The New Metropolis: New York City, 1840-1857 Book

I adore Welsh author Jan Morris's travel writing and this book about Manhattan in its prime (immediately post-WWII) is Morris at her best. Pages are filled with sensual descriptions of busy people in a thrilling city, as well as Morris's keen understanding of the American mindset at mid-century. Victory was ours, times were good, and NYC was the place be.

I also like the way the book is organized, with beautifully researched chapters on pleasure (art, jazz, and other popular recreation), purpose (what industries were booming at the time), the city's history, architecture, and more. It seems like there are three or four interesting anecdotes per page. Did you know O.H. Ammann, the Swiss-born designer of the George Washington and Verrazano bridges (among others), spent his final years in a penthouse apartment in the Carlyle Hotel looking through a telescope at his creations?

Great book.