Product Description

A young New Yorker writes to her friend from the Midwest to tell about the things they will see in the city when Martin comes to visit her.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #640259 in Books
• Published on: 2003-10-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 44 pages

From Publishers Weekly
A gifted folk artist, Jakobsen (illustrator of Reeve Lindbergh's Johnny Apple seed ) here conducts a thoroughly enjoyable and informative excursion through Manhattan. Her fastidiously detailed oil paintings illustrate a chatty letter written by a girl named Becky to a friend who will soon be moving from the Midwest to New York. Becky's tour of the Big Apple includes visits to the Central Park Zoo, the F.A.O. Schwarz toy store, Chinatown and the South Street Seaport; like any good guide, she throws in suggestive statistics (the Baby Watson cheesecake operation uses more than 38,000 eggs a day). Several foldout pages present larger-scale visual extravaganzas, among them a panorama of the skyline as seen from the top of the Empire State Building, a high-rise under construction and dinosaur skeletons at the American Museum of Natural History. As an added treat, youngsters can search out Becky and her parents, who appear in each picture. This stunning book's piece de resistance is a spectacular double-page spread of New York Harbor on the Fourth of July, with fireworks exploding over the Statue of Liberty and an impressive assemblage of tall ships. A splendid tribute to the city that never sleeps. All ages.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-Jakobsen's combination of descriptive, conversational text and colorful folk-art paintings brings to life a young girl's New York scenes. From the Statue of Liberty off the lower tip of Manhattan to the Museum of Natural History on West 81st Street, readers tour places and events such as the NYC Marathon, the Central Park Zoo and carousel, FAO Schwartz, Chinatown, the home of Baby Watson cheesecake, the circus at Madison Square Garden, the aircraft carrier Intrepid, South Street Seaport, and the Fourth of July fireworks over New York Harbor. Fold-out pages of the Empire State Building and a building under construction are an interesting design addition. A map appears inside both front and rear covers. Most illustrations are double paged, with a few exceptions that do not work as well because of the busy details on facing pages. Notes at the end give additional information about each site or event mentioned. Although Becky's New York is in reality only a small area of Manhattan, the marvelously detailed illustrations and the excellent range of places paints an exciting and informative picture of the best of New York City life and activity. A visual treat for children from all around the country.
Mary Rinato Berman, New York Public Library
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
A tour of ``my favorite places,'' described in a letter from Becky to a friend who's moving to New York from the Midwest. The child's-eye view suggests a good balance of topics--a flea market and the subway, as well as Manhattan's familiar attractions. Folk-artist Jakobsen fills her precise illustrations with details to explore, employing different points of view to good advantage: the Empire State Building in perspective from the street (sideways on a foldout page) plus a panorama from its top on the verso; elevated views of the N.Y.C. Marathon and Chinatown. A vertical foldout accommodates the Natural History Museum's remarkably tall, slender barosaurus. The illustrations are busy but nicely orchestrated, with bright, attractively stylized forms and figures mingling on every spread, plus Becky--in the same attire regardless of season--to be discovered on each. Other pictorial visits to New York include Munro's Inside-Outside book (1985); this one is distinguished by its wealth of cheerful, authentic detail and pleasingly decorative style. Endpaper map. (Picture book. 4-9) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Customer Reviews

Original edition vs anniversary edition
I have often used the original edition of My New York as a gift for both adults and children who visit our home in New York City.

It's nice to have more of Jakobsen's comforting, folksy art in the anniversary edition, but if you purchase it, my advice is to try to ignore the gazillion little ads and words in the new paintings - especially on taxis and buses, and even on the kids' balloons. It seems as if Jakobsen couldn't resist the temptation to include the name of every friend and relative somewhere in the book, and to promote her own favorite websites and companies, rather than allowing the reader to simply enjoy her depictions of New York City.

It may sound picky, but all those little words and ads make the pictures more cluttered and pulls one's eye away from the more important parts of each scene. And it really wasn't necessary for Jakobsen to paint an ad for another of her books, and an ad for her publisher Little, Brown, on the side of a bus going down Fifth Avenue (see the Plaza Hotel page)! Yes, New York City is, in reality, cluttered with advertising, but folk art and indiscriminate advertising aren't a lovely combination.

The beauty of the first book was that the "My" in "My New York" was every reader who loves New York and enjoys Jakobsen's paintings. The book's title and artwork were a perfect combination. The "My" in the anniversary edition is Kathy Jakobsen herself, and all the friends, relatives, publishers, etc that she managed to squeeze in!

I like this book.
I am 5 years old.I like this book very much.These picture are beautiful and interesting.When I go to New York I'll take this book with me as a guidebook.

For New York-o-philes of any age!
While this book is designed for children, adults will love the beautiful illustrations - - the detail on them is magnificent. The author captures the essence of a wonderful city with her text and paintings. Our son is fascinated by New York City and this book is a wonderful way for him to "visit" his favorite city as often as he pleases. I wish I'd found this two years ago!