Riverside Park - by Edward Grimm (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Riverside Park is an illustrated tribute to Frederick Law Olmsted's "other" New York City sanctuary. Since its conception in the 1870s, the park has undergone a number of transformations and suffered from periods of misuse and neglect, but in 1984, much-needed renovations turned this city oasis into what is today one of Manhattan's most beautiful attractions.

"If the West Side does not stir you, you are a clod, past redemption."-Robert Moses

Millions visit the Upper West Side landmark annually, and despite the heavy use, thousands of volunteers keep the grounds pristine. The park is now being extended southward as part of Manhattan's plan to reclaim the island's six hundred miles of waterfront, and Riverside Drive-Olmsted's curving thoroughfare flanking the park-has long been one of Manhattan's premier addresses.

"I often feel drawn to the Hudson River.... I never get tired of looking at it; it hypnotizes me."-Joseph Mitchell, from The Rivermen

From the time it was carved out of an unpromising landscape, Riverside Park has continued to reinvent itself. Using photographs (both contemporary and historical), illustrations, poems, and original and excerpted narrative, Edward Grimm and E. Peter Schroeder tell the intriguing story of a symbol of the modern revitalization of New York City.

"Riverside Park will be a genuine riverside reservation, dedicated forever to the use of the people, beautiful in the highest sense."-The New York World, April 24, 1892

*Includes the official Riverside Park Fund Map of 2007*

Review Quotes

This splendid sliver of a book... is a love letter to that narrow stretch of Upper West Side park overlooking the Hudson.-- "New York Post"

Central Park may be our most celebrated green space, but Riverside Park offers unexcelled river vistas, reminding us that we are an island city. Edward Grimm's book is the first full account of Riverside Park's evolution and its place in the history of the city. Sprightly prose and fascinating photos make it a pleasant and very informative read.--Edward S. Barnard, author of New York City Trees

About the Author

Edward Grimm is the author of The Doorman, a children's book, and is a former writer and editor for the IBM Corporation. His poetry has appeared in The Nation and Jazz Magazine, and he is a widely published freelance writer who has taught journalism and creative writing at Columbia and Fordham Universities and Hunter College. He is a longtime Upper West Sider with degrees from City College and New York University.E. Peter Schroeder provided the contemporary photos for Riverside Park. He is a noted sports photographer whose work has appeared in Time, Life, Sports Illustrated, and the New York Times, and for more than thirty years he was a corporate photographer for IBM.