No one denies that New York City is unique—but what makes it sui generis? Sam Roberts, longtime city reporter, has puzzled over this in print and in his popular New York Times podcasts for years. In Only in New York, he writes about what makes New York tick and why things are the way they are in the greatest of all cities on earth. The forty essays in this book cover a variety of topics, including: • Why do we have doormen? • Is it noisier in the city or in the country? • Are New Yorkers really as liberal as the rest of the country thinks they are? • Why wasn’t Manhattan’s cross-town street grid oriented by the points of the compass? • If a neighborhood loses its tony zipcode, does it lose its cachet? A winning and informative gift book for every fan of “the city”, Only in New York is elegantly written and solidly reported.

Only in New York: An Exploration of the World's Most Fascinating, Frustrating and Irrepressible City

History

Roberts, Sam

Americas

St.Martin's Press

In 1951, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were tried for and convicted of conspiring to steal atomic secrets. In 1953, their execution tore American apart. Fifty years later, the acrimonious debate over the Rosenbergs' guilt, and the raw emotions unleashed by a case that fueled McCarthyism and the cold war, still reverberate. One man doomed the Rosenbergs: David Greenglass, Ethel Rosenberg's brother, the young army sergeant who spied for the Soviets at Los Alamos during World War II and whose testimony later sealed his sister and brother-in-law's fate. After serving ten years in prison, he was released in 1960 and vanished. But Sam Roberts, a New York Times editor, found David Greenglass and, after fourteen years, finally persuaded him to talk. Drawn from the first unrestricted-access interviews ever granted by Greenglass and supplemented by revelations from dozens of other key players in the case--including the Russian agent who controlled Julius Rosenberg; by newly declassified American and Soviet government documents; and by personal letters never before publishes, among them on from Albert Einstein; The Brother is the mesmerizing inside story of misplaced idealism, love and betrayal behind the atomic-espionage case that J. Edgar Hoover condemned as the Crime of the Century. In more than fifty hours of tape-recorded conversations with the author, Greenglass intimately detailed his recruitment into espionage on Manhattan's Lower East Side, how he spied for the Russians at American's most secret military installation, and how the plot unraveled and led to the arrests of David, Julius, and Ethel. But even beyond that, this book reveals how Greenglass perjured himself during his riveting courtroom testimony--testimony that virtually strapped his sister and brother-in-law into Sing Sing's electric chair. Delivering a narrative punch on every page, The Brother is the story of a family. It is a story of atomic espionage. It is the story of the trial that turned a nation upside down and that even now divides the American left. Convincingly and with authority, The Brother tells a tale driven by secrets, suspense, and intense human intrigue.

The Brother: The Untold Story of Atomic Spy David Greenglass and How He Sent His Sister, Ethel Rosenberg, to the Electric Chair

Biographies & Memoirs

Historical

Random House]

Fifty years after their execution in June 1953 for conspiring to steal atomic secrets, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg remain the subjects of great emotional debate and acrimony. The man whose testimony almost single-handedly convicted them was Ethel Rosenberg’s own brother, David Greenglass. Though the Rosenbergs were executed, Greenglass served a mere ten years in prison, after which, with a new name, he disappeared. But journalist Sam Roberts found Greenglass, and then managed to convince him to talk about everything that had happened. So here at last is the mesmerizing inside story of the Rosenberg case: What were their lives like growing up on the Lower East Side? How was David Greenglass enlisted in a plot to hand over to the Soviets our greatest national secret? And how, finally, did the whole thing unravel? Even beyond that, The Brother reveals how David Greenglass perjured himself in testifying about his sister and her husband—testimony that virtually strapped them into the electric chair. The Brother is a great narrative, far more mesmerizing than anything else written on the subject. It is a story of espionage. It is the story of a trial. And, most tragically, it is the story of a family.

The Brother: The Untold Story of the Rosenberg Case

Random House Trade Paperbacks

Who We Are Now: The Changing Face of America in the 21st Century

A revealing view of America and its citizens at the dawn of a new century, by the author of the New York Times Notable Book Who We Are
For more than two centuries, America has taken stock every decade, producing a statistical self-portrait of our population. In Who We Are Now, Sam Roberts identifies and illuminates the trends and social shifts changing the face of America today. 
America is in the midst of a fundamental transformation. The nation's complexion changed significantly over the twentieth century, creating more varied and intermingled identities, and with the baby boomers nearing retirement and their children entering college, the graying of America has been balanced, precariously, by the youth culture. And in the wake of welfare reform in the 1990s, the fate of the working poor has become all the more tenuous. Roberts masterfully weaves stories of individuals from all corners of the country alongside the data from the latest U.S. census, creating a compelling guided tour of the places, personalities, and politics that will shape America as the new century stretches before us.

Reference

Times Books

A revealing view of America and its citizens at the dawn of a new century, by the author of the New York Times Notable Book Who We Are For more than two centuries, America has taken stock every decade, producing a statistical self-portrait of our population. In Who We Are Now, Sam Roberts identifies and illuminates the trends and social shifts changing the face of America today. America is in the midst of a fundamental transformation. The nation's complexion changed significantly over the twentieth century, creating more varied and intermingled identities, and with the baby boomers nearing retirement and their children entering college, the graying of America has been balanced, precariously, by the youth culture. And in the wake of welfare reform in the 1990s, the fate of the working poor has become all the more tenuous. Roberts masterfully weaves stories of individuals from all corners of the country alongside the data from the latest U.S. census, creating a compelling guided tour of the places, personalities, and politics that will shape America as the new century stretches before us.

A portrait of the United States, culled from data based on the 1990 U.S. Census, offers startling statistics, such as the profile of the average American--a 32.7-year-old white woman whose mortgaged suburban home is heated by natural gas. 15,000 first printing.

Who We Are:: A Portrait of America Based on the 1990 Census

Politics & Social Sciences

Social Sciences

Crown

A New York Times Notable Book of the Year A compelling, expertly guided tour of the places and personalities behind the numbers of the bicentennial census of 1990, Who We Are offers a revealing view of how and where we live, our changing complexion, what we're worth, and how we're aging. In Who We Are, Sam Roberts reveals an America that is radically transformed -- a transformation with profound social, economic, and political consequences that we are only beginning to grasp. Here is a dynamic picture of the American people and a preview of where we're headed as the next century begins.

Who We Are: A Portrait of America Based on the: Latest U.S. Census Revised and Updated

Three Rivers Press

No one denies that New York City is unique―but what makes it sui generis? Sam Roberts, a longtime city reporter, has puzzled over this in print and in his popular New York Times podcasts for years. In Only in New York, updated with new tales and fascinating glimpses into uniquely NYC life, he writes about what makes this city tick and why things are the way they are in the greatest of all metropolises on earth. The more than 75 essays in this book cover a variety of topics, including:
-How do New Yorkers react during disasters? -Maritime history (the Hudson River) -Crowds, space, and population growth -1908: a year in History history -Jewish Daily Forward -What happens when a neighborhood loses its tony ZIP code?
A winning and informative gift book for every fan of “the city,” Only in New York is elegantly written and solidly reported.

Only in New York: An Exploration of the World's Most Fascinating, Frustrating, and Irrepressible City

Empire State Editions

Ghost signs are fascinating pieces of urban archaeology. Imposing yet hidden in plain sight, these faded advertisements are London’s history written onto the contemporary cityscape. The book showcases around 250 of London’s most impressive and historically significant ghost signs, geo-located, accompanied by archival and other contextual images. Introductory chapters include essays on how they were produced and their restoration and conservation. Signs are then featured in themed chapters that include building, entertaining, branding and, ultimately, burying the city.

Ghost Signs: A London Story

Arts & Photography

Reed, Roy

Graphic Design

Isola Press Limited

A rich, illustrated - and entertaining -- history of the iconic Grand Central Terminal, from one of New York City's favorite writers, just in time to celebrate the train station's 100th fabulous anniversary. In the winter of 1913, Grand Central Station was officially opened and immediately became one of the most beautiful and recognizable Manhattan landmarks. In this celebration of the one hundred year old terminal, Sam Roberts of The New York Times looks back at Grand Central's conception, amazing history, and the far-reaching cultural effects of the station that continues to amaze tourists and shuttle busy commuters. Along the way, Roberts will explore how the Manhattan transit hub truly foreshadowed the evolution of suburban expansion in the country, and fostered the nation's westward expansion and growth via the railroad. Featuring quirky anecdotes and behind-the-scenes information, this book will allow readers to peek into the secret and unseen areas of Grand Central -- from the tunnels, to the command center, to the hidden passageways. With stories about everything from the famous movies that have used Grand Central as a location to the celestial ceiling in the main lobby (including its stunning mistake) to the homeless denizens who reside in the building's catacombs, this is a fascinating and, exciting look at a true American institution.

Grand Central: How a Train Station Transformed America

Engineering & Transportation

Transportation

Grand Central Publishing

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Roberts, Sam. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Roberts, Sam

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Roberts, Sam. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Only in New York: An Exploration of the World's Most Fascinating, Frustrating and Irrepressible City

The Brother: The Untold Story of Atomic Spy David Greenglass and How He Sent His Sister, Ethel Rosenberg, to the Electric Chair

The Brother: The Untold Story of the Rosenberg Case

Who We Are Now: The Changing Face of America in the 21st Century

Who We Are Now: The Changing Face of America in the 21st Century

Who We Are:: A Portrait of America Based on the 1990 Census

Who We Are: A Portrait of America Based on the: Latest U.S. Census Revised and Updated

Only in New York: An Exploration of the World's Most Fascinating, Frustrating, and Irrepressible City

Ghost Signs: A London Story

Grand Central: How a Train Station Transformed America