October 14, 2008

Brownstoner Book Club Reads In the Country of Brooklyn

Peter Golenbock's tome of Kings County history, In the Country of Brooklyn: Inspiration to the World, chronicles our neighborhoods, and the characters they spawned, from the 1920s until now. Greeks in Red Hook, Russians in Brighton Beach, Curtis Sliwa, Neil Sedaka, Pete Hamill, Shirley Chilsolm, White Flight, Dodgers, Marty Markowitz ("Brooklyn's cheerleader") — it's all in there. And while there's plenty for the history buffs, some might be most interested in the latter chapters on recent Brooklyn issues: Atlantic Yards, the remaking of Coney Island and our own real estate boom. The book has a decidedly uncritical bent; he attributes our real estate boom to Ratner's Metrotech and Atlantic Center projects, and finds a pro-AY subject to interview for the chapter. As for Coney Island, he profiles Thor Equities' Joseph Sitt and his plan to build a "glitzy billion-dollar hotel/mall/Las Vegas attraction on the boardwalk." Not sure if this is the Brooklyn stuff that inspires the world, but the book is chock full of other interesting Brooklyn tidbits that might excuse the rose-colored-glasses view of certain modern projects. The book goes on sale today.

Posted by lisa at 11:13 AM | Comments (5)
Categories: Books

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