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When the Astors Owned New York : Blue Bloods and Grand Hotels in a Gilded Age by Justin Kaplan (2007, Uk-B Format Paperback)
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When the Astors Owned New York by Justin Kaplan
- Buy It NowWhen the Astors Owned New York by Justin Kaplan
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About this product
Product Identifiers
PublisherPenguin Publishing Group
ISBN-100452288584
ISBN-139780452288584
eBay Product ID (ePID)57194738
Product Key Features
Book TitleWhen the Astors Owned New York : Blue Bloods and Grand Hotels in a Gilded Age
Number of Pages220 Pages
LanguageEnglish
TopicRich & Famous, United States / State & Local / Middle Atlantic (DC, De, Md, NJ, NY, Pa), United States / 19th Century, Food, Lodging & Transportation / Hotels, Inns & Hostels
Publication Year2007
IllustratorYes
GenreTravel, Biography & Autobiography, History
AuthorJustin Kaplan
FormatUk-B Format Paperback
Dimensions
Item Height0.5 in
Item Weight7.9 Oz
Item Length8.3 in
Item Width5.4 in
Additional Product Features
Intended AudienceTrade
ReviewsA subject that proves more revealing of the nature of American democracy than many hefty social and political histories. ("The Philadelphia Inquirer"), Mr. Kaplan is a companionable writer, and his well-turned sentences are a delight to read. (The New York Observer), A subject that proves more revealing of the nature of American democracy than many hefty social and political histories. ( The Philadelphia Inquirer ), A gem of a book . . . No one since [Henry] James has written with such ease and grace about the era of excess as Kaplan. (Megan Marshall, author of "The Peabody Sisters"), A fascinating social history as well as a fun gossipy read. Kaplan has an eye for both the dishy details and the deeper meaning beneath them. This vision makes When the Astors Owned New York the best kind of history: entertaining. ( BookPage ), Mr. Kaplan, a dazzling stylist, is perfectly suited to his subject: what Henry James lovingly called ‘hotel civilization’ . . . [A] splendid book about a bygone age that has not quite gone away. (The New York Sun), Mr. Kaplan, a dazzling stylist, is perfectly suited to his subject: what Henry James lovingly called 'hotel civilization' . . . [A] splendid book about a bygone age that has not quite gone away. ( The New York Sun ), Mr. Kaplan, a dazzling stylist, is perfectly suited to his subject: what Henry James lovingly called hotel civilization . . . [A] splendid book about a bygone age that has not quite gone away. ("The New York Sun"), Mr. Kaplan is a companionable writer, and his well-turned sentences are a delight to read. ("The New York Observer"), Mr. Kaplan is a companionable writer, and his well-turned sentences are a delight to read. ( The New York Observer ), A subject that proves more revealing of the nature of American democracy than many hefty social and political histories. (The Philadelphia Inquirer), A fascinating social history as well as a fun gossipy read. Kaplan has an eye for both the dishy details and the deeper meaning beneath them. This vision makes When the Astors Owned New Yorkthe best kind of history: entertaining. (BookPage), Justin Kaplan’s short but diverting tale of the career of the Astor family is told with gleeful humor and frequent sarcasm. He defines his subject as a commentary on the progression of taste and social attitude—and does it very well. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch), A fascinating social history as well as a fun gossipy read. Kaplan has an eye for both the dishy details and the deeper meaning beneath them. This vision makes "When the Astors Owned New York" the best kind of history: entertaining. ("BookPage"), Justin Kaplan's short but diverting tale of the career of the Astor family is told with gleeful humor and frequent sarcasm. He defines his subject as a commentary on the progression of taste and social attitude-and does it very well. ( St. Louis Post-Dispatch ), Justin Kaplans short but diverting tale of the career of the Astor family is told with gleeful humor and frequent sarcasm. He defines his subject as a commentary on the progression of taste and social attitudeand does it very well. ("St. Louis Post-Dispatch"), A gem of a book . . . No one since [Henry] James has written with such ease and grace about the era of excess as Kaplan. (Megan Marshall, author of The Peabody Sisters), A gem of a book . . . No one since [Henry] James has written with such ease and grace about the era of excess as Kaplan. (Megan Marshall, author of The Peabody Sisters ) Mr. Kaplan, a dazzling stylist, is perfectly suited to his subject: what Henry James lovingly called æhotel civilizationæ . . . [A] splendid book about a bygone age that has not quite gone away. ( The New York Sun ), A gem of a book . . . No one since [Henry] James has written with such ease and grace about the era of excess as Kaplan. (Megan Marshall, author of The Peabody Sisters )
Dewey Edition22
Grade FromTwelfth Grade
Grade ToUP
Dewey Decimal647.9409747/1
SynopsisThis newest book by Pulitzer Prize winner Justin Kaplan is a sparkling combination of biography, social history, architectural appreciation, and pure pleasure Endowed with the largest private fortunes of their day, two heirs of arch-capitalist John Jacob Astor battled with each other for social primacy. William Waldorf Astor (born 1848) and his cousin John Jacob Astor IV (born 1864) led incomparably privileged lives in the blaze of public attention. Novelist, sportsman, and inventor, John Jacob went down with the "Titanic," after turbulent marital adventures and service in the Spanish-American War. Collector of art, antiquities, and stately homes, William Waldorf became a British subject and acquired the title of Viscount Astor. In New York during the 1890s and after, the two feuding Astors built monumental grand hotels, chief among them the original Waldorf-Astoria on lower Fifth Avenue. The Astor hotels transformed social behavior. Home of the chafing dish and the velvet rope, the Waldorf-Astoria drew the rich, famous, and fashionable. It was the setting for the most notorious society event of the era -- a costume extravaganza put on by its hosts during a time of widespread need and unemployment. The celebrity-packed lobbies, public rooms, lavish suites, and exclusive restaurants of the grand hotels became distinctive theaters of modern life., In this marvelous anecdotal history, Justin Kaplan--Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer of Mark Twain--vividly brings to life a grand story from the glittering Gilded Age. Endowed with the largest private fortunes of their day, cousins John Jacob Astor IV and William Waldorf Astor vied for primacy in New York society, producing the grandest hotels ever seen in a marriage of ostentation and efficiency that transformed American social behavior. Kaplan exposes it all in exquisite detail, taking readers from the 1890s to the Roaring Twenties in a combination of biography, history, architectural appreciation, and pure reading pleasure, In this marvelous anecdotal history, Justin Kaplan--Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer of Mark Twain--vividly brings to life a glittering, bygone age. Endowed with the largest private fortunes of their day, cousins John Jacob Astor IV and William Waldorf Astor vied for primacy in New York society, producing the grandest hotels ever seen in a marriage of ostentation and efficiency that transformed American social behavior. Kaplan exposes it all in exquisite detail, taking readers from the 1890s to the Roaring Twenties in a combination of biography, history, architectural appreciation, and pure reading pleasure
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- Sep 23, 2023
cocmpelling
An easy read.... full of information.... exactly what I was looking forVerified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
