From Publishers Weekly
This book's intriguing topic and delightful presentation by its knowledgeable and eccentric authors will enthrall New Yorkers and non-New Yorkers alike. Deyo and Leibowitz, editors at Jinx, a zine devoted to the urban exploration movement, illumine what drives them to explore cities' infrastructure, the places few consider going (including sewage systems, subway tunnels and bridge spans). A charming pastiche of Alice in Wonderland and The X Files, this is both a paean to New York and a chronology of a love affair with the unusual. The authors take readers on a hike to Manhattan from the Bronx via the Croton Aqueduct, which was one of the major engineering feats of the 19th century, providing water for most New Yorkers. They also traverse the tunnels under Riverside Park to find the so-called mole people who live in the Amtrak system and to seek out graffiti artists. A semi-break-in takes readers into the Roosevelt Island Smallpox Hospital. Other treks include exploring a condemned building in East Harlem, a nondiplomatic maneuver at the United Nations and climbing to the summit of the George Washington Bridge. Rife with literary quotations, historical and scientific tidbits, political and social commentary plus a plethora of details about the explorations the authors and their strange cadre have made (despite the muck and mire, the men always wear suits and ties and the women cocktail dresses), this smart, quirky book will delight spelunkers, couch potatoes and all in between. 25 line drawings, 25 b&w photos.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Adult/High School--The authors are editors of Jinx,a magazine devoted to urban exploration--or, as one explorer puts it, "going places you're not supposed to go." The book is structured around 10 "missions" that the two took on in the summer of 2001, and lovingly describes their failures (attempting to slog from the Bronx to Manhattan entirely underground) as well as their successes (flying the Jinx flag at the U.N. building). The astonishing, delicious twist is that these operatives are far from the pranksters they might sound like. As if they were touring the Galápagos, they are careful to preserve the dignity of the spaces they explore; they may admire beautiful graffiti, but they'd neverleave any. On missions they wear Men in Black-style suits and sunglasses (the occasional female wears a cocktail dress). Most importantly, though, they know and cherish New York history. They speak so excitedly and reverently of the city--how it was formed and who formed it--that they come off more like endearingly geeky archaeologists than hip adventurers. And their awed enthusiasm is infectious, increasing readers' sensitivity to the urban environments around them. A thoughtful anomaly of a book, sure to intrigue and surprise YA readers.--Emily Lloyd, Rehoboth Beach Public Library, DE
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
