Low Life: Lures and Snares of Old New York - Hardcover

Sante, Luc

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0374194149 ISBN 13: 9780374194147

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1991

Synopsis

A now-classic portrait of the underside of America's greatest city, Low Life tells the true story of the growth of Manhattan, not the familiar saga of mansions, avenues and robber barons, but the turbulent, often murderous story of the city's slums.

About this title

Review:

There are very few classics in the field of pop culture--the academic stuff tends to be too dry and the fun stuff is too quickly dated. This book by Luc Sante is the exception--in fluid prose liberally sprinkled with astute metaphors, Sante tells the story of New York's Lower East Side, circa 1840-1920. The personal histories of criminals, prostitutes, losers, and swindlers bring to life the social and statistical history that the author has meticulously researched. Not limiting himself to the usual sources, Sante finds his history in old copies of Police Gazette as well as actual police, fire, and social service records. Above all, what really makes this book work is the writing, which brings to life a culture of the streets that continues to form a silent influence on our contemporary popular culture.

From the Inside Flap:

ens to the Bowery's suicide saloons, this lively, learned work of outlaw urban history ushers readers through the dark heart of New York City in the years between 1840 and 1919. "A systematic, well-researched historical account of . . . corruption, vice, and miscellaneous mayhem . . . well-crafted and tightly written. Boston Globe. 63 photographs.

About this edition

• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
• Publication date: 1991
• ISBN 10: 0374194149
• ISBN 13: 9780374194147
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 414