Description:
There is, as Bernie Bookbinder amiably reports, much more to this storied dart of land piercing the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of New York than ducks, potatoes, the Great Gatsby estates, and the swells who swell the Hampton resort communities in season. They're all here, of course, but so is the island's startling (and beautifully photographed) geology and topography, its Indian past, its early colonization by the Dutch and the English, its occupation during the American Revolution, its vibrant seafaring tradition, its famed--and at times, infamous--railroad, its parkways and expressways, its golf courses and beaches, its laboratories and factories, its suburban sprawl, and its cultural contributions from Walt Whitman to Jerry Seinfeld and Billy Joel. Lavishly illustrated with current and archival photos, drawings and paintings, this eminently readable and appealing volume serves as both a history and tribute to a physicality wracked by identity crisis; while Long Island may make up half of New York City, in many senses, it couldn't be farther removed. It's that continuing dichotomy that makes the place so interesting. --Jeff Silverman
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