New York has been a place that has captured the imagination of some of our greatest writers. Walt Whitman, Henry James, and Edith Wharton were all born in New York... And many other classic writers made New York their home. Read these collections of classic New York Literature: poetry, fiction, and more.
1. Writing New York: A Literary Anthology
by Phillip Lopate (Editor). Library of America. From the publisher: "In celebration of Greater New York's centenary, The Library of America presents the best writing about the world's greatest city, edited by distinguished essayist Phillip Lopate. 'Writing New York' is a composite cultural portrait of the city as seen through the eyes of over 100 writers..."
2. New York, New York : The City in Art & Literature
by William Lach. Universe Publishing. From the publisher: "Writers have described New York City since the harbor was discovered in 1524. Artists have captured its every sparkle and shadow... Here, a Charles Dickens report on the bustle of Broadway matches nineteenth-century bird's-eye lithographs; Edith Wharton's 'Age of Innocence' illuminates an early photogravure by Alfred Stieglitz..."
3. New York Literary Lights
by William Corbett. Graywolf Press. From the publisher: "Ranging from Paul Auster to Zora Neale Hurston, from the Algonquin Round Table to the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, from Edgar Allan Poe to the Beat Generation, Corbett takes us on a ride through the literary highlights of New York."4. The Raven and the Whale: The War of Words and Wits
by Perry Miller. Johns Hopkins University Press. From the publisher: "A social, cultural, and literary history of the New York literary battleground between 1833 and 1857. First published in 1956, 'The Raven and the Whale' analyzes the social confusion around the works of authors such as Poe and Melville, stemming from the intense rivalry between major publishing firms."5. The Greenwich Village Reader : Fiction, Poetry, and Reminiscences
by June Skinner Skinner Sawyers (Editor). Cooper Square Publishers, Inc. This work offers a chronology of Greenwich Village, along with selections from O. Henry, Theodore Dreiser, William Dean Howells, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Edith Wharton, Sinclair Lewis, and John Updike.6. The Portable Harlem Renaissance Reader
by David Levering Lewis (Editor). Viking Penguin. This book includes 45 works from writers of the Harlem Renaissance, beginning in 1919 and ending around 1934. This collection includes: Cullen, Hurston, Hughes, McKay, DuBois, and Wright.7. New York: A Literary Companion
by William Cole (Editor). Pushcart Press. From the publisher: "A handsomely designed and profusely illustrated anthology of quips and sentiments about New York City from some of the greatest people who ever loved or hated it. This is the perfect gift for readers, writers, or anyone who has ever been captivated by that most fascinating, difficult, and exciting metropolis."8. Quotable New York: A Literary Companion
by William Cole (Editor). Penguin Putnam. If you're looking for a witty collection of quotations, this book offers some of the greatest New York has to offer, including quotes from F. Scott Fitzgerald, Charles Dickens, and Saul Bellow.9. Making Love Modern
by Nina Miller. Oxford University Press. From the publisher: "Within these intermingled worlds, gender lines and other boundaries were crossed in ways hardly imaginable in previous decades. Among the bohemians of Greenwich Village, the sophisticates of the Algonquin Round Table and the literati of the Harlem Renaissance, certain women found fresh powerful voices through which to speak and write."10. Voices from the Harlem Renaissance
by Nathan Irvin Huggins (Editor). Oxford University Press. From the publisher: "In Voices from the Harlem Renaissance, Nathan Irvin Huggins provides more than 120 selections from the political writings, literature, and art of this watershed period... this fascinating collection depicts the impact of Harlem and New York City on those who lived there."