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 enlarge | Author: Jonathan Mahler
Publisher: Picador
Category: Book
List Price: $15.00
Buy Used: $3.39
You Save: $11.61 (77%)
New (33) Used (32) from $3.39
Avg. Customer Rating:  50 reviews
Sales Rank: 66617
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 376
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.4 x 1
ISBN: 0312424302
Dewey Decimal Number: 796
EAN: 9780312424305
ASIN: 0312424302
Publication Date: March 21, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: VERY GOOD except for CREASE in spine. We always ship same or next day!
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| Customer Reviews:
 This book is a must read November 22, 2007
Loved this book....
Living and playing in NY during the 70's this all hit home from a different perspective.
I was a student living in Manhattan and never really understood why the city was crumbling all around me. All I knew is that I needed to stay home on Saturday nights (Son of Sam on the loose). I tried not to take the Subways after dark. I stayed away from 42nd street at all cost and could never understand why NY Yankee fans were so angry! I was very annoyed by the blackout but only because it was sweltering out and I could not watch TV. But yet the city still had the energy that I loved so dearly.
Some of us never really understand what is happening and why. We are all in our own little world and were concerned about only what was around us. That is the beauty of history. It tells the story of where we have been and where we need to go.
Jonathan Mahler weaves an incredible tale of a city in crisis. We can feel the city crying out with their financial, emotional and spiritual woes. We can all learn from the lessons NYC took in the summer of 1977. He not only tells the current story of NYC that summer but also the background of all the places, people and things that lead to the eruption. The actual events that happened with the Con Edison black out and how valiant the police effort was during the riots even though half their force was laid off. The mayoral race and how the political machine runs. The manhunt for Son of Sam and how a parking ticket held the key to the mystery. And of course the well loved NY Yankees and the history of George, Billy and Reggie and how each behaved differently for the love of the game.
Whether you are a history buff, NY Yankees fan or just a plain NYC fan ---- this book is a must read
Nostalgia for a frightening time November 19, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I was a junior at Brooklyn College during 1977. Mass transit was a mess. Brooklyn College was filthy. Crime was out of control. And the Son of Sam was gunning down people my age. Ah, the good old days!
Jonathan Mahler has created a virtual time capsule of that year in his fast-paced, yet well-reasoned, book, "Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx is Burning." Unlike other books that describe an era in New York City's history, Mahler's book actually acknowledges that their are four other boroughs besides Manhattan. And they are all given equal time (except Staten Island), which makes the book all the more comprehensive.
While the focus is undeniably on the tumults going on in Yankee Stadium (on and off the field), the book documents the other goings-on in the city that, justifiably, makes 1977 a pivotal year in the city's modern history: the blackout and riots; the mayoral election; the palpable fear in the hearts of most New Yorkers; the tabloidization of the New York Post; and the Yankees first World Series championship in over a decade. In one form or another, these events changed The City for the better or worse, depending on your point of view. The sections on Disco, punk rock and on the activities of the gay population were the only ones I felt were irrelevant, not because they weren't important, but I didn't think they were specifically 1977 phenomena. Still, they were interesting.
One way or another, anyone interested in New York history will love this book and devour it. I know I did. Now if you don't mind, I got to put on my dancing shoes, shine up my pet rock and head for Studio 54.
A Kaleidoscopic Glimpse at NYC in the Summer of '77 October 1, 2007
I had heard a lot of good buzz about this book since it was published a few years ago. When I found out ESPN was making a mini-series out of it, I decided to take the plunge and buy it. I actually didn't end up watching the mini-series, but I loved the book.
One of the things that initially kept me away was the much-hyped baseball angle. Like any red-blooded American baseball fan that doesn't hale from the Tri-State area, I am life-long Yankee hater, and those George Steinbrenner/Billy Martin teams of the late `70s gave me plenty to hate. The last thing on earth I wanted to read was some hagiographic account of the Bronx Bombers winning the 1977 World Series.
I needn't have worried. The Evil Empire's tumultuous season is just one of several neatly interwoven story lines: New York's fiscal crisis, the city's nasty '77 mayoral election, Rupert Murdoch's purchase of the moribund New York Post. Several other subplots add spice: the blackout riots, Son of Sam, the burgeoning disco scene. New York was a busy place that summer.
There's nothing too profound here, just a snapshot of our greatest city at one of the lowest points in its history. Well paced and enjoyable, the book got me through several long airplane trips.
 so-so September 12, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
It didnt focus on the yankees as much as i thought it would, and when it did, most of it was about Reggie. All the events of that summer were interesting and I remembered a lot of it happening too which was cool.
Great slice of history into 1977..... August 23, 2007
I was impressed with the amount of factual research Jonathan Mahler put into this wonder readaptation into the year 1977 in NY City. He takes a book and illustrates a wonderful slice of history into multiple aspects. There are several issues that keep the reader interested in the book. I particularly like books that have multiple plots and subplots. Mahler was able to keep each chapter full of intrique with a look into human experience and emotions of the key characters in this one year of magic. The final chapter he puts out: "The Bronx is burning, ladies and gentlemen, as we watch the 1977 World Series".......
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