I may not keep reading (but I probably will.)

Although I agree heartily with a lot of what the author says, his judgmental tone and rejection of outsiders sounds too much like Trump and his wall. I've spent a great deal of time in NYC since my first visit as a child in the 1960's and the Times Square of today bears no resemblance to the scary, weird, and utterly fascinating Times Square of the past. But one cannot fairly judge midwesterners and tourists for how things have become, there are far too many variables. One person cannot declare a city off limits to everyone except those who he deems acceptable. Not everyone comes just to shop.( And, for the record, I am from Louisville and I will always love NYC. ) I find this book extremely interesting but also one big superior sounding rant. Lighten up, Jeremiah.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Passionate delivery!

One of the best books ever. NYC. Born there, lived it all and loved it. Heartbreaking and real. Passionately written, matched with perfect narration.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

One time read only.

As a New Yorker, I sympathize with Jeremiah. I left the Bronx at a real early age and remember a New York that was plight ridden.

Jeremiah did a terrific job in his research. The book is rather long, and at times Jeremiah becomes rather whiny. The narration of the book was exceptional.

The reason I chose to give this book a three star rating, simply because of the length.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

A must read!

This book spells out perfectly the crisis we are facing in cities across the United States. I find myself agreeing with everything Jeremiah is saying (vehemently so) I believe this book should be read by all urban/city planning & civic leaders to help us address the underlying issues that we are ALL facing.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

Great Book

This is a must read. If you are a true New Yorker you will enjoy what this book is about.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

A compelling story, but the narration???

Where does Vanishing New York rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Potentially high on the list, but the narrator -- in a book about New York City -- didn't bother to learn the correct pronunciation of key places. His Houston Street is pronounced like the city in Texas and NOT the correct way -- "HOW-ston". I flinched every time every time I heard him use the street name, and it wasn't the only one.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Vanishing New York?

Flinching -- in what was otherwise a passionately-rendered performance.

Would you be willing to try another one of Paul Heitsch’s performances?

No.

Any additional comments?

This book serves as a reminder that a five minute clip isn't going to tell you whether the narrator is right for a book. A LAZY narrator who doesn't know about the subject matter (as in this case) can spoil a great narrative. I had to give up and go get the written version. It's a fabulous book, and I can recommend it wholeheartedly. And if you don't know the city, or its characters, I suppose this stuff won't grate on you. But if you're a New Yorker, sadly, this is an audiobook that will make you very crazy rather quickly. Go read it instead, because you'll love the stories it tells.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

9 people found this helpful

Houston...we have a ... oh, wait. It's fixed.

What made the experience of listening to Vanishing New York the most enjoyable?

The text was corrected; hey...accidents happen, and let's face it...English cannot always be taken at face value.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

A biased and shallow view of an interesting topic

This book covers a subject i’m fascinated with - why are our cities changing? It feels as if the life is being removed from the places that we live, and what exactly is causing this to happen?

Unfortunately, in the 20-odd bloated hours of this book, you barely learn anything. The same points are covered again and again - bloomberg and highrises are ruining the city. Each chunk of the book goes over an area and what it used to be like, but it’s frustrating how this always falls into ‘when I moved here it was great, now it’s bad’, with little explanation to expand on that.

There are so many interesting things to try and find out about why the world is becoming this way - for example, developers keep gentrifying areas with expensive stores and apartment buildings, but what are the economics behind this? where are all these wealthy people coming from, and where do the displaced go?

The book also feels like it’s written from an incredibly narrow viewpoint - there is no thought or document to what may have come before and been replaced by what the writer loved (though there is a hugely long history to this city) and there is barely a word said on the communities that get displaced. only ‘oh how I miss being able to do X or Y’

On top of this, the narrator really makes already self-centred complaining sound even more whiney. How many times do we have to hear him complain “oooohhhhh ooohh oh oh how I miss my reaaaall cappucinoooo from [insert place] for [insert low price].

There’s also a lot of lamenting things that, sure I understand gave a certain place a lot of character, but aren’t necessarily bad things to see switched out for something else that could be interesting. one chapter of the book where he literally laments that he can no longer go and pay to see a woman masturbate for a few bucks. poor guy! but again the tone is, ‘this town used to be great’.

I think as a last thought, the thing that’s a real shame is that the book speaks nothing of the new york that emerged after he moved to the city. what about the culture of the 90’s? or the 00’s? After listening to this whole book I find myself simply wishing i’d found other material on the subject matter.

The story never evolves, it’s just one long list of why this guy thinks everything was better when he was younger.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

Another Psychotic New Yorker

Great premise for a book. I grew up around New York and saw it change personalities. The power of the city was the authenticity of the people that lived there and now it is a world class collection of phonies. There was always some change going on in the background and there were always plenty of people that had inspirational stories. I agree with the author on a few of his points but overall he just comes off like another whiny New York loser that sees the world as everyone is picking on him. Why would anyone waste time on this book?

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Terrible book

I would not recommend this book to anyone. Got through the first chapter and it is super one sided political not a fan. I want a story not your political indoctrination.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!