Low Life: Lures and Snares of Old New York

by Luc Sante

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372 ratings, 4.20 average rating, 50 reviews (more data...)

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published

November 24th 2003 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux

binding

Paperback, 460 pages

isbn

0374528993 (isbn13: 9780374528997)

description

There are very few classics in the field of pop culture--the academic stuff tends to be too dry and the fun stuff is too quickly dated. This book by L...more

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Kyle rated it:

04/03/08

Read in March, 2008

In order to fully appreciate this book, you need to understand the context in which it was written: Luc Sante – who lived in New York City for many years, from the early 70’s to the late 90’s – experienced the New York of legend: fires, crime, blackouts, junkies, empty lots, derelict buildings. But he was also able to see and explore the mostly untouched artifacts from the previous century – the remnants of barrooms and theatres and tenement housing. In the 1980’s, when money and ...more In order to fully appreciate this book, you need to understand the context in which it was written: Luc Sante – who lived in New York City for many years, from the early 70’s to the late 90’s – experienced the New York of legend: fires, crime, blackouts, junkies, empty lots, derelict buildings. But he was also able to see and explore the mostly untouched artifacts from the previous century – the remnants of barrooms and theatres and tenement housing. In the 1980’s, when money and developers came back to the city, and young people subsidized by their parents began moving into expensive renovated lofts in SoHo, Sante saw that the makeup of New York would be changed forever. The history of a city coming of age in the industrial era and all of the inherent struggles would be lost on the newcomers. As he puts it, ‘I could look across Twelfth Street at the vacant lot where the bus garage had been and imagine in its place a high-rise with a terraced café on its street-level plaza, filled with blond California people in brightly colored clothing for whom the world could just as well have been created yesterday.’ Thus, Low Life was conceived, and ‘to prevent amnesia from setting in’, Sante set out to revive a forgotten history of New York City.

Unfortunately, this perspective is not gained until the afterword, and in order to get that far you have to get through some pretty dense chapters. Although the characters revealed within are interesting enough, and the research is extensive, the stories are presented mechanically and without much character or verve. The absence of a single compelling narrative makes it doubly tough to plow through the at times information-heavy middle.

The book covers the many aspects of New York life from 1840 – 1919 with a focus on the Bowery and the Lower East Side, the epicenter of underclass life during that time. Through saloon and theatre culture, prostitution, gangs, police, politics, drugs, gambling, bohemia and more, Sante weaves together an anecdotal history using the most notorious personalities and institutions of the day. We learn about, among many other things, child gangs, sailor kidnapping, barroom swindling tactics, whimsical theater acts, and the now infamous draft riots. And although it’s admittedly a pop history and not based on certain facts, Sante succeeds in bringing to life the dark realities of the time.

The amount of information and the overlapping of topics seems disorganized and can be overwhelming, but in the end you’re left with a strong sense of the corrupt, murderous, desperate, swindling, drunken destitution and overall chaotic madness of the city all jumbled together and piled into flammable buildings and narrow city streets. For better or worse, it’s a world apart from the PG-13 New York we see today, and it’s a history that all New Yorkers and visitors should be aware of.

I personally will never again walk through the rapidly changing streets of the Lower East Side – or anywhere in New York City – without thinking twice about what has happened there, and so Sante has achieved his desired effect. The cobblestone streets are still there; we’ve just paved over them.
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Sam rated it:

03/28/07

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in January, 2006

recommends it for: NYC Junkies who want to meet the ghosts.

This has really enlivened my experience in NYC. Highly anecdotal and well-researched account of the street gangs, urchins, gamblers, actors, criminals and small-time entrepreneurs of Old New York. You meet the cast of characters who used to move amongst these very streets.

While Sante's view is unromantic, his stories show that pre-bureaucracy city allowed for moments of cultural thriving unseen today. Imagine audiences caring enough about theater to throw rotten produce at acts they didn't ...more

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