Manhattan Dawn and Dusk

Library Journal

Calendar photographer Ortner's shots of New York would be more at home on postcards than in this coffee-table volume. More of a paean to the Chamber of Commerce than a travel or photography book, these panoramas, cityscapes, and close-ups were taken just after sunrise and just before sunset. The usual jewels are featured-the Statue of Liberty, the Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, the Empire State and Chrysler buildings, and the World Trade Center-as well as shots of architectural details (wrought iron gates, windows, clocks, etc.). What's missing from most of the book is the New York that can be experienced and discovered and the people who inhabit it. This is New York in bright, bold strokes and shown on a scale monumental or microscopic but rarely human. A nice gift, but not for libraries.-Adam Mazmanian, "Library Journal"