Subway Lives: 24 Hours in the Life of the New York City Subway

by Jim Dwyer

Graffiti wars, murder, childbirth, and ritualistic chicken sacrifice--it all happens on the New York subway if you watch long enough. Dwyer follows several typical New Yorkers in one composite day as they travel on the great electrified machine that keeps the Big Apple humming 24 hours a day.

Genres: Nonfiction, New York, Graffiti, History

312 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Jim Dwyer was an American journalist and author. He was a reporter and columnist with The New York Times, and the author or co-author of six non-fiction books. A native New Yorker, Dwyer wrote columns for New York Newsday and the New York Daily News before joining the Times. He appeared in the 2012 documentary film Central Park Five and was portrayed on stage in Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy (2013). Dwyer had won the Pulitzer Prize in 1995 for his "compelling and compassionate columns about New York City" and was also a member of the New York Newsday team that won the 1992 Pulitzer for spot news reporting for coverage of a subway derailment in Manhattan.

Reviews

[C.S. Poe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a fascinating, compelling, and cringeworthy read of New York City’s subway system, concentrated at the time of writing: the late 1980s. Jim Dwyer lays out this mundane twenty-four hours in an entirely unique manner, by breaking down scenes into mini chapters within a chapter, noting the time, location, and straphanger in question that we, the reader, is to follow on their daily commute. Dwyer deftly includes personalities like David Gunn, former president of the New York City Transit Authority, famously known for his severe crackdown on the graffiti that inundated the city during the ‘80s, and in doing so, is able to supply the reader with a wealth of information and history on the system’s origin and the near-constant chaos that’s come with running it since 1904.

While the content might be dated in the sense that, the history and technology ends at 1990 and if readers were specifically interested in the updates and changes implemented by the MTA during the ‘90s and ‘00s, then yes, you’d be out of luck and would need to source those facts elsewhere. But otherwise, this book reads as timeless to me. The story of Alfred Ely Beach’s pneumatic subway and the millionaires that blocked his invention from happening in the 1870s hasn’t changed. The consolidation of all the privately owned lines in the twentieth century hasn’t changed. The crime and graffiti that nearly toppled this city, when it was already crippled by a fiscal crisis, hasn’t changed. In that respect, the content within is entirely readable and enjoyable by today’s standards.

But the real pleasure of this book lies in the stories of the people—and those are as evergreen as they come. Dwyer follows a token clerk involved in a robbery, some infamous kids of the graffiti era, Kathy who went into labor while trying to return to her home in the Rockaways, and perhaps the most nerve-wracking, that of Joyce and the train that completely died and stranded hundreds in a tunnel in summer with temperatures reaching 115 degrees during evening rush hour. That story includes the absolute incompetency of the MTA in their attempt to fix the train, evacuate customers, and it also delves into how overworked staff was, as it was cheaper to pay overtime than hire new employees, and that was the cause of the fiasco involving the R, G, and even an F losing power. The MTA has certainly changed since 1989… but in a sense… it’s just a shinier and more expensive hot mess today.

I highly recommend this book. A total joy to add to my library.

[Joe Marino · Rating 4 out of 5]

The subway, much like New York itself, is its own universe, an ocean.

It’s often described (in a cheesy yet very accurate way) as the place where the individual worlds of its millions of riders collide (in uncomfortably close proximity). This invariably produces really interesting results (and incidentally, great stories for a book). It’s true that the subway definitely unifies us all as ordinary people… with beggars, preachers, heroes, vandals, thieves, fare jumpers, good samaritans, employees, the badly mannered, and people that do their best to mind their own business.

The stories themselves are really fascinating— coming from a fabled era (the book itself being written in the early 90s) when the subway and the city itself seemed to be spiraling into a state of complete anarchy and decrepitude.

I appreciated getting a better glimpse into these moments in time and all of the history of the system itself (warts and all): the fortified token booths and the assaults on them, the money trains, insight into the fare increases over time, the graffiti, the corruption, the failures, the ineptitude, the progress... and the stark LACK of progress. It was also pretty interesting to see the differences and parallels between then and now as an active subway rider in 2022, and to find so much in this that felt familiar. From a world where the newspaper was THE preeminent “armor against unwanted intimacy”, today it’s the cell phone. Overall I did get a strong sense that not much has meaningfully changed (at least not the fundamentals, anyway). I can at least be grateful I don’t have to pay for my ride in tokens :). Progress indeed!

Bonus points that this was also told in a really engaging way: a composite 24 hours, featuring different interweaving stories from multiple people throughout.

[Brooklyn Attic Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an excellent book for any NYC buff. If you grew up here or want to learn about the NYC MTA history, this was such a fun read. The narrative is a mix of individual people who get onto the subway and experience it differently, while mixing in a lot of history about the subway and how the city politics shaped it.

I had a great time meeting all the different characters introduced in this book. I laughed at the dialogue because it's exactly how you expect people to speak. Everything is so realistic down to the gentleman being fired for getting reported several times for singing on duty. *Shrug* That's the city for you.

I know this is nonfiction, but a lot of it reads as if it were a fictional story being told. As a New Yorker who grew up here, and been taking the train since I was a kid, I can tell you that there are nights when things get even MORE weird than all the events presented here in a 24 hr period.

The author weaves stories of everything/everyone into this book: from graffiti artists beefing with eachother to true crime stories such as Bishop DeVernon LeGrand. I truly enjoyed this book. It's a wonderful piece of narrative from 30+ years ago.

[Viridian5 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having been published in 1991, Jim Dwyer's Subway Lives: 24 Hours in the Life of the New York City Subway is more the story of the big bad subway of the really bad times than what I've been riding since 1996. It covers subway scenes from the lives of operators, token booth clerks, and the many and varied riders of the system as well as shards of history of the subway itself: its origins, foundations, missed opportunities, broken promises, proponents, opponents, and misdirected monies.

The language can get a little too high-flown noir at times, but the human stories are interesting and the forgotten history of the subway is essential. I came into this hating the MTA and governmental screw-ups and funding shell games involved in the subway, but reading this book actually made me hate all of that even more. So much stupidity, incompetence, selfishness, and corruption. Some of the things revealed here made me seethe. Riders are still paying, through rising fares, for stupid, terrible decisions made decades ago. Queens is still badly underserved where subways are concerned, while the Second Avenue subway is still unfinished. Manhattan's East Side became so heavily built-up and inhabited from originally having three elevated lines, almost all of which were torn down before the subway lines that were supposed to follow them were made. Those subway lines still don't exist decades later, and people are packed like sardines on the one line that serves that area.

I recommend this book, especially for New Yorkers.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very compelling book, and inspired by the YouTube® video on why the New York City subways are so bad.

The book bring back a lot of subway memories, plus it provides multiple outlooks on the New York City subway system, from the riders (who bear the conditions and rising costs to use the system), to the workers (who are pressured to provide exemplary+ service, but given little consideration to talent over protocol) to the politics (a stream of revenue, but a political bother) and administration (from revenue, safety and maintenance) of the New York City subway system. The book covers twenty-four hours (May 12th, 1989) when graffiti was one of the nemeses of the subway as well as the filth, homeless population, crime and unpredicatability of the service. I also appreciate the history of the New York City subway system, from inception to the historical and ongoing challenges with the politics in keeping it running, or treating it as an afterthought. Robert Moses did not want a subway system; he was focused on the automobile being the only mode of transportation, and his plans reinforced that. Subsequently, New York City (and state) politicians know that the subway is the most efficient way to move lots of people within the relatively small geographical area of the City. However, these same politicians have been historically and logistically deaf to the inevitable fact that any infrastructure is only as good as its maintenance and upgrade, and consequently, it is not effective when vital repairs/upgrades are parceled out to the lowest bidder contractor, and simultaneously, also at the expense of the on-the-ground workers who know the logistics of the system, what needs to be fixed, and how it can be efficiently fixed. Sadly, the people charged with fixing and improving the system do not know (and/or care) about the logistics or are overwhelmed by the complexity and neglect, with the politics, that they quit or resign. Beyond decades of deferred and neglected maintenance has, and is (still) taking its toll; keeping up with the maintenance has, and is becoming more and more expensive, both in terms of maintaining the current infrastructure, and also making needed (and overdue) upgrades.

Overall, I appreciate Dwyer’s presentation of all this via the short blurbs, in diary format of the riders, workers, administrators and political views. Twenty-four hours still provides a lot of information and perspectives, with multiple insights as to what is wrong with the New York City subway system and what makes it unique in the City and broadly, the world.

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard to find book but well worth the search if you are from NYC, rode the subways (and who did not if you were there in the 50's to 90's), and want to know the politics, funding, and anthropology of the subway, the city, its workers. Great stories of "average people," some of whom rise to the occassion to help others.

[Asher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an interesting look at one day in the life of the New York subway. Reading it nearly 30 years later gives some perspective on how far along the system has come while at the same time how much it's still stuck in the same situation.

[Shaun Deane · Rating 3 out of 5]

well one and fun to read.

[Will Sommer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most dreaded words to hear about the subway in the 70s hold true today. “Deferred maintenance.”

[Raymond · Rating 4 out of 5]

A true gem of a book, Subway Lives: 24 Hours in the Life of the New York City Subway offers a nonfiction snapshot of the NYC subway system, unfolding over a single day across the boroughs.

Through a mix of captivating stories—including the ritual sacrifice of a chicken, a baby born on a train car, a disabled train stuck underground, and a graffiti war between rival crews—the book also dives deep into the history of the subway itself. From the maintenance required to keep it running, to its finances, criminal past, and the history of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), it paints a comprehensive portrait of the system.

On the downside, it’s a slow read, taking longer than expected to get through. Plus, while fascinating, it��s an outdated snapshot of what the NYC subway once was, rather than what it is today.

Still, for tried-and-true New Yorkers—especially those who lived through the late '80s and early '90s—this feels like an absolute must-have.

[Trent · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought a book about the NYC subway system in 1989 might be dated in 2016, but this turned out to be a delightful read. Some things were recognizable today; the parts that were dated--for instance, describing the use and circulation of tokens to gain entry through the turnstiles--were entertaining historical snapshots.

[Caroline]

Well written, but the facts and statistics are outdated (published in 1991). Without current information it's just a snapshot of an era of history I'm not terribly interested in. Wish there was an equivalent book written for today.