While on the train today, I was creating little stories about the passengers around me. This city—and big cities in general—fascinate me. I love imagining the untold stories of the people I pass by every day. What are some books that capture this feeling?
I’m looking for something that encapsulates life in a metropolis. maybe a collection of short stories, a memoir, or a slice-of-life novel. Bonus points if it includes elements of LGBT culture. Any recommendations?
by feeblelittlehorse
8 Comments
Not a perfect fit, but there is a good chance you would like [The City We Became](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_City_We_Became) by N. K. Jemisin
Not sure this is the vibe you mean, but Patti Smith’s _Just Kids_, _The Catcher in the Rye_ by J.D. Salinger, _The New York Stories of Henry James_, _A Visit from the Goon Squad_ by Jennifer Egan, _The City & The City_ by China Miéville, _To the Friend Who Did Not Save My Life_ by Hervé Guibert, and _Life: A User’s Manual_ by Georges Perec all more or less tick these boxes (NYC or urban setting, some have LGBTQIA+ characters and themes, focus on characters over plot, etc).
Humans of New York – Brandon Stanton
One-fifth Avenue by Candace Bushnell.
House of Impossible Beauties-Cassara
Super good, drag queen in NY.
New Yorkers: A City and Its People in Our Time by Craig Taylor
Manhattan Transfer By John Dos Passos was a fun read that tells the intertwing stories of a handful of characters!
Nonstop Metropolis by Rebecca Solnit is a collection of maps that define New York in some way (for example, one is the burning of the Bronx and the rise of hip-hip; another is a financial map; a third is where New York gets its water from) and there are essays describing what each of the maps is talking about. It’s non-fiction, so that might not be what you’re looking for, but it’s a fascinating way of talking about a place’s personality.