A Journey into Dorothy Parker's New York

November 28, 2005
Part biography, part walking tour, Fitzpatrick's meticulously researched first book is an eye-opening account of the life and times of Dorothy Parker and a paean to Old Gotham. Parker's finest work, mostly of verse and short stories for The New Yorker and Vanity Fair, as well as her reign as Queen of the Algonquin round table of writers and wits, were integral to literary New York during the Prohibition era when, as writes Fitzpatrick, "the speakeasies are always hopping, the party is just beginning." This segment of Parker's life is well-known, and fans will enjoy using the photos and maps to find Parker's many apartments, the Algonquin Hotel, the first office of The New Yorker and The 21 Club, where connoisseurs of fine cocktails can still get a crisp Tom Collins (with non-bathtub gin, even). Casual Parker fans may not know about Parker's stint as New York's first female drama critic (for Vanity Fair), nor her leftist activism that led to her inclusion on McCarthy's black list. Fitzpatrick does an admirable job of summarizing these time periods in the writer's life, and also of capturing Parker's lonely last days, when Gloria Vanderbilt was one of her few friends. Less a guidebook than a loving testimonial and guide to a pioneering New York writer, this book will win Parker-and Fitzpatrick-new fans. Photos.

January 15, 2006
Fitzpatrick, founder and president of the Dorothy Parker Society, has put together a stunning and highly entertaining book that combines biography, architecture, literature, and travel. It documents the many sites that Parkerthe quintessential New Yorker and celebrated writer who, upon returning from Los Angeles, once quipped, "I get up every morning and want to kiss the pavement"lived, worked, socialized, and died. In 79 color and 75 black-and-white photographs and five maps, the book moves from Parker's first 24 years on the Upper West Side to her declining years on the Upper East Side, with midtown and the theater districther hangouts while writing for Vogue, Vanity Fair, and The New Yorkersandwiched in between. With a detailed time line of Parker's life, a further reading list, informative Internet destinations, and a comprehensive index, this first volume in the publisher's new "ArtPlace" series (upcoming volumes include Georgia O'Keeffe's New Mexico and Goya's Madrid) is highly recommended.Melinda Stivers Leach, Precision Editorial Svcs., Wondervu, CO

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