Literary Travel Book Review: A Journey into Dorothy Parker's New York, by Kevin Fitzpatrick

Kevin Fitzpatrick has recreated for us the jazz and bootleg New York of
the legendary grand dame of the 1920’s, Dorothy Parker, and her life,
into the
political 1950’s.

Readers will enjoy the many quotes in this book, from zany to sad: “…as
only New Yorkers know, if you can get through the twilight, you’ll live
through the night.”

Much of her humor relies on satire, for which most remember her…”My
life is like a picture gallery,/With a few pictures turned discreetly
to the wall.”

She had three books of collected verse that would delight lovers of poetry.

The photos are exceptional and many and will appeal to those interested
in New York’s architectural history. There is even a numbered map of
events in Dorothy’s life in the city and a trip through the Theater
District, past and present. Almost every page contains photos of
Dorothy and her friends, the members of the famous Round Table, and the
quintessential Dorothy toward the end of her life, posing with her dog,
Misty. Yes, she was an animal lover, too.

On June 7, 1967 Dorothy Parker, by then very political, died at her
apartment at the Volney Hotel. She left her estate to Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr.

There is something of interest for most readers in Mr. Fitzpatrick’s
book of memory - clever words, drawings, photos, all deliciously
clothed in the exciting mystique of Ms. Parker’s New York, those years
forever gone by.

Dorothy

Words leap tall buildings

Dorothy Parker’s New York

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nonameharbor is the Poetry Editor for Wandering Educators.

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