and visitors alike since Clement C. Moore wrote The Night Before Christmas in his house in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan in 1823, inspiring tributes to the city in words and images. In A Very New York Christmas, Michael Storrings captures the magical landscape and excitement of the holiday season in dozens of watercolors, which since 2003 have been turned into bestselling Christmas ornaments. Sold in major retail venues across the country, his limited edition ornaments have a worldwide fan base and sell out performances in such stores as Saks, Bloomingdale's, and Bergdorf Goodman. This year a special ornament will be produced to coordinate with the book.  

Portraying both famous traditions like Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the lighting of the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Angel Tree to less well-known ones like the Christmas lights in Brooklyn’s Dyker Heights, the Boys Choir of Harlem, and the Holiday Train show at The New York Botanical Garden, A Very New York Christmas crisscrosses Manhattan and the four outer boroughs to bring us a Christmas for all New Yorkers--whether residents or just fans. 

Including a delightful foreword from Cynthia Nixon (Miranda from Sex and the City) this jewel-like book combines festive quotations from literature and popular culture with Storrings’s charming watercolors of forty cherished New York holiday scenes making this a perfect gift and yuletide keepsake.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 96 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; 1st edition (October 14, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312377053
• ISBN-13: 978-0312377052
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 6.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #42,656 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #25 in	Books > Travel > United States > Regions > Northeast > Mid Atlantic
  #30 in	Books > Arts & Photography > Photography > Travel > United States
  #49 in	Books > History > United States > State & Local > New York

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great gift for anyone, October 24, 2008

By	Laura Braggins (Rochester, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I was totally surprised at all the detail in the illustrations in this book. This is remarkable art work that should be shared with anyone. I have never been to New York City at Christmas time, but I will definitely want to go and see it now after seeing it through the eyes of Michael. The details are in everything in this book from the illustrations to the history. A wonderful gift for yourself or anyone. Kudos to Michael on creating a chance for anyone around the world to "visit NYC" anytime!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This magic kingdom consists of five boroughs, November 25, 2008

By	Robert Morris (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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Here is an ideal holiday gift for anyone who has ever visited the New York City area during the holiday season because it will evoke so many fond memories. For others who plan to visit the area for the first time as well as for residents who are eager to explore new sources of magic and delight, this book offers dozens of suggestions of where to go, what to see and do, etc. in the five boroughs...especially Manhattan (e.g. Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, the Wollman Rink in Central Park, and Washington Square Park) but also the Bronx (e.g. the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo), Brooklyn (e.g. Grand Army Plaza and Dyker Heights), Queens (e.g. Flushing Meadows-Corona Park), and Staten Island (e.g. Historic Richmond Town). Michael Storrings provides a brief but eloquent Preface to his series of exquisite watercolor drawings, including those that are devoted to 39 different special treats that extend from the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade that employees of R.H. Macy & Company started in 1924 and concludes with a tradition that has continued since 1907 as each New Year is welcomed in Times Square.

Relevant historical information supplements must of the illustrations, followed by brief personal comments about the seasonal events and locations. Here are a few representative examples:

"New York City, where I live, is impressive at any time, but as Christmas approaches it's overwhelming. Store windows blaze with lights and color, furs and jewels. Golden angels, forty feet tall, hover over Fifth Avenue. Wealth, power, opulence...nothing in the world can match this fabulous display." (Norman Vincent Peale, "A Gift from the Heart," 1968)

"The Christmas trees are almost all sold
And the ones that are left go cheap.
The children almost all over town
Have almost gone to sleep."
(Langston Hughes, Christmas Eve: Nearing Midnight in New York," 1965)

"The magi, as you know, were wise men - wonderfully wise men who brought gifts to the Babe in the manger. They invented the art of giving Christmas presents. Being wise, their gifts were no doubt wise ones, possibly bearing the privilege of exchange in case of duplication." (O. Henry, "The Gift of the Magi," 1906)

"When the ball dropped on New Year's Eve, I have to tell you - I was elated and enormously pleased at the tremendous progress that the city has made, and at the fact that New York was the center of everything when the world welcomed the new millennium." (Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, in his "State of the City" address, 2000)

This little book comes as close as any book possibly could to suggesting what a magic kingdom New York becomes each holiday season.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must have for your coffee table, October 14, 2008

By	Robin Yap "Robin" (Toronto ON Canada) - See all my reviews

I have Michael's holiday ornaments and have enjoyed them through the years. His book, A Very New York Christmas, is a great compliment and makes for a wonderful gift for the season. As I've read this book, it brought memories of the New York City that I know and experienced for many Christmases; having lived in the scenes that he depicted with minute detail (love your pugs Michael).

A watercolour treatment to a great city makes this book a definite conversation piece and a must have for your coffee table. This book and Michael's New York holiday ornaments make a perfect pair.