Yeah, I pretty much love the city pretty much any time and day of the year.
Born and raised in Queens (yes, Lucky Broken Girl's Ruth Behar and I both are graduates of PS 117 in Briarwood), I have lived outside of 11432 way longer than I lived there. Yet my love for the city constantly flows through my arteries like my past 50 years have all been spent just up from the Parsons Blvd station.
So could that be why I love Manhattan by Jennifer Thermes so much? Maybe. But by the looks of my Twitter feed, my fondness for this book is not unique. And I follow librarians and educators from all over the country. Let's just say this book that has it all wrapped under one case, is appealing to anyone:
Obviously, the cartographer--Thermes is a map illustrator and it is evident in the perfect map on each page of this ever evolving island.
Historians--The book takes you on the historical journey of Manhattan from millions of years ago to today. You could do a scavenger hunt searching for facts on Hamilton, Edgar Allan Poe, geology...it's extensive.
Urban planners--Details about Wall Street, the grid, Central Park and so much more will delight these folks for sure.
Tourists--This is the ultimate guide to Manhattan. How fun would it be to have this book by your side while you are planning your trip. Maybe pack the eBook version as it is oversized. Not a complaint--Manhattan is a long skinny island and deserves this sized book--just not ideal for travel.
And of course, the artists and lovers of kidlit. I fell for Jennifer Thermes with her Grandma Gatewood Hikes the Appalachian Trail and am glad she moved off the mountain to my happy place.
Last minute gift idea-- give a pair of New York books, wrap Manhattan up with Elisha Cooper's RIVER which flow up to where I reside now.
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Speaking of Elisha, he and I met for coffee overlooking the river (sort of) last Friday afternoon. I was heading to the city the next day and he drew his own map for us.Library? His idea. Walking through SoHo to West Village? Elisha. Murray's Cheese? Uh-huh. (Yes and the Roomano was quite yummy!) Bar Pisellino? Yep. (Best. Hot Chocolate. Ever.) So it was a great day.
The obligatory leap.
Had a couple of 13 year olds who wanted to walk up Fifth. Did that, too.
Got 6 minutes? Check out their video of our day (and maybe consider subscribing to their channel 😉)
I agree with you, also love NY.
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