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Read your way through the city that never sleeps

By Kobo • January 12, 2025Recommended Reading

*Cue 'New York, New York' by Frank Sinatra*

Making a list of books set in New York City is a little bit like making a list of books, broadly, about love: it's an almost impossible task. Even just selecting from the best of the best, there are still hundreds of novels and works of nonfiction well worth a reader's time. So instead of attempting a definitive list of New York City books, we've curated a collection of books that represent the dizzying range of literature set in New York City. From romance and middle grade mystery to memoirs, speculative fiction, and classic novels, these books explore the city from a multitude of perspectives. Some hone in on a single neighborhood; others capture a particular moment in New York City's long history. The only thing they have in common is the obvious love and knowledge their authors have for the city about which they write.

Just Kids by Patti Smith

It's hard to imagine a more quintessential New York book than Patti Smith's memoir of being a young artist in the 1960s and 1970s. She focuses on her friendship with Robert Mapplethorpe, which is riveting on its own, but she also offers readers an incredible portrait of an iconic time and place: the Chelsea Hotel in the late 1960s, and all the artists who lived and worked there. This is a must-read for fans of Smith's music, and anyone interested in the cultural and artistic history of New York City.

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When Brooklyn Was Queer by Hugh Ryan

In this thoughtful and compassionate work of nonfiction, queer historian Hugh Ryan delves into the forgotten queer history of Brooklyn from the 1850s through the present day. The stories in this book are unexpected and revelatory—from the drag kings who worked the Brooklyn theaters in the 1800s to the queer people who found each other through their work at the Brooklyn Naval Yard in the 1940s. Ryan's attention to detail, expansive understanding of identity and sexuality, and commitment to portraying queer lives as whole and multifaceted despite thin and sometimes homophobic archival records makes this book essential reading.

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Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead

Few contemporary writers can capture the heart and soul of a place—and the people who inhabit it—like Colson Whitehead. Set in Harlem in the 1960s, this novel is a love letter to a neighborhood, and to a particular moment in Black American history. It's a crime novel, a family drama, and a powerful exploration of the intersections of power and race in New York City. The protagonist, Ray Carney, is a man struggling to reconcile his desire to live an upstanding life and his connections to the fast, gritty world of New York crime. Fast-paced and wonderfully readable, this book is as fun as it is smart.

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Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All by Chanel Miller

Ten-year-old Magnolia Wu is a self-proclaimed sock detective. She gathers all the single socks left behind at her parents' NYC laundromat, hoping their owners will come retrieve them. When no one does, Magnolia decides to solve all these missing sock cases herself. Along with a new friend, she spends a summer traversing the city, asking questions and making friends on the subway, on street corners, in restaurants, and in parks. Could there be a better setup for a New York City book? This warm and bighearted middle grade novel is not just a love letter to the city, but to the people who make the city what it is.

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Jazz by Toni Morrison

Set in Harlem in the 1920s, Jazz is a dazzling novel about love, revenge, and obsession. The story centers on Joe Trace, who murders his young lover, and his wife Violet, who attacks her body at the funeral. No one writes into the depths of human emotions like Morrison. Using a complex, lyrical, and sometimes mysterious narrative style that mimics the rhythms of jazz, she paints an indelible portrait of Black urban life.

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One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

Much of this charming queer romance takes place on the subway, and what could be more New York than that? Twenty-three-year-old August has just moved to NYC; she's living with a bunch of roommates she's not sure she fits in with yet and waiting tables at an all-night dinner. Then she meets a girl on the train, and everything changes. The catch: the girl is stuck in time—displaced from the 1970s, she's been trapped in the same subway car for decades. This ode to queer family is overflowing with McQuiston's signature wit and warmth. It's a story for anyone who believes in the possibility of finding love in the most unexpected places.

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The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin

There are books set in New York City, and there are books about New York City, and then there are books in which New York City is the actual main character. In this rich fantasy from one of the best writers in the genre, five people—one from each borough—learn that they are actually part of New York City's soul. The city is trying to come to life, but so is the ancient evil that wants to kill it. In order to survive, the five avatars will have to work together to defeat it. Jemisin's gift for characterization is on full display here, alongside her ability to weave an endlessly surprising plot.

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How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water by Angie Cruz

If you're craving something that will make you belly laugh, this exuberant novel is for you. When 50-year-old Cara Romero is laid off from her factory job at the height of the recession, she's paired with a job counselor to help her figure out what's next. Over the course of twelve sessions, Cara tells this woman her life story, from growing up in the Dominican Republic to all the changes she's witnessed through decades living in the same NYC apartment building.

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