Up in the Old Hotel
- ISBN13: 9780679746317
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
Mitchell explored a New York City that has now vanished in his four books and his classic reportage for The New Yorker. Mitchell’s eccentrics live again in this omnibus volume that contains all of his books and several previously uncollected stories.Amazon.com Review
Journalist Joseph Mitchell, whose death in in May 1996 at the age of 87 merited a half-page obituary in the New York Times, pioneered a style of journalism while crafting brilliant magazine pieces for the New Yorker from the 1930s to the early 1960s. Up in the Old Hotel, a collection of his best reporting, is a 700-page joy to read. Mitchell lovingly chronicled the lives of odd New York characters. In the pages of Up In the Old Hotel, the reader passes through places such as McSorley’s Old Ale House or the Fulton Fish Market that many observers might have found ordinary. But when experienced through Mitchell’s gifted eye, the reader will see that these haunts of old New … More >> Up in the Old Hotel
May 14th, 2010 at 11:01 am
Mitchell, a well-known reporter, has filled a role in history that will always be remembered and loved by those who lived the life he wrote about.
The people in his stories are unique and have qualities some would find interesting. His writing is very descriptive and he captures countless details not understood or seen by the casual passerby. You can easily place yourself as a fly on the wall soaking in your surroundings.
If you read Up in the Old Hotel with literary merit in mind, then you will be in for a good dose of excellent writing by a standard of yesteryear. If you are looking for people who fit outside the box, you will surely find them. If you are looking for a glimpse of the past, then be prepared to journey back with a fine guide who didn’t miss a thing.
There will be many of the older generation that will remember, with clarity, when Mitchell’s writings first appeared and the impact they made. It is to this group that I recommend Up in the Old Hotel.
Though a brilliant writer, I was not drawn to his stories. For me they lacked the “snap, crackle, and pop” of today’s aggressive writing style. If New York had been my home over the years, then I would have found a deeper appreciation and understanding for those who made up Mitchell’s fine work.
Armchair Interviews says: From a man who knew how to observe and then put it down on paper. Rating: 4 / 5
May 14th, 2010 at 12:48 pm
The nonfictional pieces in this collection are classics (the fiction is less impressive). What makes these pieces stand out from all the other New Yorker/Sunday Times pieces that I’ve read is the dignity with which Mitchell depicted the people he portrayed. It’s very moving.
Rating: 5 / 5
May 14th, 2010 at 1:21 pm
I read this book about eighteen months ago, and I revisit it every so often. Sheer greatness. Rating: 5 / 5
May 14th, 2010 at 3:39 pm
My father put me on to this book shortly after it was published. I recently ordered a copy from Amazon to give my son, an aspiring writer. This book is for anyone who appreciates good writing and, given that most of the pieces were written in the 1940′s, recent American cultural history. Good writing? No, it’s matchless. There’s a reason this book has 33 5-star reviews and two 4-stars. Read any of them, they’re all on the mark. Buy several copies; share the wealth. Rating: 5 / 5
May 14th, 2010 at 4:27 pm
I have been known to complain that five star reviews are given out way too freely. In this case, however, five stars may not be enough. In fact, I am surprised that some reviewers ONLY gave this book four stars, but to each his own. Other reviews have already very eloquently praised this book, so I will not repeat them, except to confirm they are on target. The book is 716 pages, and I only wish it were longer. If you enjoy great writing, great storytelling, great (and real!) characters I could not imagine a better choice than Up In The Old Hotel. It also transports us to a different time and place in America, one that existed before I grew up, but one that this book almost makes you long for. If you do not read this book, all I can say is, it is your loss. Rating: 5 / 5