The Other Islands of New York City: A Historical Companion (Paperback)

~ (Author), Stuart Miller (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Journalists and New York City natives Seitz and Miller have written an entertaining history of and travel guide to 40 of the human-made and natural islands that dot the waters around New York City. From famous tourist destinations such as Liberty and Ellis islands, to the infamous Rikers Island Penitentiary and the little-known North Brother Island, where Typhoid Mary spent nearly 30 years in confinement, the islands of New York City have a vivid and intriguing story to tell. Armchair travelers and regular visitors to the city alike will find this an enjoyable book. The authors indicate which islands can be visited, whether you can get there by car, bus, subway, or ferry, and, in a few cases, where you can eat. Recommended for public libraries.?Linda M. Kaufmann, Freel Lib., North Adams State Coll., Mass.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"a book that explores, in depth, those parts of New York City almost always left out of the usual books." -- The Island Current

"a well-written and comprehensive tale...a lively history of the people and events that forged modern day New York City" -- The Urban Audubon

"an encyclopedia of the archipelago that is New York." -- New York Post

"only occassionally does something new come along that I deem an important work. This book falls into this category." -- Bronx Times Reporter

"rescues for readers the history and legend that lie in the soil or rock of these oft-forgotten strands" -- New York Chronicle

This is definitely a book I want for my shelf. -- Mario Cuomo, former governor of New York State --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Backcountry Pubns (August 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881503363
• ISBN-13: 978-0881503364
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,772,449 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Author's response to misleading review, October 30, 2003

By	Sharon Seitz and Stuart Miller (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Other Islands of New York City: A History and Guide (Second Edition) (Paperback)

NOTE: This is not a review. We are the book's authors and are writing in response to the careless and misleading comments made by reviewer "erikbaard."

"erikbaard" seems to think we should have written a narrowly focused book catering to his personal interest as a kayaker, describing such minutiae as seagull eggs. But our book is intended as a history and guide book, an approach we believed would entertain, intrigue and inform a far broader audience. So while we did detail the natural beauty-from the garnet and feldspar on Twin Islands to the towering hickory trees of Hunter Island--we gave far greater focus to the tales of colorful people (Nellie Bly and Mae West) and momentous events (the General Slocum fire and the building of the Statue of Liberty) as well as the marvelous attractions that those islands accessible to the public hold.

"erikbaard" also attacks us for a "self-congratulatory" tone because we dubbed a handful of islands as being "forgotten." How can they be forgotten, he asks, if he and other kayakers know of them. While kayaking is growing in popularity in New York, it's a safe bet that a small percentage of the 7 million New Yorkers are out there paddling. And having spoken with thousands of New Yorkers about the islands since this book was first published in 1996 we are equally certain that the vast majority of people coming to this book know little or nothing about most of these islands, even those that we didn't call "Forgotten"-islands like North Brother Island or Swinburne Island. We are not self-congratulatory, simply enthusiastic about sharing all we learned in our research.
(But "Erikbaard" is quite self-congratulatory, and mistakenly so. He boasts several times about visiting these islands in his kayak. However, many of these islands-including Swinburne Island, which he mentions-are part of the Harbor Heron Project and if he visits without permission he may be doing irreversible damage to an important bird refuge through his adventurism.)

In addition, he implies that we didn't visit the islands and instead relied on interviews with historians. He also criticizes our tone toward working class residents as condescending. We did visit the islands-we even watched them bury the dead in the Potter's Field on Hart Island and Sharon went into the jails at Rikers Island-and did several years worth of historical research but we also talked to ordinary citizens, residents of the islands or people whose lives were touched by them, like Adella Wotherspoon, the last survivor of the General Slocum disaster. And if you ask them-as we have-- they will say not that the tone is condescending but that we accurately captured life on their islands in a way that few other journalists ever have.

The reviewer also condemns us as squeamish and too liberal because we didn't mention islets-barely more than rocks, actually-that had the word Negro in them. In point of fact, those islets don't exist anymore and we make passing mention of just five of the many such islets that once existed there, picking just a few of the most colorful names like "Bald Headed Billy" and "Bread and Cheese." It seems that "erikbaard" brings this point up solely to glorify a short article he once wrote and to relive his glory days when he got to interview a city parks commissioner.

Then comes a blatant inaccuracy when the reviewer accuses us of ignoring Native Americans. In fact, they are mentioned throughout the book, where appropriate-however, the reality is that they rarely lived on these islands and used them only occasionally so there is minimal recorded history related to them. If he was not so intent on trashing our book, however, he would have noted our chapter on Bergen and Mill Islands that delves into the Canarsie Indians, the wampum they produced and how they defended themselves from the Mohawks and later traded with the settlers.

All in all, we were quite dismayed by the combative approach of this reviewer. If you are interested in a book on kayaking around New York, then maybe he will write one for you. In the meantime, if you want stories about Typhoid Mary, the invention of the hot dog at Coney Island, the inspiring presence of herons and egrets in New York, and the development of the tight-knit community of Broad Channel, then we hope you take some time to explore "The Other Islands of New York City."

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars New York City Rediscovered!, November 14, 2002

By	Luis Hernandez (New York, New York, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Other Islands of New York City: A History and Guide (Second Edition) (Paperback)

As a native New Yorker, I heard of many islands that occupied the waters that surround the five boroughs of the city. As I flew back into LaGuardia and JFK airports I even began to notice them from above. Obtaining information about these islands was very difficult, even from local libraries, and therefore when I found this book at a local bookstore, I was delighted that someone came up with the idea of publishing such a book.

From Roosevelt Island to Cuban Ledge, the authors give a very thorough and well researched book on the many islands inhabiting the New York archipelago. Many islands which were once islands, but have long since been connected to the boroughs by artificial landfills are also covered here (e.g. Coney Island-Brooklyn, Hunter Island-Bronx, Battery Park area-Manhattan, etc..) are also covered here.

If you live in the city or plan on visiting, please make sure to pick up a copy of this guide, and make sure to visit the many hidden treasures found in this city.It makes an excellent companion book while aboard a plane or even in the subway.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, thorough, liable to provoke you to go trespass, May 31, 2000

By	Noah Green (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

New York City is an archipelago of islands - this is a reality that has been paved under by centuries of development in this great city, but has been brought to light in this fun, excellent little book.

Besides Manhattan Island, Roosevelt Island, Staten Island, etc., there are a host of tiny lesser-known islands all around the waterways of the city, and this book describes them all. Each and every one of them has a unique history - most were settled at one time or another, most are abandoned now - as well as a unique ecosystem. The book does a great job exploring all these aspects, in prose that has just the right level of detail to inform and excite. The histories it relates are miniature, fractured reflections, serving to both highlight and contrast with the mainstream narrative of NYC history.

Here are a few islands you may never have heard of before - North Brother Island, Swinburne Island, Shooters' Island, and - my personal favorite - U Thant Island, named for a late U.N. diplomat. Yes, there really is a place within New York City limits called "U Thant Island!" Reading this stuff makes you want to go to these places. Most of them are illegal to visit, and unfortunately the authors are responsible, law-abiding individuals who won't tell you how to get to them. Too bad :)

For urban historians, this book is like a collection of lost pottery shards of NYC life. For ecologists, it is a testament to the resilience of wildlife in some of the busiest waterways in the world. And for aspiring urban explorers, it is a temptation to buy a raft, flashlight, and wire cutters....