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{{short description|2009 novel by Edward Rutherfurd}}
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{{infobox Book | <!-- See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Novels]] or [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Books]] -->
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
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{{Infobox book | <!-- See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Novels]] or [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Books]] -->
| name = New York: a Novel
| name = New York: a Novel
| image = [[File:Rutherfurd - New York Coverart.png]]<!--prefer 1st edition-->
| image = Rutherfurd - New York Coverart.png <!--prefer 1st edition-->
| image_caption = ''New York'' first (UK) edition cover.
| caption = ''New York'' first (UK) edition cover.
| author = [[Edward Rutherfurd]]
| author = [[Edward Rutherfurd]]
| illustrator = Mike Morganfeld (maps)
| illustrator = Mike Morganfeld (maps)
| cover_artist =
| cover_artist =
| country = [[United Kingdom]]
| country = United Kingdom
| language = [[English language|English]]
| language = English
| genre = [[Historical novel]]
| genre = [[Historical novel]]
| publisher = [[Century Hutchinson]], [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]] (US)
| publisher = [[Century Hutchinson]], [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]] (US)
| pub_date = September 3, 2009
| pub_date = 3 September 2009
| media_type = Print ([[Hardcover|Hardback]] & [[Paperback]])
| media_type = Print ([[Hardcover|Hardback]] & [[Paperback]])
| pages = 1040 pp ''(first edition)'' (862 pp US first ed.)
| pages = 1040 pp ''(first edition)'' (862 pp US first ed.)
| isbn = 9781846051951
| isbn = 978-1-84605-195-1
| oclc = 613432261
| oclc = 613432261
}}
}}


[[File:Bookbits - 2009-12-03 Edward Rutherfurd-New York.vorb.oga|thumb|right|Edward Rutherfurd talks about New York novel on Bookbits radio.]]
'''''New York: a Novel''''' is an [[historical novel]] by British novelist [[Edward Rutherfurd]], published in 2009 (for the U.S. edition, published by [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]], the title is ''New York: The Novel'').
'''''New York: a Novel''''' (2009) is an [[historical novel]] by British novelist [[Edward Rutherfurd]]. The United States edition is published by [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]] under the title ''New York: The Novel''.


==Synopsis==
==Synopsis==
The novel chronicles the birth and growth of [[New York City]], from the arrival of the first European colonists in the 17th century right up to the summer of 2009. As in previous Rutherfurd historical novels, the reader experiences the history of the place through the histories of fictional families who live there. In ''New York'', these families represent the successive waves of immigrants that gave the city its multicultural character.
The novel chronicles the birth and growth of [[New York City]], from the arrival of the first Dutch and other European colonists in the 17th century to the summer of 2009. Rutherford builds his novel on the histories of fictional families who live there. In ''New York'', these families represent the successive waves of immigrants who have made the city multicultural.


The early Dutch founders of [[New Amsterdam]] are typified by the Van Dyck family, who prosper in trade with the [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]]s; both the local [[Algonquian peoples|Algonquian]] tribes and the [[Mohawk nation|Mohawk]] who lived farther up the [[Hudson Valley]]. The Van Dycks soon unite with the English Master family. The Van Dyck-Masters remain in New York through the entire saga, providing one of the unifying narrative strands. We also meet Quash, an African slave and unwilling immigrant to [[New Amsterdam]], whose descendants also become part of the New York cultural mix.
The early Dutch founders of [[New Amsterdam]] are typified by the Van Dyck family, who prosper in trade with the [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]]s; both the local [[Algonquian peoples|Algonquian]] tribes, especially the Lenape, and the [[Iroquoian language|Iroquoian]] [[Mohawk nation|Mohawk]] who lived farther up the [[Hudson Valley]] and primarily along the Mohawk Valley. The Van Dycks soon unite with the English Thomas Master family (he also has a natural Native American daughter, whom he brings with him from Puritan New England). Van Dyck-Master descendants continue to live in New York through the entire saga, providing one of the unifying narrative strands. The character Quash is an [[Slavery in the colonial United States|enslaved African]], who was brought forcefully to [[New Amsterdam]] and is held by Thomas Master; his descendants become part of the New York cultural mix.


As the history progresses through the years, we meet more fictional families; the Irish O'Donnells, the German Kellers, the Italian Carusos, the Jewish Adlers, the Puerto Rican Campos's. Their intertwining stories, which include looks at the family cultural traditions of the various groups and intercultural relations, play out against the historical backdrop of the great city.
As the novel progresses, more families are introduced: the Irish O'Donnels, German Kellers, Italian Carusos, German-Jewish Adlers, and Puerto Rican Campos. Through their intertwining stories, Rutherfurd explores the various cultural traditions of the national groups and intercultural relations, which play out against the development of the city.


⚫
Rutherfurd breaks the narrative into sections by date, twenty-seven in all. Most dates comprise one chapter; a few dates continue through two or three chapters. A set of three well-drawn maps of [[Manhattan Island]] helps the reader follow the action as the city develops. A fourth map of the New York City region provides a larger geographical context.
Because the main characters in ''New York'' are members of the fictional families, the story lines sometimes take the reader away from the city. One chapter takes place in Georgian London. Another follows [[George Washington|Washington's]] army through [[Valley Forge]] to [[Siege of Yorktown|Yorktown]]. But most of the wanderers return home in the end.

⚫
Rutherfurd breaks the narrative into sections by date, twenty-seven in all. Most dates comprise one chapter; a few dates continue through two or three chapters. A set of three well-drawn maps of [[Manhattan Island]] helps the reader follow the action as the city grows and evolves. A fourth map, of the New York City region, provides a larger geographical context.


==Critical reception==
==Critical reception==
Brigitte Weeks of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' praised the novel and advised readers against trying to determine the accuracy of every name or event:
⚫
''New York'', won the [[Langum Prize for American Historical Fiction]] in 2010. <ref>The Langum Charitable Trust , [http://www.langumtrust.org/pastwin.html]</ref>


<blockquote>But analyzing the veracity of every incident will spoil the fun, and what makes this novel so entertaining is the riotous, multilayered portrait of a whole metropolis. Rutherfurd offers the reader a chance to watch a rural outcrop grow into one of the world's greatest cities in a mere 350 years. He delivers magnificently on the challenge; it is hard to imagine any other writer combining such astonishing depth of research with the imagination and ingenuity to hold it all together.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/07/AR2009120703778.html Brigitte Weeks, "Book World: "Brigette (sic) Weeks reviews Edward Rutherford's 'New York: The Novel'"], ''Washington Post'', 8 December 2009</ref></blockquote>


⚫
''New York'' won the [[Langum Prize for American Historical Fiction]] in 2010.<ref>[http://www.langumtrust.org/pastwin.html The Langum Charitable Trust ] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120630015353/http://www.langumtrust.org/pastwin.html |date=2012-06-30 }}</ref>
==Links to New York historical references==
Most people have heard of the [[Statue of Liberty]], but many of the historical New York people,
places and events in ''New York: A Novel'' are not so well known. Following are links to Wikipedia
articles on some of these. Links are listed by chapter; chapters with no links are not included.


⚫
==See also==
* ''New Amsterdam: 1664''. [[Peter Stuyvesant]], [[Dutch West India Company]], [[Walloons]], [[Peter Minuit|Pierre Minuit]], [[Lenape]]
⚫
*[[History of New York City]]
* ''New York''. [[Jacob Leisler|Meinheer Leisler]], [[Captain Kidd]], [[Lord Cornbury]]
* ''The Boston Girl: 1735''. [[John Peter Zenger|Zenger trial]], [[Andrew Hamilton (lawyer)|Andrew Hamilton]]
* ''The Philadelphia Girl: 1741''. [[George Whitefield]]
* ''Montayne's Tavern: 1758''.<ref>Gotham: a history of New York City to 1898. By Edwin G. Burrows, Mike Wallace. p.188</ref> [[Guy Fawkes Night]]
* ''Abigail: 1765''. [[Province of New York|New York Provincial Assembly]], [[Alexander McDougall|McDougall]], [[Isaac Sears|Sears]], [[Sons of Liberty]], [[Philip Livingston|Livingston]], [[James DeLancey (politician)|DeLancey]]
* ''The Loyalist: 1770''. [[Tea Act]], [[Intolerable Acts]], [[John Jay]], [[Columbia University|King's College]]
* ''War: March 1776''. [[Battle of Long Island|Brooklyn Heights]]
* ''Fire: 1776''. [[Great Fire of New York (1776)|Great Fire of New York]]
* ''Love: July 1777''. [[William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe|General Howe]], [[General Clinton]], [[Wallabout Bay]], [[John André|Major André]], [[Fraunces Tavern]]
* ''The Capital: 1790''. [[Federal Hall]], [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[William Duer (Continental Congressman)|"his deputy"]]
* ''Past [[Five Points (Manhattan)|Five Points]]: 1849''. [[Great Fire of New York|two big fires-the first in 1835]], [[New York City Hall|new City Hall]], [[Croton Aqueduct]]
* ''Crystal Palace: 1853''. [[Cornelius Vanderbilt]], [[Latting Observatory]], [[New York Crystal Palace|Crystal Palace]], [[Tammany Hall]]
* ''The Draft: 1863''. [[Leonard Jerome|Jerome]], [[Madame Restell]], [[New York Draft Riots|Draft Riots of 1863]]
* ''Moonlight Sonata: 1871''. [[Mathew Brady]], [[Coney Island]]
* ''Snow: 1888''. [[Great Blizzard of 1888]], [[The Dakota]], [[J.P. Morgan & Co.|the House of Drexel, Morgan]], [[Brooklyn Bridge]]
* ''[[Ellis Island]]: 1901-1911''. [[Statue of Liberty]], [[Waldorf-Astoria Hotel]], [[Riverside (house)]], [[Knickerbocker Trust Company|Knickerbocker Trust]], [[Panic of 1907]], [[Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire|Triangle fire]]
* ''Empire State: 1917''. [[Prohibition]], [[Long Island]], [[Cotton Club]], [[Fred F. French Building|French building]], [[Charles Lindbergh]], [[Chrysler Building]], [[Wall Street Crash of 1929|Black Thursday]], [[Empire State Building]], [[George Washington Bridge|"suspension bridge across the Hudson River"]]
* ''Brooklyn: 1953''. [[Betty Parsons]], [[Robert Moses]]
* ''Verrazano Narrows: 1968''. [[Verrazano Narrows Bridge]], [[Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum|the Guggenheim]]
* ''After Dark: 1977''. [[East Harlem|Spanish Harlem]]


==References==
==References==
<references/>
<references/>
In his acknowledgments, the author credits two main written reference sources:
* [[The Encyclopedia of New York City]]
* [[Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898]]

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==See Also==
*[[London (novel)]], another historical novel by Rutherford, documenting the city of [[London]]
⚫
*[[History of New York]]


==External links==
==External links==
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{{DEFAULTSORT:New York (Novel)}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:New York (Novel)}}
[[Category:2009 novels]]
[[Category:2009 British novels]]
[[Category:Novels by Edward Rutherfurd]]
[[Category:Novels by Edward Rutherfurd]]
[[Category:Historical novels]]
[[Category:Historical novels]]
[[Category:New York City in fiction]]
[[Category:Novels set in New York City]]
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[[Category:History of New York City]]
[[Category:Hutchinson (publisher) books]]

Latest revision as of 21:02, 15 April 2022

New York: a Novel
New York first (UK) edition cover.
AuthorEdward Rutherfurd
IllustratorMike Morganfeld (maps)
LanguageEnglish
GenreHistorical novel
PublisherCentury Hutchinson, Doubleday (US)
Publication date
3 September 2009
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Media typePrint (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages1040 pp (first edition) (862 pp US first ed.)
ISBN978-1-84605-195-1
OCLC613432261
Edward Rutherfurd talks about New York novel on Bookbits radio.

New York: a Novel (2009) is an historical novel by British novelist Edward Rutherfurd. The United States edition is published by Doubleday under the title New York: The Novel.

Synopsis

[edit]

The novel chronicles the birth and growth of New York City, from the arrival of the first Dutch and other European colonists in the 17th century to the summer of 2009. Rutherford builds his novel on the histories of fictional families who live there. In New York, these families represent the successive waves of immigrants who have made the city multicultural.

The early Dutch founders of New Amsterdam are typified by the Van Dyck family, who prosper in trade with the Native Americans; both the local Algonquian tribes, especially the Lenape, and the Iroquoian Mohawk who lived farther up the Hudson Valley and primarily along the Mohawk Valley. The Van Dycks soon unite with the English Thomas Master family (he also has a natural Native American daughter, whom he brings with him from Puritan New England). Van Dyck-Master descendants continue to live in New York through the entire saga, providing one of the unifying narrative strands. The character Quash is an enslaved African, who was brought forcefully to New Amsterdam and is held by Thomas Master; his descendants become part of the New York cultural mix.

As the novel progresses, more families are introduced: the Irish O'Donnels, German Kellers, Italian Carusos, German-Jewish Adlers, and Puerto Rican Campos. Through their intertwining stories, Rutherfurd explores the various cultural traditions of the national groups and intercultural relations, which play out against the development of the city.

Rutherfurd breaks the narrative into sections by date, twenty-seven in all. Most dates comprise one chapter; a few dates continue through two or three chapters. A set of three well-drawn maps of Manhattan Island helps the reader follow the action as the city develops. A fourth map of the New York City region provides a larger geographical context.

Critical reception

[edit]

Brigitte Weeks of The Washington Post praised the novel and advised readers against trying to determine the accuracy of every name or event:

But analyzing the veracity of every incident will spoil the fun, and what makes this novel so entertaining is the riotous, multilayered portrait of a whole metropolis. Rutherfurd offers the reader a chance to watch a rural outcrop grow into one of the world's greatest cities in a mere 350 years. He delivers magnificently on the challenge; it is hard to imagine any other writer combining such astonishing depth of research with the imagination and ingenuity to hold it all together.[1]

New York won the Langum Prize for American Historical Fiction in 2010.[2]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Brigitte Weeks, "Book World: "Brigette (sic) Weeks reviews Edward Rutherford's 'New York: The Novel'", Washington Post, 8 December 2009
  2. ^ The Langum Charitable Trust Archived 2012-06-30 at the Wayback Machine
[edit]
  • Edward Rutherfurd website [1]
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