Book Review: StyleCity New York

StyleCity New York by Alice Twemlow, published by Harry N. Abrams, 2003. Paperback, 192 pages. (Amazon)



Part of a series that also features Amsterdam, Barcelona, London, Paris, San Francisco, and Sydney, Style City New York is a profusely illustrated guide to the, you guessed it, most stylish bars, restaurants, cafes, shops, museums, galleries and other places worth visiting. Split into two parts, the first half presents places by neighborhood, while the second half focuses on the best in sleeping, eating, drinking, shopping, and retreating (to distant places like the Catskills and East Hampton). The mix of well- and lesser-known sites is refreshing, though the albeit wonderful images vague relationship to the text can be a bit confusing and is about the only detraction in the book (a simple keyed caption would have helped). But these fragmentary images that give just a taste rather than an overall picture do give a feel for each place, while also enticing the reader to make a trek to Sylvia's Soul Food Restaurant or Chibi's Bar, for example. Not just for the hip and trendy.