Although "London" is better in terms of having a more interesting history, "New York" is an interesting book.
Edward Rutherfurd brilliantly shows both the rich and the poor, the Loyalists and the Patriots, the haters and the hated ones. He also wrote about several different Ethnic groups. Native Americans, African Americans, the Dutch, the English, the Irish, the Germans, the Italians, the Jews and the Portoricans... They are all present in this book. Some are rich, the others are poor. Some lost their wealth, the others gained it. You can find the complete history of the USA. (~350 years) ( )

Family Saga

I absolutly love Edward Rutherfurd and the types of books that he writes. I didn't enjoy this book as much as I have his European ones, it just seemed to be lacking so much character. And I really didn't get the end at all. He clearly states in the last passage that the theme of New York, the city and his book, are imagine and freedom, neither of which I even picked up on reading the book. I was disappointed by the lack of a family tree, but understood why there wasn't one. This story did follow the Master family strictly, but the sub-families were so minimal and there was no great overlapping of all the different families; it's missing the idea that everyone and thing is connected, but I guess that's not the point or theme of this book. I'll never stop ready Rutherfurd, I was just expecting a little more from him. ( )

Nueva York
Edward Rutherfurd
Publicado: 2009 | 856 páginas
Novela Histórico

>Novela-río centrada en la historia de la pequeña ciudad que en 1664 los colonos holandeses fundaron con el nombre de Nueva Ámsterdam y que cambió de nombre al pasar a dominio inglés. Abarca hasta el 11 de septiembre de 2001, fecha clave en la historia de los Estados Unidos. El argumento se apoya en las sucesivas generaciones de varias familias de colonos de distintos orígenes —holandés, alemán, inglés, irlandés, etc.— y procedentes de sectores sociales y económicos también diferentes, cuyos destinos se entrecruzan para formar la trama humana de la ahora emblemática ciudad.
El autor se muestra muy hábil en la caracterización de los personajes, cada uno de ellos reflejo de unos rasgos que harán de Nueva York un lugar a donde se llega para ser libre, movidos por deseos de prosperidad, económica o intelectual. La extensión de la novela y el gran número de personajes que incorpora exigen una lectura pausada y prolongada, pero los episodios están bien concebidos y se encadenan entre sí de forma fluida y consecuente.
La amplia documentación reunida permite que Rutherfurd, aun dentro del terreno de la ficción, ofrezca una plausible y verosímil versión del proceso histórico que permitió y fomentó la creación de la gran urbe. El estilo, correcto y ameno, y la lograda ambientación logran una fácil y fluida comunicación entre el lector y el texto.
«Los 400 años de Historia de la ciudad de Nueva York se conforman de miles de historias, escenarios y personajes extraordinarios. Partiendo de la vida de los indios que habitaban sus tierras vírgenes y los primeros colonos holandeses hasta llegar a la dramática construcción del Empire State Building o la creación del edificio Dakota en el que vivía John Lennon. Durante la Guerra de la Independencia de los Estados Unidos, Nueva York fue territorio británico; tiempo más tarde, los neoyorquinos crearon canales y vías ferroviarias que abrieron las puertas a la America del Oeste. La ciudad ha estado en el centro del huracán en buenos y malos momentos, como lo fueron el crack del 29 o el ataque del 11 de septiembre. Grandes personajes han poblado su historia: Stuyvesant, el holandés que defendió Nuevo Ámsterdam; Washington, cuya presidencia arrancó en Nueva York; Ben Franklin, que abogó por la América británica; Lincoln, que dio uno de sus mejores discursos en la ciudad… Pero, ante todo, para mí, se trata de la historia de gente ordinaria: indios locales, pobladores holandeses, comerciantes ingleses, esclavos africanos, tenderos alemanes, trabajadores irlandeses, judíos e italianos llegados vía Ellis Island, puertorriqueños, guatemaltecos y chinos, gente de bien y gángsteres, mujeres de la calle y damas de alta alcurnia. A estos personajes, la mayoría de ellos anónimos, los descubrí cuando me documentaba para el libro. Eran una milésima parte de todos aquellos que llegaron a Nueva York, a América, en busca de la libertad algo que, la mayoría acabó encontrando». Edward Rutherfurd

"There is something very absurd in supposing a continent to be governed by an island" (Thomas Paine).

Another captivating epic, this time about the origins and development of New York - up until recent times. Loved it. My only grumble (as also with Rutherfurd's "Paris") is that the book starts with the 1600s and not earlier - unlike what the author did in his "London" and "Ruska" where he started from the actual, historical beginning of the place. But other than that, it's a wonderful saga, encompassing events in history and generations of several families, with touching symbolism that Rutherfurd often uses so successfully in his historical fiction. Being an immigrant myself, I learned a lot of fascinating history from this novel.

"New York has always been a place for people who wanted more. Whether a poor immigrant or a rich merchant, people came to New York to get more. In bad times, they came there to survive, in good times to prosper..." ( )

An historical novel that follows the life of NYC - and a handful of families living there down the generations - from the 1600s through the fall of the Twin Towers.

This is my first Rutherford novel, but it won't be my last. I loved it! The fictional families and their stories were great, and I love how he wove into their lives all kinds of historical details. The audio is wonderful, too. ( )

So rich and well researched. It encompasses the beginning of NY up until recently, after 9/11. At times I felt like I had to plough through it but very satisfying and immensely instructive. ( )

A great book, with lots of stories that are loosely related, but together tell a history of NY from the point of view of actual fictional characters. My father was from NYC, so I knew a bit about it, and have visited and even worked there one summer. I learned a lot from this book, and gained more of an appreciation for the city. ( )

A solid piece of historical fiction, full of edifying asides, although nothing to write home about. ( )

Sweeping epic historical novel tracing several families in New York from 1664 to 2009. The author did a great job of highlighting various parts of history and how New Yorkers adapted to events. This novel followed these families through highs and lows, wars and peace, joy and sorrow. The novel examined poverty and wealth and some race issues, but didn’t delve into them deeply.
It was a great novel which also shared a lot of history. Putting those events in a novel made them come alive.
Very enjoyable.
#NewYork #EdwardRutherfurd ( )

This book tells the history of New York from the 1660s (before it was called New York) through to – almost – the present day. The last chapter is set in 2009.

It mainly follows the fictional Master family through several generations, but other families also appear throughout, with actual real life events as the backdrop. Not always a backdrop actually – the American Civil War and the War of Independence are both huge storylines which affect the main characters greatly.

The novel is over 1000 pages long, but thankfully very readable and not at all dry. If you were interested in learning the history of New York, then this would be an excellent book to read, and by inserting fictional characters who a reader can invest in, it is so much more than just a history lesson. If like me, you just love New York, then I think you would find plenty to enjoy about this book.

I thoroughly enjoyed it, although I would have liked to have had something about World War II and the Vietnam War in there, but it would be impossible to include everything, and this is very much a history of New York rather than America.

It’s very clear that Edward Rutherfurd has researched his subject extensively and as a result the reader is rewarded with a vibrant and colourful history and love letter to one of the most exciting cities on earth. Highly recommended. ( )

I read this while on a vacation in New York as a way of learning more about the city. For that purpose, it was great - it gave me a much better understanding this amazing place and provided many curious anecdotes that enhanced the trip. However, as a story it fails completely. The plot and characters are predictable and boring, which made it difficult to finish the book. ( )

Listened to it on Audible Audio. This was really a great listen. Very interesting. Spanned several generations of New York families. Great history lesson on the beginning of New York to present day told as a fictional depiction through a generational family. There was a point towards the end that started to be very depressing. Then the anticipation of the worse events for New York. I actually had to turn it off and regroup emotionally before completing the book. The only negative I have is that jumping into the next generation of family members, I felt like I wasn't ready for the end of the characters. The ending tied up and united the original families interesting enough to say I loved the book and will read another by this author. ( )

This is one of my all-time favorites. One of those books you really don't want to end! If you live in New York or have ever visited New York, this is a must read! ( )

Accurately described as a sweeping saga - I learnt much about New York history through the stories of several families over their generations. ( )

3.5 stars

This is a novel that follows multiple characters through 400+ years in New York City. Primarily, we follow the same family(ies) through the generations. Starting in the 17th century with a Dutch family (and we also follow African Americans, Irish, Italians…), we follow from grandparent to grandchild (for the most part) and we see the characters through colonization, slavery, the Civil War, Tammany Hall, The Triangle Factory fire, the Depression, up to and including 9/11.

I listened to the audio, and for me, audios narrated by a male voice aren’t always exciting for me; add to that, the length of this one (I also tend to have trouble with very long audios), and I was pleasantly surprised. I waffled between rating this 3 stars (ok) and 3.5 (good), as there were parts where I lost interest. I think I rated “Sarum” 3 stars, and though it was a number of years ago, I do think I preferred “New York”. In some ways, with the different characters (though all family), it felt a bit like short stories – some situations and characters I found more interesting than others. It did end on a strong (but very difficult) note with 9/11. ( )

“Charlie shrugged. ‘Maybe I'm just being a novelist.’ Novelists liked to imagine the interconnectedness of things -- as though all the people in the big city were part of some great organism, their lives intertwined.” — Edward Rutherfurd, “New York”

Edward Rutherfurd gets personal twice in his 2009 novel “New York,” and the lines above mark the second time. Commenting on one of his characters he is also commenting on himself and on what he is attempting to do in this novel and all the others he has written: to imagine the interconnectedness of things — as though all the people in the big city were part of some great organism, their lives intertwined.

He succeeds admirably, even more so than he did in an earlier Rutherfurd novel I read, “London.” The reason may be simply that New York City has a much shorter history than does London. In his novels he follows a few fictional families through the entire history of a city, country or region, conveying important details of history while displaying how key events impact his characters and then showing how these characters impact the lives of descendants who will not remember them. That task can be daunting in a place with as long a history as London. New York, however, has been around just a few hundred years, and so some of his characters can stay around for several chapters in some cases, and readers can follow more closely as one family member passes the baton to the next generation.

Rutherfurd's main characters are part of the Master family, some of whom lived in the city when it was still called New Amsterdam at the time of Peter Stuyvesant. The family business prospers, and the Masters become part of the New York elite. They witness the Revolution, the impact of slavery on the city, the Civil War, major fires and the blizzard of 1888, the arrival of large numbers of immigrants, the Great Depression and, eventually, the terrorist attack on the twin towers. The author mixes in families representing different groups, including blacks, Irish, Jews and Puerto Ricans. In a sense, Rutherfurd demonstrates that the history of New York City is also the history of the United States.

The author errs here and there in his massive novel. At one point, for example, he writes that "General Grant had just smashed the Confederates at Gettysburg." Grant was attacking Vicksburg at the time of the Battle of Gettysburg. Later the British author rites of a family going to the beach for a few days, saying it "was one of the best holidays they'd had in years." Americans normally refer to such days away from home as vacations, not holidays.

This novel proves totally absorbing, demonstrating as much as any novel can the "interconnectedness of things."

And as for the other time Rutherfurd gets personal. He pokes fun at himself when he has one of his characters say about another, "Of course ... he was never a gentleman. He even wrote historical novels." ( )

Wonderful story of New York from the Dutch/Englis fur traders to the Twin Towers.

Well, there's around two weeks of my life when I could have been reading other books that I won't get back, but I FINISHED A NOVEL BY EDWARD RUTHERFORD! I have copies (on Kindle, luckily for my shelves) of both Paris and London, but gave up on them too. America doesn't have as much of a backstory as Europe, though, so I decided to give a rebel yell and charge headlong back into New York.

Mostly, I enjoyed Rutherfurd's digestible recipe of history and family saga, stretching from the first Dutch and English settlers to 9/11, but I could still feel my stamina diminishing with every % on my Kindle. He throws in some interesting trivia - the territory around the newly renamed New York was called Yorkshire, and guess why Wall Street is so named? - and historical cameos (John Adams, Owney Madden), but the story is really centred on the lives of the fictional families who grow with the city, the Van Dycks, Masters, O'Donnells, Kellers and Carusos and Adlers, plus Quash, the Masters' slave and his descendents - 'As though 'all the people in the big city were part of some great organism, their lives intertwined'. Some characters make history come to life - Dutch settler Dirk Van Dyck, Charlie Master during the Crash - but I found that the more 'modern' characters seemed flat in comparison (ugh, Gorham Master).

Definitely worth reading, now that I've finished! ( )

As always, Edward Rutherfurd's books are seeped in fact, fantastic fiction, and are as utterly believable as fiction. Loved it. Loved recognising all the areas and buildings described in the book. The characters were perfectly described - loveable and villainous at the same time. ( )

I love when a novel drags you into a character's drama in the first two pages! I have a real affinity for the way Rutherfurd ties people and families together over the generations. It has a very buddist feel to me - that we are all connected throughout time. Cried with fear for these characters and the thousands of New Yorkers like them during the 2001 chapter. I love when a book evokes that kind of deep emotion. ( )

This is my first time reading this author and I was thoroughly impressed. His style in which in combined his story with actual historic events was impressive and it kept the story moving. Following the families throughout the generations provided an outlook on how some things are today. I was concerned that the story wouldn't be developed as much as it was but Edward has a great respect for detail. His writing style is one that I have to say is my favorite. When placing a story around historical facts there has to be detailed information. I definitely can't wait to read another of his books. ( )

This is a great read if you like a historical,generational,epic! The author really got the details and facts researched! At times,you almost feel transplanted to the place and time he writes of.This is a dense read.It is not a quick read.But it is a most worthwhile way to spend time! ( )

Michener-like in its grand scale, but it becomes very personal too. Fun, interesting facts about NYC: One discovers that there actually was a wall along side Wall Street at one time, for example. For a 860-page book, it moves very quickly. ( )

If you like Michener, you will also like Rutherfurd's [New York: The Novel]. The saga begins in the early 1600's with the settling of New York and ends with the 911 tragedy. It drags a bit during the Revolution, but not enough to cause the reader to wonder if they should stop reading the book! I will other books by this author. ( )