nyc #3

Today's pick is The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein, the true story of a french street performer named Philippe who had a dream of walking between the twin towers of the World Trade Center.

Sound familiar? A documentary about Philippe and his famous walk was released this summer entitled Man on Wire. (You should check it out if you haven't already).

"Once the idea came to him he knew he had to do it! If he saw three balls, he had to juggle. If he saw two towers, he had to walk! That's how he was."

He comes up with a plan (involving construction elevators, a reel of thick cable, and a bow and arrow) and with the help of his friends, he makes his dream come true. 

The end of the book addresses in a simple way that the towers are no longer there, except in our memory. "And part of that memory is the joyful morning, August 7, 1974, when Philippe Petit walked between them in the air."

nyc #2

Next up is a book by Maira Kalman (illustrator, author, designer, fellow lover of found objects, and a personal hero of mine): Next Stop Grand Central.

"There is a place in New York City that is the busiest, fastest, biggest place there is. It is a train station. This place is called Grand Central.. It's not called grand for nothing!"

Ms. Kalman takes us behind the scenes of Grand Central station, showing all the people that work there. Ed changes the light bulbs, Etha delivers the mail, Marino makes oyster stew at the Oyster Bar, and Dave makes sure the trains are on time.

So many people going so many places. Ms. Kalman writes, "Trains are trips. And trips are adventures. And adventures are new ideas and romance and you can't ever know what in the world will happen which is exactly why you are going."

The endpapers show the mural of constellations which makes up the ceiling over the grand concourse. I used to sit and stare at this as long as I could before rushing off to catch my train. A magical place indeed.

NYC #1

We'll start things off with a classic. This is New York by M. Sasek. One in a long series including This is Paris, This is San Francisco, This is Greece.. you get the idea. Originally published in 1960, and thankfully reprinted by Universe Publishing in 2003.

This book is like taking a ride on a big red tourist bus, where you get to see all the sights and sounds of the city in one sitting. Except with this book you have a charming, witty guide who knows all the best spots all over the city: way up in Harlem, over the Brooklyn Bridge, even out in Coney Island. And man, you're sad when the ride is over. 

we love new york

We spent 10 years in the big apple. I moved there a single girl, fresh out of college.. bright lights, big city. I used to skip home from work through times square, pinching myself. I left New York with a family, a husband I adore, a son and a daughter.

One year ago we packed up our little apartment, dragged every last box down the stoop and into our moving truck. We drove down our beautiful tree lined street one last time and said goodbye to Brooklyn. JR commented how strange it was to see our place empty.. our place, where we kissed on the doorstep, where we made a home for the two of us, where we brought our tiny babies home from the hospital. 

We miss it still. 

So this week I'll be posting our favorite children's books about NYC. One a day. We've been buying them up for our little library, so the kids will remember the special place where they were born. I hope you enjoy them too.

Photo credit: Weegee postcard

halloween in brooklyn

We moved to California almost one year ago, and if there was just one day I could magically be back in Brooklyn, it's Halloween. 

Halloween in Brooklyn starts early, around 4 PM or so, trick or treating down the row of stores on Court Street. Almost every store gives out a little something, and even the grumpy woman who works at the deli seems happy on Halloween. Our next door neighbors always have a big Halloween party, and it doesn't hurt that he's a chef, so the food is always amazing. Then on to meet up with our friends in Cobble Hill, to join the parade led by Dan Zanes.  That place is usually a zoo, but it's so sweet to see all the kids decked out in their costumes, and you always run into a few old friends. We then head up to Brooklyn Heights, trick or treating at all the brownstones along the way. There are a couple of beautiful old streets in the Heights that go all out for Halloween, and we hit one or two before heading home to tuck our tired kids into bed. 

A few shots of our past Halloweens in Brooklyn: 

C's first Halloween - He's a ventriloquist's dummy (and yes, that is a wig)

Dad was Harry Potter, and C as Hedwig, Harry Potter's owl.

C as Curious George. (Bee went as a banana and dad was the man in the yellow hat)

C as Peter Pan, Bee as Tinkerbell, and dad as Captain Hook. (that's a wig too..)

It looks like this year will be the first year the kids dress up without their dad. They have started to have their own opinions about costumes and how can I interfere with a 4 year old's Halloween dreams? But I am a little sad to see the tradition end. A little sad that we aren't in Brooklyn anymore. 

post-its

While rifling through some boxes this weekend, I came across the contents of my old desk drawer at Martha Stewart. 

I remember going in to pack up my office. I had just had my son C, and decided I couldn't leave him to return to work full-time. And I was having a hard time throwing anything away. You see, I loved my job. And I knew at that moment, I was saying goodbye to: lunch on the grass at Bryant Park, afternoons in the craft department, meetings about rocket ships and sock dogs and gingerbread cookies, freshly baked treats dropped on my desk by friends in the test kitchen. I was sad to say goodbye to my little office and all I held dear. And so I kept the pile of post-its.

Looking back, I realize I was also saying goodbye to crazy 14 hour days, shoots that took me far from my family, and late night rides home on the subway alone.  What did I get in exchange? Mornings spent staring at my growing boy, his soft bald head and huge blue eyes, time with just the two of us. Not a bad deal in the end.

farewell florent

I was sad to hear that one of my favorite New York restaurants closed this summer. As I was unpacking some boxes this weekend, I came across an old postcard and matchbook from Florent, designed by M&Co. Still beautiful, 22 years later.

nine eleven

My old office had a lovely view of the Empire State Building, and behind it the twin towers. I used to climb out my window onto a little balcony and take pictures of the city with my polaroid camera. I loved seeing how the sky changed during the day and how the light reflected off the other buildings.  I felt lucky to have such a wonderful view.

A few weeks after I took this polaroid, I climbed out onto the balcony again. Smoke was billowing out the towers. I got a call out to my mom in California to tell her I was okay. While we were talking, I watched the first tower crumble and fall. I said "Mom, the tower... it's gone." And she said "No, no.. I'm watching the news right now and it's standing."   "No mom, it's gone."  I had seen it fall with my own eyes. 

I wish I had had the foresight to grab my polaroid camera and snap one more photo with the towers standing. Even as it was happening, I never believed they would actually come down.

if only I were dutch

I moved to New York straight out of college and went to work for an amazing designer who slaved away at an ad agency during the day. He hired me to work from his house (a swanky corner apartment in London Terrace) and help him with fun side projects like books, fashion campaigns and photo shoots. I would leave my layouts for him on his desk, and he would make his comments and leave them for me in the morning. 

My first week of work he left a book for me, with a note "Welcome to NY".

It might be my very favorite book. Printed Matter showcases the work of dutch designer Karel Martens. He designed these phone cards for PTT Telecom, with the numbers zooming out as the value of the cards increases. Every time I looked at my ugly New York subway card, I thought.. "if only I were dutch!".

 

found objects

I spent a lot of time walking around Brooklyn with my kids in the stroller, and there was always some lovely treasure sitting on the sidewalk waiting for me. Dry cleaning tickets, valet parking stubs, and a plethora of playing cards.