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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
If Colson Whitehead adapted The Colossus of New York into a monologue, it would be a massive hit on Broadway and Netflix.
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
The type was ultimately repetitive, but I was enthralled for the first few sections.
adventurous
funny
reflective
medium-paced
This is a lovely book of 13 essays describing life in the Big Apple. With his typical prose, Whitehead beautifully elaborates how the everyday makes cities, and how cities (specifically New York, of course) makes the everyday.
This has probably been my favourite travel book, even though it can't really be counted as one. More than anything, it highlights what cities are made of: Us.
This has probably been my favourite travel book, even though it can't really be counted as one. More than anything, it highlights what cities are made of: Us.
Well wrought sentences most of which are hard to guess which makes the journey worth it. Picked up on a lark during pandemic overbuying of books this one was a nice slim find.
Colossus of New York is a short book with an awful lot going on inside. A meditation on New York, the book is comprised of 13 chapters. Some chapters are devoted to geographical areas (Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, Broadway) and others focus on aspects of the city (arrival, rush hour, rain). But Colossus isn't about living in, or visiting, New York. it's about the experience of living in an dense urban environment, whether it's Toronto, London, Bangkok or Mumbai. The book is written in an almost stream-of-conscious flow of ideas, with grammar occasionally thrown out the window. Question marks? Who needs them? Commas? They slow you down. Sometimes Colossus is written in the first person, then suddenly switches to third person, for no apparent reason. Colossus feels like a tone poem, or a series of sketches. Is Colossus too clever for its own good? Perhaps. Some big-city elements may feel cliched ( One person's profundity is another person's too-mined observation) , but I found a mix of truths and engaging observations. Overall, it's quite remarkable. Recommended.
I don't have many 5 star reviews. I loved this quick-read, basically a collection of essays about various areas of NYC, or aspects of NYC life. An evocative hymn to the city.
I absolutely loved this book. (Don't let the time it took me to read it distract you...that was the pandemic, not the book!). And what a story about NY. As a born and bred NYer, all of the essays rang true to me. NY is a living breathing entity in my humble view and to live here is to have a constant roommate that you love but slowly drives you crazy but you could never imagine life without.
What a love letter to my amazing city! (Yes, this review is super biased... but reading this in 2020 and 2021 when life is so strange and after my city has been hurt in a hundred ways, this was a beautiful way to heal.)
What a love letter to my amazing city! (Yes, this review is super biased... but reading this in 2020 and 2021 when life is so strange and after my city has been hurt in a hundred ways, this was a beautiful way to heal.)
'Before you know it, you have your own personal skyline'
I found this to be not indicative of this author's best work. More of a stream of consciousness of cliches about NYC life. I'd hate anyone to form an opinion of NYC based on this book.