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This is...
This Is New York
With the same wit and perception that distinguished his stylish books on Paris, London, and Rome, M. Sasek pictures fabulous, big-hearted New York City in This Is New York, first published in 1960 and now updated for the 21st century. The Dutchman who bought the island of Manhattan from the Native Americnas in 1626 for twenty-four dollars' worth of handy housewares little knew that his was the biggest bargain in American history. For everything about New York is big -- the buildings, the traffic jams, the cars, the stories, the Sunday papers. Here is the Staten Island Ferry, the Statute of Liberty, MacDougal Alley in Greenwich Village, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Harlem, Chinatown, Central Park. The brass, the beauty, the magic, This Is New York!
64 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1960
9 people are currently reading
517 people want to read
About the author
Miroslav Sasek
32 books78 followersMiroslav Sasek (born Miroslav Šašek) (1916-1980) was an author and illustrator from the Czech Republic. He is best known for a series of books for children titled This Is...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews
November 30, 2021
I could hear Sinatra singing New York, New York as read this book! Wonderful 'bookation' to a place I will probably never get to go to. The illustrations are 'retotastic' - I am going to try to hunt down the other books in this series. Great book to read with a small child before they take that first bite of the Big Apple!
January 23, 2019
Вчера Н. к моему приходу домой "построил тебе Нью-Йорк" из Лего, и я поняла, что он полностью готов к этой книжке и моим ностальгическим вздохам над фотографиями двухлетней давности.
July 11, 2024
7/8/16 Outdated and politically incorrect picture book. Take yourself back to the 1960s. A simpler time, right? A time when a picture book could contain illustrations with advertisements for (gasp!) cigarettes and alcohol! Plus, the copyright police (I think) would be all over this for its inclusion of logos for CocaCola and Pepsi.
The illustrations are bright and colorful. The book is iconic and almost 60 years old. If retro is your thing, this is a book for you.
7/10/24 Even more dated than the last time I read it, I have changed the star rating from 3⭐s to 1⭐. The book is now over 60 years old (the book was originally published in 1960) and was tough to get through. Very few people of color are featured unless they're on the pages specifically mentioning Chinatown and Harlem. The illustrations of the Chinese portray slanted eyes. Native Americans are called Indians. The Dutch build a wall against them which leads to the naming of Wall Street and the Dutch buy Manhattan Island from them for about $24.00 (in housewares) in 1662. If this book was written now, these events would be shared through a much different lens (IMO).
The illustrations are bright and colorful. The book is iconic and almost 60 years old. If retro is your thing, this is a book for you.
7/10/24 Even more dated than the last time I read it, I have changed the star rating from 3⭐s to 1⭐. The book is now over 60 years old (the book was originally published in 1960) and was tough to get through. Very few people of color are featured unless they're on the pages specifically mentioning Chinatown and Harlem. The illustrations of the Chinese portray slanted eyes. Native Americans are called Indians. The Dutch build a wall against them which leads to the naming of Wall Street and the Dutch buy Manhattan Island from them for about $24.00 (in housewares) in 1662. If this book was written now, these events would be shared through a much different lens (IMO).
July 25, 2023
Książki z tej serii to złoto!
Znów z zachwytem przerzucałam kolejne strony.
Znów z zachwytem przerzucałam kolejne strony.
February 2, 2009
I just stumbled across this book and the others in this series by Miroslav Sasek. With a joyous simplicity, he welcomes you to New York. But this is just one of 4 books where he introduces cities of the world (Paris, Rome, New York and London) are represented all in a lush but transparent water color pallet. The paper stock is wonderful, the colors and illustrations bright but with a retro feel. I had to look up whether this was a newly published book or one from some time ago. I think that's a good test for a book if it stands up to our contemporary sensibilities.
For anyone taking a little one on a trip this would be the perfect book to give them a feel for New York. The history of NY is introduced very playfully and the pages are just alive with New York and some of it's icons.
A BIG Four Star.
For anyone taking a little one on a trip this would be the perfect book to give them a feel for New York. The history of NY is introduced very playfully and the pages are just alive with New York and some of it's icons.
A BIG Four Star.
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June 13, 2017Lovely illustrations in this 1960's very sweet portrait of New York aimed at children but satisfying for adults too.
December 11, 2020
This was such a fun book discussing a lot of different facts about New York. However, it was published in 1960 so a lot of the facts are outdated. They do have asterisks with updated numbers at the end of the book, but if the facts could be updated within the text itself, it would be a lot better, in my opinion.
October 31, 2020
This is a combined review of This Is New York and This Is Washington, D.C. .
These two books are part of a classic series from the 1950s and 1960s. According to the books' forewords, Miroslav Sasek was inspired to write travel books for children after visiting Paris himself. In addition to the two books featured here, which have significance for me because I've lived in both places, he also wrote books for London, Rome, Venice, San Francisco, and at least a half dozen other locations.
This is New York is the shorter of the two volumes, but it manages to cover the entire New York experience nonetheless. From the purchase of the island of Manhattan by Peter Minuit in 1626, to the subway system, to the bridges, fire hydrants, museums, and neighborhoods, this book covers the history and excitement of New York in a simple, child-friendly style. Much of the information is outdated, especially with regards to the number of museums in the city, and the fact that the Giants no longer play at Yankee Stadium, but this new edition of the book resolves that problem by leaving the original text unaltered and providing footnotes at the back of the book. The illustrations, though dated, are still very appealing and eye-catching, and the use of white space and different sizes and shapes keeps the visual experience of the book moving right along with the text. I only wondered one thing - was the World Trade Center never in the original book, or was that edited out because of 9/11? The book doesn't say.
This is Washington, DC is a much more detailed book, but it has the same casual, conversational tone that made me love This is New York. The very first page sets the tone for the rest of the book when it reads, "Nearly one-third of the one million Washingtonians work for the government full time, and one half talk about it most of the time." Later, the text also jokes about children visiting art museums: "Older art lovers are offered a guide. Tiny art lovers are offered free transport." In the illustration, a baby sleeps in his stroller, while his parents admire a painting.
I read this book not long after visiting the many monuments in downtown Washington, and I was amazed at how little has changed in 40 years. The Washington Monument looks exactly the same in this book's illustration as it does in person! The Museum of American History, too, looks just the same, though the book makes no mention of the change in the display for the Star Spangled Banner. Other inaccuracies are corrected in the back of the book, however, and the original text is left as is. I think that actually makes the book richer, because it lets kids look back at how things used to be and understand how much about a place can change in just a few decades.
As a fairly new resident of DC, I learned a lot from this book, and I think children - DC residents and not - will get a lot out of this travel book, whether they come to the nation's capital, or just take an armchair trip.
The book jackets recommend these books "For children and the young of all ages - 8 to 80!" and I definitely agree. These books are delightful, and will be great fun for families to share together!
These two books are part of a classic series from the 1950s and 1960s. According to the books' forewords, Miroslav Sasek was inspired to write travel books for children after visiting Paris himself. In addition to the two books featured here, which have significance for me because I've lived in both places, he also wrote books for London, Rome, Venice, San Francisco, and at least a half dozen other locations.
This is New York is the shorter of the two volumes, but it manages to cover the entire New York experience nonetheless. From the purchase of the island of Manhattan by Peter Minuit in 1626, to the subway system, to the bridges, fire hydrants, museums, and neighborhoods, this book covers the history and excitement of New York in a simple, child-friendly style. Much of the information is outdated, especially with regards to the number of museums in the city, and the fact that the Giants no longer play at Yankee Stadium, but this new edition of the book resolves that problem by leaving the original text unaltered and providing footnotes at the back of the book. The illustrations, though dated, are still very appealing and eye-catching, and the use of white space and different sizes and shapes keeps the visual experience of the book moving right along with the text. I only wondered one thing - was the World Trade Center never in the original book, or was that edited out because of 9/11? The book doesn't say.
This is Washington, DC is a much more detailed book, but it has the same casual, conversational tone that made me love This is New York. The very first page sets the tone for the rest of the book when it reads, "Nearly one-third of the one million Washingtonians work for the government full time, and one half talk about it most of the time." Later, the text also jokes about children visiting art museums: "Older art lovers are offered a guide. Tiny art lovers are offered free transport." In the illustration, a baby sleeps in his stroller, while his parents admire a painting.
I read this book not long after visiting the many monuments in downtown Washington, and I was amazed at how little has changed in 40 years. The Washington Monument looks exactly the same in this book's illustration as it does in person! The Museum of American History, too, looks just the same, though the book makes no mention of the change in the display for the Star Spangled Banner. Other inaccuracies are corrected in the back of the book, however, and the original text is left as is. I think that actually makes the book richer, because it lets kids look back at how things used to be and understand how much about a place can change in just a few decades.
As a fairly new resident of DC, I learned a lot from this book, and I think children - DC residents and not - will get a lot out of this travel book, whether they come to the nation's capital, or just take an armchair trip.
The book jackets recommend these books "For children and the young of all ages - 8 to 80!" and I definitely agree. These books are delightful, and will be great fun for families to share together!
April 23, 2013
During my teaching placement, my class was studying the topic of New York. We looked at famous landmarks, the architecture, some of the history and learned about general day-to-day life in the city. So ‘This is New York’ by Miroslav Sasek was the perfect introduction to the topic.
Although, this book was first published in 1960 and many of the facts and scenes have now changed, the children in my class enjoyed exploring the colourful pictures on each page and asking questions about this unique city. Sasek takes the reader on a hugely insightful journey into this multicultural and dynamic city, which has over 40 million visitors a year.
Many of the facts and figures have now changed since the time this was written and the author acknowledges this by including an appendix of some of the changes. Examples of this are the number of fire hydrants and elevators in the city.
However, this book has many opportunities for cross curricular activities. Aside from being able to write your own informative English travel brochure, you can draw on links to geography and history with regards to changing landscapes, Personal, Social and Health education in relation to cultural and ethnic groups, as well as art and design and technology if you wanted to get your students to create their own town.
I think this book is wonderful and when I showed it to my mother she even remembered having it as a child and borrowed it for a read. She was delighted to read it again. I would recommend any book in this series to teachers as the perfect resource to get some class ideas and inspire creativity. (I would also recommend this book just as a general, informative read for children)
Although, this book was first published in 1960 and many of the facts and scenes have now changed, the children in my class enjoyed exploring the colourful pictures on each page and asking questions about this unique city. Sasek takes the reader on a hugely insightful journey into this multicultural and dynamic city, which has over 40 million visitors a year.
Many of the facts and figures have now changed since the time this was written and the author acknowledges this by including an appendix of some of the changes. Examples of this are the number of fire hydrants and elevators in the city.
However, this book has many opportunities for cross curricular activities. Aside from being able to write your own informative English travel brochure, you can draw on links to geography and history with regards to changing landscapes, Personal, Social and Health education in relation to cultural and ethnic groups, as well as art and design and technology if you wanted to get your students to create their own town.
I think this book is wonderful and when I showed it to my mother she even remembered having it as a child and borrowed it for a read. She was delighted to read it again. I would recommend any book in this series to teachers as the perfect resource to get some class ideas and inspire creativity. (I would also recommend this book just as a general, informative read for children)
April 1, 2016
This book takes the reader on a journey around New York City! From Manhattan to Brooklyn, from Central Park to Times Square, this book describes how New York came to be, and how it is today. New York was bought from Native Americans by a Dutchman named Peter Minuit for "twenty-four dollars worth of handy housewares"; which is said to be the biggest bargain in American history. Everything about New York is big - the buildings, the traffic jams, the cars, the stories, the Sunday papers! This book takes a tour around the city, showing the reader major tourist attractions such as the Statue of Liberty, Staten Island, Brooklyn Bridge, Yankee Stadium, Chinatown, and Broadway.
I really liked this book! I've been to New York City, and this book really made me want to go back! I really like how the book made me feel like I was on a tour of the city. The illustrations were cool, and I especially liked the illustrations of the city landscape (the view of Manhattan). I also like how this book had interesting facts, like statistics, about New York City, because it put how big the city really is into perspective.
I could use this book in the classroom to talk about New York City and how it is the "largest city in the Western Hemisphere". It would be a good book to read and then ask the students to make comparisons from where they live to a big city like New York.
I really liked this book! I've been to New York City, and this book really made me want to go back! I really like how the book made me feel like I was on a tour of the city. The illustrations were cool, and I especially liked the illustrations of the city landscape (the view of Manhattan). I also like how this book had interesting facts, like statistics, about New York City, because it put how big the city really is into perspective.
I could use this book in the classroom to talk about New York City and how it is the "largest city in the Western Hemisphere". It would be a good book to read and then ask the students to make comparisons from where they live to a big city like New York.
April 24, 2016
New York is one of the biggest/busiest cities in the world. Therefore, it is important for children to know about it. This book is packed full of so much information about New York. However, because it was written in 1960 there are several facts that are outdated. In the back of the book, the publishing company has provided an updated list. The book begins with the story of how New York was purchased from the Native Americans for only $24 worth of household items. This book also includes information on: empire state building, times square, the Statue of Liberty, five boroughs, Macy's, Trinity Church, and much more.
I really enjoyed the old style art that is throughout this book. I think that this book is a great resource for information on New York. However, the reader must keep in mind to look in the back of the book to check for outdated information.
I think this book would be a great non-fiction resource for a classroom. This book could be used to cover several topics such as: New York City, big cities in America, and American heritage. I think that even the art could be an example of illustration discussed in a classroom. Especially when discussing the differences between old and modern art.
I really enjoyed the old style art that is throughout this book. I think that this book is a great resource for information on New York. However, the reader must keep in mind to look in the back of the book to check for outdated information.
I think this book would be a great non-fiction resource for a classroom. This book could be used to cover several topics such as: New York City, big cities in America, and American heritage. I think that even the art could be an example of illustration discussed in a classroom. Especially when discussing the differences between old and modern art.
September 13, 2016
This is a non-fiction book about New York City. It is full of simple facts about what there is to do in New York, how many people live there, how tall some of the buildings are, etc. It is a great read, but perhaps a little bit too long for my liking.
I did enjoy the white space that the illustrator used to portray and separate three different things that one page discussed. With students, this could be an opening book into a geography unit of different places, or about different job titles, or different homes in the United States. The pictures are very blocky and almost look like they were cartoons cut out from a magazine, and then glued and pasted together to form the book, so I can see a project like that being implemented by using this book, as well.
I did enjoy the white space that the illustrator used to portray and separate three different things that one page discussed. With students, this could be an opening book into a geography unit of different places, or about different job titles, or different homes in the United States. The pictures are very blocky and almost look like they were cartoons cut out from a magazine, and then glued and pasted together to form the book, so I can see a project like that being implemented by using this book, as well.
Read
June 23, 2019Every time I visit a foreign country, I end up going to a bookshop and buying myself books written in English. It is a MUST for me.
However, when I visited Havana, Cuba, I was not able to find any books in English. Not only were they written in Spanish, but they all also had the same authors: Fidel Castro (who was alive at that time) and his brother Raul. It was depressing for me because it reminded me of our lives under communism.
I discovered Miroslav Sasek’s book “This is New York” in an unconventional way. I found it in a boutique in New York that sold different items varying from lotions, clothes, games and books, the only connection between the things was that they were all related to New York in a way or another.
http://www.exlibrismeis.com/en/2016/1...
However, when I visited Havana, Cuba, I was not able to find any books in English. Not only were they written in Spanish, but they all also had the same authors: Fidel Castro (who was alive at that time) and his brother Raul. It was depressing for me because it reminded me of our lives under communism.
I discovered Miroslav Sasek’s book “This is New York” in an unconventional way. I found it in a boutique in New York that sold different items varying from lotions, clothes, games and books, the only connection between the things was that they were all related to New York in a way or another.
http://www.exlibrismeis.com/en/2016/1...
March 11, 2016
Thanks to my wife's cousin for getting us this book after our son was born, It is now one of his favorite books. He's still just a little too young for it at just 2, but he loves seeing the brightly colored cars and big buildings. There's page after page of peppy cubist illustrations of mid-century New York City. There's no 'story' here, just facts and figures of the day pertaining to NYC, with updated figures noted as well. My one minor complaint is that it could have a few more well known landmarks.
This is the kind of illustration you'd see on Mad Men if that show had a bit more humor.
This is the kind of illustration you'd see on Mad Men if that show had a bit more humor.
January 1, 2013
I first read this book as a very little girl, and my dad gave it to me for Christmas. I never tried to read the text when I was so young, but now that I am studying German I got even more enjoyment out of it. The illustrations are in a classic late 50's or early 60's style, very angular yet friendly, and the text is beautifully laid out to compliment the large pictures. This was published when the Guggenheim was the newest modern art museum in NYC. I love that historical context!
February 6, 2016
Originally published in 1960 and republished in 2004 not a ton has changed. Well it doesn't talk about the World Trade Center because it was built in the 70s and destroyed in 2001. I have never been to New York City. I have been to JFK Airport, I have been to upstate New York, but I have never been in NYC...crazy I know! I think one day...I like London for a day or two and I think I would like New York for a day or two!
February 11, 2017
I picked this up as a souvenir on a recent trip to New York City. I purchased This is San Francisco after one of my earliest trips to that city, so I thought it only fitting to mark my trip to the East Coast with another book by Sasek. While it does capture most of the grand sights of the city, I just didn't find the text/illustrations as enjoyable as those in the San Francisco book.
October 24, 2011
Nice illustrations.
The Twin Towers are mentioned nowhere. They were not yet built when the book was first published and already destroyed when it was revised. It seems sad and strange to have a book about NYC without them.
The Twin Towers are mentioned nowhere. They were not yet built when the book was first published and already destroyed when it was revised. It seems sad and strange to have a book about NYC without them.
February 17, 2013
Génial ! Il y a beaucoup de choses qui ont changé à New York depuis, mais c'est ce qui fait le charme rétro du livre, et puis, tout est rétabli à la fin, on apprend plein de choses. :) (Mais ze suis triste qu'il n'y ait plus l'indicateur météorologique en forme d'étoile... :'()
February 17, 2008
....just "eh!"...New York City is so exciting yet, this book kind of put me in a coma...My son doesn't really want any part of it - looses interest after a few pages.
January 3, 2009
I love all of these books so much that I'm starting a collection. I think my parents bought me this book when we lived briefly in New York City when I was little.
April 12, 2010
Our other new coffee table book!
Want to read
September 21, 2010I REALLY want this book for Bean, but since she is probably too young for it now I am listing it here so I remember it later on!
October 16, 2012
I love this entire series.
December 29, 2013
Illustrations are wonderful!
August 6, 2014
A story about New York.
February 19, 2015
BEAUTIFUL ILLUSTRATIONS
September 1, 2015
Love love love it. Can't wait to travel and get others.
March 1, 2016
This is a cute book about New York City.
February 28, 2023
A delightful look at New York with vintage illustrations from the 60's and a sense of fun.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews