The Colossus of New York

A City in Thirteen Parts

By: Colson Whitehead

Narrated by: Colson Whitehead

New York Times best-selling author and New York native Colson Whitehead composes a breathtaking tribute to his hometown. Whitehead captures the very essence of New York, infusing his reflections with the energy that permeates the city.

Thoughts on Central Park, the subway, Coney Island, the Brooklyn Bridge, and much more bring the city to life as never before. Reading his own words, Whitehead shapes his book into an unforgettable meditation on the greatest city in the world.

©2003 Colson Whitehead (P)2003 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"Whitehead lays out a wildly creative view of New York City....This 13-part lyric symphony is like E.B. White's Here Is New York set to the beat of Ellington or Cage." (Publishers Weekly)
"Whitehead riffs poignantly and playfully on myriad strategies for urban survival as he incisively distills the kaleidoscopic frenzy of the city into startlingly vital metaphors and cartoon-crisp analogies. Intensely sensory in his details, wistful and funny in his psychological disclosures, he makes everything come to mythic life." (Booklist)

Underwhelming spoken word

I’ve read a bunch of books by Colson Whitehead and they were all great. As a New Yorker, I was really excited at the prospect of what this entailed.

I could not stand the narrator and his voice. I really couldn’t get past it. Maybe if I read the book, I could’ve enjoyed it more. It sounded like spoken word.

Just not entertaining

This is more like a prose poem than a book, often presented in disjointed stream of consciousness. I think the author is trying to capture the feel of NYC, but in a whiny, self-absorbed way. (I know that probably doesn't make much sense; sorry!) I have spent some time in NY and this didn't make me say, "Yes, that's just how it is!" It just isn't very interesting to be inside his head.
A minor irritant was that the narrator/author pronounces "didn't" as "din"; a speed bump on what should be a series of flowing riffs.

very slow

think Holden Caulfield talks about new York for 3 hours, but speaking only in metaphor

Outstanding way of capturing the essence of the NYC reality!!

I lived in NYC for 5.5 years. Every word of this book captures the essence of the experience! Whitehead is a true artist!!