Elementary Secondary Higher Ed Common Reads

Secondary Education


Guides
Collections
News
(0)
Wish List (0)
Wish List
Download high-resolution image Look inside

New York

An Illustrated History (Revised and Expanded)

Author Ric Burns, James Sanders, Lisa Ades
Look inside
Hardcover
$75.00 US
Knopf
8.93"W x 11.65"H x 2.01"D  
On sale Nov 23, 2021 | 848 Pages | 978-0-593-53414-4
| Grades 9-12 + AP/IB
Add to cart Add to list Exam Copies
Here is an expanded edition of the only comprehensive illustrated history of New York—with more than 600 ravishing photographs and illustrations—that tells the remarkable 400-year-long story of the city from its beginning in 1624 up to the current moment. The companion volume to the acclaimed PBS series.

This landmark book traces the spectacular growth of New York from its initial settlement on the tip of Manhattan through the destruction wrought by the Revolutionary War to its rise as the nation’s premier commercial capital and industrial center and as a magnet for immigrant hopes and dreams in the 19th century to its standing as a beacon  of modern culture in the 20th century and as a worldwide symbol of resilience in the 21st century.   

The story continues here with new chapters delivering a sweeping portrait of New York at the dawn of the 21st century, when it emerged after decades of decline to assert its place at the very center of a new globalized culture. Here is a city challenged—indeed, sometimes shaken to its core—by a series of profound crises: the aftermath of 9/11, the continual struggle with racial injustice, the financial crisis of 2008, the devastation of Superstorm Sandy, the still unfolding cataclysm of the COVID-19 pandemic—whose earliest and deadliest urban epicenter was New York itself. Here too is a lively portrait of the city’s vibrant street life and culture: the birth of hip-hop in the South Bronx, Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s Gates in Central Park, the musicals of Broadway, the explosion in location filmmaking in every borough, the pivotal rise of the tech industry, and so much more. 

The history of this city—especially in the tumultuous and transformative two decades detailed in the new chapters—is an epic story of rebirth and growth, an astonishing transfiguration, still in progress, of the world’s first modern city into a model and prototype for the global city of the future.
 
“This book combines striking illustrations with scintillating essays to produce a superb history of the world’s first city.” —Arthur Schlesinger Jr.

“A ravishing book . . . It can easily fill a winter of reading and browsing.” —New York Times
RIC BURNS is a documentary filmmaker best known for directing the award-winning PBS series New York, which he wrote with James Sanders. He is also known for his work on The Civil War, which he produced with his brother, Ken. Since 1990, he has directed nearly fifty hours of prime-time programming for PBS, and the films have received seven Emmy Awards, three Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Awards, and two Peabody Awards, among others. View titles by Ric Burns
JAMES SANDERS is an architect, author, and filmmaker, who, with Ric Burns, wrote the acclaimed eight-part PBS series New York. His landmark study of the city and film, Celluloid Skyline: New York and the Movies, won a Theatre Library Association Award. He has written for The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Vanity Fair, and has also received a Guggenheim Fellowship and an Emmy Award. View titles by James Sanders
LISA ADES is a documentary filmmaker who has produced and directed films for PBS and cable television for thirty years. Her acclaimed film Miss America premiered at the Sundance Film Festival before its broadcast on PBS in 2002. She has also produced award-winning films with Ric Burns, including the first five episodes of New York. View titles by Lisa Ades
“The story of New York City, like that of an ancient myth, needs to be told again and again, because the drama never ends and because the past appears different depending on when you pause to look back. Ric Burns and James Sanders have published a hefty but fleetly narrated volume that starts with Henry Hudson’s arrival in 1609 and ends with the most current of the city’s innumerable recoveries. The illustrations are so luscious they’re practically edible, and the writing is lively and well researched. What makes the book a joy is all the varied and vibrant New York voices and images so vivid you want to dive in.” —Justin Davidson, New York magazine
 
“The passionate desire to explore and celebrate is evident in Ric Burns and Janes Sanders’ updated and expanded edition of their landmark book, New York: An Illustrated History. The only book of its kind, this beautifully illustrated volume spans four centuries from 1625 until today, documenting spirit of the ‘City of Dreams’ from revolution and resistance to the resilience of its inhabitants—capturing all that is extraordinary and heartbreaking about this wonderful city, ‘so nice they named it twice.’” —A. M. Homes, author of May We Be Forgiven and The Mistress’s Daughter

About

Here is an expanded edition of the only comprehensive illustrated history of New York—with more than 600 ravishing photographs and illustrations—that tells the remarkable 400-year-long story of the city from its beginning in 1624 up to the current moment. The companion volume to the acclaimed PBS series.

This landmark book traces the spectacular growth of New York from its initial settlement on the tip of Manhattan through the destruction wrought by the Revolutionary War to its rise as the nation’s premier commercial capital and industrial center and as a magnet for immigrant hopes and dreams in the 19th century to its standing as a beacon  of modern culture in the 20th century and as a worldwide symbol of resilience in the 21st century.   

The story continues here with new chapters delivering a sweeping portrait of New York at the dawn of the 21st century, when it emerged after decades of decline to assert its place at the very center of a new globalized culture. Here is a city challenged—indeed, sometimes shaken to its core—by a series of profound crises: the aftermath of 9/11, the continual struggle with racial injustice, the financial crisis of 2008, the devastation of Superstorm Sandy, the still unfolding cataclysm of the COVID-19 pandemic—whose earliest and deadliest urban epicenter was New York itself. Here too is a lively portrait of the city’s vibrant street life and culture: the birth of hip-hop in the South Bronx, Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s Gates in Central Park, the musicals of Broadway, the explosion in location filmmaking in every borough, the pivotal rise of the tech industry, and so much more. 

The history of this city—especially in the tumultuous and transformative two decades detailed in the new chapters—is an epic story of rebirth and growth, an astonishing transfiguration, still in progress, of the world’s first modern city into a model and prototype for the global city of the future.
 
“This book combines striking illustrations with scintillating essays to produce a superb history of the world’s first city.” —Arthur Schlesinger Jr.

“A ravishing book . . . It can easily fill a winter of reading and browsing.” —New York Times

Author

RIC BURNS is a documentary filmmaker best known for directing the award-winning PBS series New York, which he wrote with James Sanders. He is also known for his work on The Civil War, which he produced with his brother, Ken. Since 1990, he has directed nearly fifty hours of prime-time programming for PBS, and the films have received seven Emmy Awards, three Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Awards, and two Peabody Awards, among others. View titles by Ric Burns
JAMES SANDERS is an architect, author, and filmmaker, who, with Ric Burns, wrote the acclaimed eight-part PBS series New York. His landmark study of the city and film, Celluloid Skyline: New York and the Movies, won a Theatre Library Association Award. He has written for The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Vanity Fair, and has also received a Guggenheim Fellowship and an Emmy Award. View titles by James Sanders
LISA ADES is a documentary filmmaker who has produced and directed films for PBS and cable television for thirty years. Her acclaimed film Miss America premiered at the Sundance Film Festival before its broadcast on PBS in 2002. She has also produced award-winning films with Ric Burns, including the first five episodes of New York. View titles by Lisa Ades

Praise

“The story of New York City, like that of an ancient myth, needs to be told again and again, because the drama never ends and because the past appears different depending on when you pause to look back. Ric Burns and James Sanders have published a hefty but fleetly narrated volume that starts with Henry Hudson’s arrival in 1609 and ends with the most current of the city’s innumerable recoveries. The illustrations are so luscious they’re practically edible, and the writing is lively and well researched. What makes the book a joy is all the varied and vibrant New York voices and images so vivid you want to dive in.” —Justin Davidson, New York magazine
 
“The passionate desire to explore and celebrate is evident in Ric Burns and Janes Sanders’ updated and expanded edition of their landmark book, New York: An Illustrated History. The only book of its kind, this beautifully illustrated volume spans four centuries from 1625 until today, documenting spirit of the ‘City of Dreams’ from revolution and resistance to the resilience of its inhabitants—capturing all that is extraordinary and heartbreaking about this wonderful city, ‘so nice they named it twice.’” —A. M. Homes, author of May We Be Forgiven and The Mistress’s Daughter

Other Books by this Author

Related Articles

Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Heritage Month
English Language Arts Social Studies

Books for Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month

Every May we celebrate the rich history and culture of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Browse a curated selection of fiction and nonfiction books by AANHPI creators that we think your students will love. Find our collections of titles here: Middle School High School

Read more

Books for Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month

English Language Arts Social Studies
new penguin random house education high school collections sixteen thematic collections and resources for grades 9-12 curated by lorena german cicely lewis morgan taylor julia e torres and ronell whitaker
Graphic Novels General Classroom Libraries English Language Arts Advanced Placement High School

PRH Education High School Collections

All reading communities should contain protected time for the sake of reading. Independent reading practices emphasize the process of making meaning through reading, not an end product. The school culture (teachers, administration, etc.) should affirm this daily practice time as inherently important instructional time for all readers. (NCTE, 2019)   The Penguin Random House High

Read more

PRH Education High School Collections

Graphic Novels General Classroom Libraries English Language Arts Advanced Placement High School
education translanguaging collections affirming bilingual and multilingual learners
References Science Translanguaging Collections Social Studies The Arts History High School Middle School General Graphic Novels Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series Classroom Libraries

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

References Science Translanguaging Collections Social Studies The Arts History High School Middle School General Graphic Novels Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series Classroom Libraries
education classroom libraries the heart and soul of any curriculum
General English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series References Science Classroom Libraries Social Studies Environmental Science The Arts History Middle School Graphic Novels

PRH Education Classroom Libraries

“Books are a students’ passport to entering and actively participating in a global society with the empathy, compassion, and knowledge it takes to become the problem solvers the world needs.” –Laura Robb   Research shows that reading and literacy directly impacts students’ academic success and personal growth. To help promote the importance of daily independent

Read more

PRH Education Classroom Libraries

General English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series References Science Classroom Libraries Social Studies Environmental Science The Arts History Middle School Graphic Novels

About Secondary Education

Penguin Random House Education

Penguin Random House

About Secondary Education

Penguin Random House Education

Penguin Random House

Back to Top
0
    • 0
    Secondary Education
    Wish List (0)