Maura (maura853) - , reviewed on 10/14/2022 + 542 more book reviews

I enjoyed this -- whether you do, or not, may depend on a)how much you can stand of Lebowitz's carefully stage-managed contrarianism, b) how relevant you think gripes and random observations about life in New York city in the 60s and 70s are (surprisingly relevant, I would argue: at their best, Lebowitz's chronicles of pet peeves seem like warning signals from a lost past), and c) whether you grew up in New York City, and you are brought to nostalgic tears by the mention of things like graffiti artist TAKI183, the grumpiness of bodega owners, the etiquette (or lack thereof) of taxi, bus and subway usage, among many, many other peculiarities of life in the Big Apple.

If the answer to C is "no," I can't help you, but I think there's enough amusement, and razor-sharp observation of human nature to make this worthwhile, even for those poor benighted souls born outside the Five Boroughs.

NEVER call it the Big Apple, by the way ... I think Fran would agree with me, on that one ...

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