New York: The Unknown City

It’s been said that if you can’t find something in New York City, you can’t find it anywhere, and that’s probably true; rightly so, as New York is one of the world’s great cities, if not the greatest of them all. But even the most diehard New Yorker will delight in the pleasures and discoveries to be found in New York: The Unknown City, which unlocks a treasure chest of Gotham’s secrets, some dark, some light and some just plain weird.

This guidebook—for residents and visitors alike—will tell you where the bodies are buried and where others have been dug up; where to get the best pizza slice, the best knish and the most expensive martini; how to explore the Hudson River for free via kayak; and how to navigate your way through the wilds of Central Park by streetlight. There are also tales of underground sex clubs; viral outbreaks; a secret tunnel in Grand Central Station; an electrocuted elephant at Coney Island, and -little-known bars, cafes, hangouts and other places to frolic. From the Bowery to Broadway, from the five boroughs to the Five Families, these are the best of the 8 million stories the Naked City has to offer.

Brash, smart, and defiantly unapologetic, this anti-Frommer/Fodor’s guidebook—the first American city in Arsenal’s alternative travel series—will make you see Gotham City in an entirely new light. You think you know New York? You don’t know anything until you’ve read New York: The Unknown City.

Brad Dunn has written for The New York Times and The New York Daily News. Daniel Hood has worked as an editor for The Wall Street Journal, The New York Daily News, and a number of trade and business publications based in New York. He has also published five novels.

Reveals the extravagant stories and insider tips that make New York the biggest and best of all apples.

Library Journal

Does your library really need another book on New York City? Well, yes, and how about these two different and unique looks at the Big Apple. Solis, a local photogra-pher and writer, goes beneath the streets to present readers with a fascinating glimpse of the architectural wonders few ever chance to see. She features not only the subways but also bridge supports, abandoned rail stations, aqueducts, viaducts, and maxes of tunnels beow Chinatown. In the process, she covers such topics as whether or not there are giant alligators living in the sewers and the devastating effect that the 9/11 attacks had on the underground structures. Above ground, Dunn and Hood, freelance journalists based in New York City, also go beyond the usual landmarks to bring readers humorous accounts of places often overlooked in standard tour guides. How about, for example, checking out the building that has incorporated Art Deco figures of rats climbing up ropes? Or the giant Macy's sign that doesn't belong to Macy's? Will you ever think of the UN in the same way once you read about the land it was built on and its bloody history? This is a fun book to bring along with your Frommer's for a quirky, irreverent, and just plain nutty look at a great city. Both books are highly recommended for all public libraries.-Joseph L. Carlson, Allan Hancock Coll., Santa Maria, CA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Brad Dunn has written for The New York Times, The New York Daily News, Popular Science, and Power & Motoryacht. He also wrote the introduction to Above Hallowed Ground (Viking Studio 2001), a book of photographs from the September 11th terror attacks, which became a New York Times bestseller. He is currently a speechwriter for the New York City Police Department. Brad lives on the Upper West Side with his wife, Amy, and their daughter, Anna. Daniel Hood has worked as an editor for The Wall Street Journal, The New York Daily News, and a number of trade and business publications based in New York. He has also run a freight elevator in a building on 57th Street, and published five novels. After stints in Soho, Gramercy Park, and Brussels, he now lives on the Upper East Side.