I'm currently reading Work and Other Sins: Life in NYC and Thereabouts by NY Times reporter Charlie LeDuff. It's basically a ton of short articles about working-class people he's met and talked to in the city. He's kind of a lightweight Raymond Chandler but I loved what he wrote in his intro:
"New York is a glamorous city, constituted mostly of nobodies. They crave the lights, and if they tell you differently, they're lying. Only dreamers come to New York. As a matter of course, few people have control over their lives. You live at the whim of your boss, your landlord, your grocer, the stranger, the judge, the bus driver, the mayor who won't let you smoke. On the other hand, you live at the whim of your whims, and that is the most exciting thing there is.
"New York is a lot like a shit sandwich. The more bread you have, the less shit you taste, and this town would tumble to the ground without money. For those who don't have it, there is always the hope of getting it. This book is meant for them."
So far so good, he's acerbic without being judgemental, and the stories are about 4 pages each at the most. Good subway read.
