Going into Town: A Love Letter to New York

A native Brooklynite-turned-suburban commuter deemed the quintessential New Yorker, Roz Chast has always been intensely alive to the glorious spectacle that is Manhattan–the daily clash of sidewalk racers and dawdlers; the fascinating range of dress codes; and the priceless, nutty outbursts of souls from all walks of life.

For Chast, adjusting to life outside the city was surreal - (you can own trees!? you have to drive!?) - but she recognized that the reverse was true for her kids. On trips into town, they would marvel at the strange visual world of Manhattan - its blackened sidewalk gum-wads, “those West Side Story-things” (fire escapes) - and its crazily honeycombed systems and grids.

Told through Chast’s singularly zany, laugh-out-loud, touching, and true cartoons, Going Into Town is part New York stories (the “overheard and overseen” of the island borough), part personal and practical guide to walking, talking, renting, and venting - an irresistible, one-of-a-kind love letter to the city.