Holiday Book Sale 3

               BOOKS  ABOUT  NEW  YORK

The sale has ended and will not be repeated.  My books are available as always, but not on sale.

Print books make fantastic gifts.  They don't wither or droop, go stale or out of fashion, affect your weight or your cholesterol, or get lost in the Internet.  They just lie there, marvels of patience, waiting to be read.  And if their content annoys you, you can hurl them across the room.

The following books are available.  Nonfiction titles are listed first, then fiction, with a brief description and reviews.  The most recent books appear at the start.

                     NONFICTION

3.  New Yorkers:  A Feisty People Who Will Unsettle, Madden, Amuse and Astonish You

                                 

Finalist in the 14th National Indie Excellence Awards, 2020, Regional Nonfiction: Northeast.

Listed among the Best Independent Books in the September 3 and 10, 2020, issues of the LibraryBub newsletter, and included in a LibraryBub press release picked up by NBC and CBS.

A quirky memoir by a longtime resident who loves his crazy but profoundly creative city, with glances at that city’s fascinating history, and weird facts to surprise visitors and residents alike.  

A fun book, with a few grim moments. 

For those who love (or hate) New York, have lived there or would like to, or are just plain curious about the city and its residents, past and present.

Available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Reviews

Tourists and those new to the city will most appreciate this light, entertaining look at the Big Apple. --  Publishers Weekly.

New York is the most exciting city in the world. It's unique and reading "New Yorkers" is the next best thing to actually living there!  --  Midwest Book Review.

This immersive exploration of the city and its denizens etches a vivid portrait of “what it is to be a New Yorker ... our past and present glories and horrors.” —  Kirkus Reviews.

Thousands of books have been written about New York City, but this one stands out. -- Blue Ink Review.

2.  Fascinating New Yorkers: Power Freaks, Mobsters, Liberated Women, Creators, Queers and Crazies    

                       

Finalist in the 2019 International Book Awards, Biography.

Biographical sketches of colorful people who lived or died in New York.  Included are a prostitute’s daughter who got to know two ex-kings and a future emperor; a naughty archbishop; and a serial killer who terrorized the city.

A good read for anyone who wants to know more about the hustlers, manipulators, artists, celebrities, and crooks that have frequented The City That Never Sleeps.  You may be shocked or angered, but you won’t be bored. 

See also my post #353, "Fascinating New Yorkers: Why and How I Wrote It."

Available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Reviews

Readers will enjoy Clifford Browder’s lively, descriptive writing. Fans of non-fiction and more recent history will really appreciate the research that he put into these pages.  —  Editorial review for Reader Views by Paige Lovitt.

There’s something for everyone here in this collection of profiles, and it serves as a source of inspiration for readers who love NYC. — Editorial review for U.S. Review of Books by Gabriella Tutino.

I couldn't put this down and read it in one sitting! — Five-star editorial review for NetGalley by Cristie Underwood. 

1. No Place for Normal: New York / Stories from the Most Exciting City in the World   (Not available from the author now; sold out.  Available otherwise, as stated below.)

                           

                               

Winner for regional nonfiction in the Tenth Annual National Indie Excellence Awards, 2016.

First place for Travel in the Reader Views Literary Awards for 2015-2016.

Finalist in the Eric Hoffer Book Awards for 2016.

Memoir, history, and travel book all rolled into one.  Its stories include alcoholics, abortionists, and grave robbers; the Gay Pride parade; peyote visions; and the author’s mugging in Central Park.

If you love (or hate) New York — its people, its doings, its craziness — this is the book for you.  

Available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Reviews

I thoroughly enjoyed No Place for Normal: New York by Clifford Browder and highly recommend it to all fans of entertaining short stories and lovers of New York City.  —  Editorial review for Reader Views Literary Awards by Sheri Hoyte.

To read No Place for Normal: New York is to enter into Cliff Browder’s rich and engaging sixty years of adult life in New 

York. — Five-star reader review for Amazon by Michael P. Hartnett. 

If you want wonderful inside tales about New York, this is the book for you.  A refreshing view on NYC that will not disappoint. — Five-star reader review for Amazon by Bill L.  

                         cliffbrowder@verizon.net

  FICTION

4.  The Eye That Never Sleeps

                         

                                    

The fourth title in the Metropolis series of historical novels set in nineteenth-century New York.  

The strange friendship of a private detective and the bank robber he has been hired to apprehend, climaxed by a violent  confrontation in the dark midnight vaults of a bank.

For readers who like well-researched historical fiction, and who love a fast-paced detective story set in turbulent nineteenth-century New York.

Available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Reviews

A classically told detective novel that creates a web of intrigue, while giving the reader a tour of a bygone era of America through the filter of New York City. – Editorial review by Sublime Book Review.

The Eye That Never Sleeps is a great midnight mystery to enjoy and I highly recommended it to all crime and mystery-loving fans. – Four-star editorial review for Readers’ Favorite by Tiffany Ferrell.

Enter the seamier haunts of mid-nineteenth century NYC. One man is married, honorable. The other is an adept planner of felonies, and sneakily vindictive.  Follow them around for a while and you decide which one bests the other in a dangerous game. — Five-star editorial review for NetGalley by Jan Tangen.

3.  Dark Knowledge

                      

The third title in the Metropolis series of historical novels set in nineteenth-century New York.  

Determined to discover if anyone in his family was involved in the pre-Civil War slave trade, young Chris Harmony meets denials and evasions, then threats, and a key witness is murdered.  What price must Chris pay to learn the painful truth and proclaim it?

For lovers of historical fiction who like a fast-paced mystery combined with a coming-of-age story. 

Available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Reviews

Clifford Browder definitely managed to recreate the vibe and feel of that era.  This is a great read! — Five-star editorial review for Readers’ Favorite by Gisela Dixon.

Thoroughly enjoyed this historical book! I recommend to read!  Facts accurate! — Five-star reader review for Goodreads by LisaMarie.

Overall this novel is worth reading and I highly recommend it. — Five-star reader review for Barnes & Noble by ladynicolai.

2.  Bill Hope: His Story

  

Add caption

  

   

The second title in the Metropolis series of historical novels set in nineteenth-century New York.  

Young Bill Hope spills out in a torrent of words the story of his career as a street kid turned pickpocket, including his brutal treatment at Sing Sing and his escape from another prison in a coffin.  In the end he faces betrayal and death threats, and possible involvement in a murder.  

The story of a likable street kid who, armed with street smarts and hope, fights his way out of crime and squalor toward something that he thinks will be better.

Available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. 

Reviews

A real yarn of a story about a lovable pickpocket who gets into trouble and has a great adventure.  A must read. — Five-star reader review for Amazon by Nicole W. Brown.

Despite the story is told in a sort of flash language it's an easy read — and very enjoyable! —  Four-star review for LibraryThing Early Reviewers by viennamax.

An easy read about a hard life.  Interesting characters, a bustling city, poverty, privilege, crime, injustice combine to create a captivating tale.  —  Five-star reader review for Goodreads by John.

1. The Pleasuring of Men

                         

The first title in the Metropolis series of historical novels set in nineteenth-century New York. 

Tom Vaughan, a respectably raised young man, chooses to become a male prostitute, then falls in love with his most difficult client.  Through a series of encounters he matures, till an unexpected act of violence provokes a final resolution.  Gay romance, historical.

For anyone interested in the imagined gay underworld of late 1860s New York. 

For an imaginary interview with Tom and other characters, see post #320 in my blog: “Interview: A Male Prostitute and His Clients.”

Available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Reviews

  The novel is deftly drawn with rich descriptions, a rhythmic balance of action, dialogue, and exposition, and a nicely understated plot. —  Editorial review for Barnes & Noble by Sean Moran.

  The detail Browder brings to this glimpse into history is only equaled by his writing of credible and interesting characters.  Highly recommended. — Five-star reader review for Goodreads by Nan Hawthorne.

  Altogether this is a tale encompassing both sophisticated wit and humour, and yet the subject matter is the grotty underbelly of society as enacted by its leading citizens.  It is absolutely delightful.  Five Bees. —  Gerry Burnie's Reviews.

                                  ###                        ###                        ###                                   

Holiday Book Sale

                  HOLIDAY  BOOK  SALE

                          BOOKS  ABOUT  NEW  YORK

Buy one, get one free.  What explains such liberality?  Either the holiday spirit of giving, or the author's incipient senility.  (I incline toward the latter, but maybe both.)

My paperbacks usually retail for a little more or a little less than $20.  For this sale I offer them at $20 each: two paperbacks for $20 (plus postage).

Available only from the author.  Signed or unsigned, as you wish.

Print books make great gifts.  They don't wither or droop, go stale or out of fashion, affect your weight or your cholesterol, or get lost in the Internet.  They just lie there, waiting to be read.  And if their content annoys you, you can hurl them across the room.

Sale ends at 5 p.m, December 24.  (Unless before that, supply or the author gives out.)  U.S. residents only.

Interested?  Just contact the author by e-mail:

                                             cliffbrowder@verizon.net

But supply of some titles is limited; don't wait till the last minute.

The following books are available.  Nonfiction titles are listed first, then fiction, with a brief description and reviews.  The most recent books appear at the start.

                     NONFICTION

3.  New Yorkers:  A Feisty People Who Will Unsettle, Madden, Amuse and Astonish You

                                 

Finalist in the 14th National Indie Excellence Awards, 2020, Regional Nonfiction: Northeast.

Listed among the Best Independent Books in the September 3 and 10, 2020, issues of the LibraryBub newsletter, and included in a LibraryBub press release picked up by NBC and CBS.

A quirky memoir by a longtime resident who loves his crazy but profoundly creative city, with glances at that city’s fascinating history, and weird facts to surprise visitors and residents alike.  

A fun book, with a few grim moments. 

For those who love (or hate) New York, have lived there or would like to, or are just plain curious about the city and its residents, past and present.

Reviews

Tourists and those new to the city will most appreciate this light, entertaining look at the Big Apple. --  Publishers Weekly.

New York is the most exciting city in the world. It's unique and reading "New Yorkers" is the next best thing to actually living there!  --  Midwest Book Review.

This immersive exploration of the city and its denizens etches a vivid portrait of “what it is to be a New Yorker ... our past and present glories and horrors.” —  Kirkus Reviews.

Thousands of books have been written about New York City, but this one stands out. -- Blue Ink Review.

2.  Fascinating New Yorkers: Power Freaks, Mobsters, Liberated Women, Creators, Queers and Crazies    

                       

Finalist in the 2019 International Book Awards, Biography.

Biographical sketches of colorful people who lived or died in New York.  Included are a prostitute’s daughter who got to know two ex-kings and a future emperor; a naughty archbishop; and a serial killer who terrorized the city.

A good read for anyone who wants to know more about the hustlers, manipulators, artists, celebrities, and crooks that have frequented The City That Never Sleeps.  You may be shocked or angered, but you won’t be bored. 

See also my post #353, "Fascinating New Yorkers: Why and How I Wrote It."

Reviews

Readers will enjoy Clifford Browder’s lively, descriptive writing. Fans of non-fiction and more recent history will really appreciate the research that he put into these pages.  —  Editorial review for Reader Views by Paige Lovitt.

There’s something for everyone here in this collection of profiles, and it serves as a source of inspiration for readers who love NYC. — Editorial review for U.S. Review of Books by Gabriella Tutino.

I couldn't put this down and read it in one sitting! — Five-star editorial review for NetGalley by Cristie Underwood. 

1. No Place for Normal: New York / Stories from the Most Exciting City in the World 

                           

                               

Winner for regional nonfiction in the Tenth Annual National Indie Excellence Awards, 2016.

First place for Travel in the Reader Views Literary Awards for 2015-2016.

Finalist in the Eric Hoffer Book Awards for 2016.

Memoir, history, and travel book all rolled into one.  Its stories include alcoholics, abortionists, and grave robbers; the Gay Pride parade; peyote visions; and the author’s mugging in Central Park.

If you love (or hate) New York — its people, its doings, its craziness — this is the book for you.

Reviews

I thoroughly enjoyed No Place for Normal: New York by Clifford Browder and highly recommend it to all fans of entertaining short stories and lovers of New York City.  —  Editorial review for Reader Views Literary Awards by Sheri Hoyte.

To read No Place for Normal: New York is to enter into Cliff Browder’s rich and engaging sixty years of adult life in New 

York. — Reader review for Amazon by Michael P. Hartnett. 

If you want wonderful inside tales about New York, this is the book for you.  A refreshing view on NYC that will not disappoint. — Reader review for Amazon by Bill L.  

                         cliffbrowder@verizon.net

  FICTION

4.  The Eye That Never Sleeps

                         

                                    

The fourth title in the Metropolis series of historical novels set in nineteenth-century New York.  

The strange friendship of a private detective and the bank robber he has been hired to apprehend, climaxed by a violent  confrontation in the dark midnight vaults of a bank.

For readers who like well-researched historical fiction, and who love a fast-paced detective story set in turbulent nineteenth-century New York.

Reviews

A classically told detective novel that creates a web of intrigue, while giving the reader a tour of a bygone era of America through the filter of New York City. – Editorial review by Sublime Book Review.

The Eye That Never Sleeps is a great midnight mystery to enjoy and I highly recommended it to all crime and mystery-loving fans. – Four-star editorial review for Readers’ Favorite by Tiffany Ferrell.

Enter the seamier haunts of mid-nineteenth century NYC. One man is married, honorable. The other is an adept planner of felonies, and sneakily vindictive.  Follow them around for a while and you decide which one bests the other in a dangerous game. — Five-star editorial review for NetGalley by Jan Tangen.

3.  Dark Knowledge

                      

The third title in the Metropolis series of historical novels set in nineteenth-century New York.  

Determined to discover if anyone in his family was involved in the pre-Civil War slave trade, young Chris Harmony meets denials and evasions, then threats, and a key witness is murdered.  What price must Chris pay to learn the painful truth and proclaim it?

For lovers of historical fiction who like a fast-paced mystery combined with a coming-of-age story. 

Reviews

Clifford Browder definitely managed to recreate the vibe and feel of that era.  This is a great read! — Five-star editorial review for Readers’ Favorite by Gisela Dixon.

Thoroughly enjoyed this historical book! I recommend to read!  Facts accurate! — Five-star reader review for Goodreads by LisaMarie.

Overall this novel is worth reading and I highly recommend it. — Five-star reader review for Barnes & Noble by ladynicolai.

2.  Bill Hope: His Story

  

Add caption

  

   

The second title in the Metropolis series of historical novels set in nineteenth-century New York.  

Young Bill Hope spills out in a torrent of words the story of his career as a street kid turned pickpocket, including his brutal treatment at Sing Sing and his escape from another prison in a coffin.  In the end he faces betrayal and death threats, and possible involvement in a murder.  

The story of a likable street kid who, armed with street smarts and hope, fights his way out of crime and squalor toward something that he thinks will be better.

Reviews

A real yarn of a story about a lovable pickpocket who gets into trouble and has a great adventure.  A must read. — Five-star reader review for Amazon by Nicole W. Brown.

Despite the story is told in a sort of flash language it's an easy read — and very enjoyable! —  Four-star review for LibraryThing Early Reviewers by viennamax.

An easy read about a hard life.  Interesting characters, a bustling city, poverty, privilege, crime, injustice combine to create a captivating tale.  —  Five-star reader review for Goodreads by John.

1. The Pleasuring of Men

                         

The first title in the Metropolis series of historical novels set in nineteenth-century New York. 

Tom Vaughan, a respectably raised young man, chooses to become a male prostitute, then falls in love with his most difficult client.  Through a series of encounters he matures, till an unexpected act of violence provokes a final resolution.  Gay romance, historical.

For anyone interested in the imagined gay underworld of late 1860s New York. 

For an imaginary interview with Tom and other characters, see post #320 in my blog: “Interview: A Male Prostitute and His Clients.”

Reviews

  The novel is deftly drawn with rich descriptions, a rhythmic balance of action, dialogue, and exposition, and a nicely understated plot. —  Barnes & Noble editorial review by Sean Moran.

  The detail Browder brings to this glimpse into history is only equaled by his writing of credible and interesting characters.  Highly recommended. — Five-star Goodreads review by Nan Hawthorne.

  Altogether this is a tale encompassing both sophisticated wit and humour, and yet the subject matter is the grotty underbelly of society as enacted by its leading citizens.  It is absolutely delightful.  Five Bees. —  Gerry Burnie's Reviews.

                                  ###                        ###                        ###                                   

  So there you have it: seven books, pick two.  Two for the price of one: twenty dollars (plus postage).  Just e-mail me with your choice:

                         cliffbrowder@verizon.net

488. Reviewers: They Lift Your Spirits, They Break Your Bones

BROWDERBOOKS

This post is all about my latest book and its reviewers.

          Reviewers: They Lift Your Spirits, 

                  They Break Your Bones

I learned long ago that a writer has to have the thickest of skins in order to survive reviews.  Not all reviews, of course, just. the bad ones.    My current offering, New Yorkers: A Feisty People Who Will Unsettle, Madden, Amuse and Astonish You, has amazed me by accumulating excellent editorial reviews, followed lately by a series of negative reviews such as no book of mine has ever before inspired. Among these negative reviews are some more good ones, but for me personally, the negative ones risk overshadowing the positive ones.  

I remind myself that if this book has received many bad reviews, it's in part because it has received more reviews in general than its predecessors.  Still, many of the bad reviews baffle me.  

Here is my favorite bad review, rating the book a single star, the worst rating possible.  It's a long review; I'll offer only what I consider the choicest parts.

Review by Janet G.

This book has fewer facts than anecdotes. And fewer anecdotes than unsubstantiated opinions. It also has a bigoted slant that set me on edge from the beginning. The author… speaks very highly of New York and New Yorkers, as to be expected. Not expected is his building up of New Yorkers by tearing down other groups…. Just as unexpected were his disparaging remarks about The Heartland and its Republican and WASP nature. Almost every group he extolls is paired with a group he reviles. Not even 20% into the book, he went on an extremely vile rant about our President. Without proof or even anecdotal evidence, he made vile claims that are his opinion only and not historical facts. That is the point I stopped reading this book.

Such is this reviewer's opinion of the book and its author.  She has misread me from start to finish.  The author is himself a native of the heartland and has often told his New York friends that the heartland is not, emphatically not, fly-over country. As for the "vile rant" about our President, I assume it refers to the second paragraph on p. 54, in the chapter on hustlers.  The passage in question declares that the jailed financial operator Martin Shkreli is "Donald Trump writ small," and calls the two of them stellar examples of the New York hustler. This is indeed my opinion, and I stand by it.

Here now are extracts from a five-star review of the book by "Mochalove," a fellow New Yorker.

This is not your typical cut and dry biography, providing dry facts; instead, the read is a heartfelt memoir of a man and the city he lives, loves, survives and works in. The narrative keeps you rapt in its pages with a winning combination of information gleaned from Mr. Browder’s unique standpoint, research, and experiences from his many years as a resident.... Part biography, part historical dive and part travel guide, this work offers a tantalizing vision of an exciting city overflowing with diversity in all respects.

Would you believe that these two reviewers are talking about the same book? Every seasoned author knows to expect diversity of opinion among reviewers, but I have never before known it to be so extreme.  And this is just one example among many. How potential readers will decide whether or not the book is worth buying, I cannot imagine.  

I wish them all good judgment and good luck.

©.  2020.  Clifford Browder

487. New York Mobsters Invade the Catskills

  

                  NEW YORK MOBSTERS 

             INVADE THE CATSKILLS

                                                                                #cliffbrowderbooks

                                                                                                                        #ilovenewyork

Upstate New York, solidly Republican, has always thought of downstate New York -- New York City and its environs -- as a sink of sin, a swamp of corruption, and a nest of urban wiles.  By contrast, upstaters have thought of themselves as clean, honest, and upright -- the sort of citizens that form a solid base, calm and reasonable, for a functioning democracy.   (I discuss this at greater length in chapter 21, "Upstate vs. Downstate," in No Place for Normal: New York.)

So imagine this scene in the 1920s: The small town of Pine Plains in Dutchess County, some thirty miles north of Poughkeepsie.  Quiet farmland, and down a gravelly side road the hulking mass of a barn no  different in appearance from all the other large barns of the neighborhood.  An idyllic scene, rural, restful, remote, far from the crime, vice, and hurlyburly of the city.

Except for one disquieting fact: the hulking mass of a barn was one of the biggest, if not the biggest, illegal moonshine distilleries in the state.  This was the age of Prohibition, New Yorkers wanted their booze, and there were plenty of providers eager to supply them with it.  Liquor was pouring into the thirsty city from Canada, and from a flotilla of boats anchored offshore just outside the three-mile limit.  But resourceful entrepreneurs also saw the advantage of producing the stuff right there in the state, in a quiet rural neighborhood where such misdeeds would not -- at least for a while -- be suspected.  The barn in question was outfitted with cavernous bunkers for storage, and an elaborate tunnel system for escape.

And who was the mastermind behind this elaborate moonshine distillery?  None other than the notorious NewYork City gangster and bootlegger Dutch Schultz.  Or so it is thought, though hard evidence is lacking.  He was never seen in Pine Plains.

Where Mr. Schultz was definitely seen was the town of Phoenicia, fifty miles west of Pine Plains.  He appreciated the isolated location of the town, on a direct route from Canada to New York City.  Years later  locals recalled him in the town, sometimes buying people dinner at the Phoenicia Hotel and staying at a nearby lodge.

If Schultz was never seen in Pine Plains, local legend puts Legs Diamond, Schultz's rival, there.  Schultz may have controlled the booze distribution in Ulster County, leaving Dutchess County to Diamond.  Until 1931, at least, when Diamond was murdered, perhaps on orders from Schultz.

To spice up local legends, there is the story of Schultz burying a waterproof safe crammed with diamonds, gold, and a stash of thousand-dollar bills somewhere in the Catskills.  If he did, there is no record of it.  Rumor has it that other mobsters searched for it for years, though in vain, and even today treasure hunters meet annually to hunt for it.

In October 1932 the Pine Plains distillery was raided by federal agents, who found one of the most extensive and elaborate layouts in that part of the country.  And on October 23, 1935, Dutch Schultz and his bodyguards were killed in the Palace Chop House in Newark, New Jersey, probably on orders of Charles (Lucky) Luciano, another legendary New York mobster.

If Legs Diamond was murdered on orders of Schultz, and Schultz was executed on orders of Lucky Luciano, who ordered Luciano's killing?  No one.  At least, no one successfully.  He would be brought to justice by federal prosecutor Thomas Dewey, and later was released in exchange for providing the U.S. military with links to the Sicilian mafia when we occupied Sicily in 1943.  But that's another story, told in chapter 9 of my other nonfiction work, Fascinating New Yorkers.  

And how is the Pine Plains barn doing today?  Just fine.  Yes, it's still standing, and ironically, serving legal moonshine to the public.  ln 2014 Governor Andrew Cuomo in his infinite wisdom sponsored legislation easing regulations on farm distillers.  As a result, distilleries have sprung up all over the state, making New York second only to California in craft distilleries.  Revamped, the old barn now houses Dutch's Spirits, a restaurant/distillery whose patrons sit at outdoor picnic tables, sipping cocktails and munching pizza.  And inside, in a handsome fame, is a portrait of Dutch Schultz, and it isn't a mug shot.  He may never have set foot there, but his image presides.

Source note: This post was inspired by Devorah Lev-Tov's article, "Moonshine Made Here, and Now Legal," in the Metropolitan Section of the New York Times of Sunday, November 15, 2020; most of its content comes from that source.  

©  2020  Clifford Browder

#cliffbrowderbooks

486. Joyous Queerdom

                            Joyous Queerdom

                                                                  #cliffbrowderbooks

Consider this scene, which has just come to my attention:

• Aerialists swinging upside down in the neon-colored air high above hundreds of enthralled partygoers;
• Glittering go-go dancers spinning in cages high above a crowded dance floor that pulsates to booming disco;
• Drag queens with flaring pink or platinum blond hair performing as pole dancers, fire breathers, stilt walkers, and clowns;
• A chaotic energy infusing performers and audience alike and proclaiming to the world that this scene of total freedom welcomes everyone.

Coney Island and the circus slammed together in a gay discotheque?  No, not really.  Or Bedlam mixed with Bellevue on a dance floor?  Wrong again.

So what is -- or was -- it?  The House of Yes, an evolved hippie/punk scene that became, pre-pandemic, a hugely successful slice of queer New York nightlife in a hangar-like space in a former industrial stretch of Bushwick, Brooklyn.  It was wild, it was crazy, it was stupendously and noisily creative, as only New York can be.

And today?  Zilch.  It was closed down by the city in March, as COVID-19 spread.  In July it reopened as a ghost of itself, serving food and drinks outside.  Then in August it was closed again because of violations of the state's mandate that food be served with every drink order.  Since then its creators have offered virtual dance parties and remote classes taught by resident performers, but whether it will ever be revived as the chaotic pre-pandemic scene of yore is problematic.

The House of Yes: the title intrigues me.  The word "no" in English has far more resonance than "yes," with its tail-end sibilant, but this "yes" was surely saying to the world that in this precious space everyone was welcome, and the weirder and wilder the better.  It reminds me of the triumphant "yes" of Mollie Bloom at the end of Joyce's Ulysses, a yea-saying that is far more than an acceptance of Leopold Bloom's proposal of marriage.  Mollie is saying "yes" to life, to the world: an upbeat ending to a masterpiece that might otherwise, in its totality,  seem depressing.

So if the House of Yes ever revives, will I go there?  Of course not.  My taste for wildness dates back to my younger days; I'm in a mood now for sanity and serenity, for reflection and calm.  Did I ever dance wildly?  You bet!  Long ago at the Goldbug in the West Village, where you had to get past a Mafia gatekeeper to immerse yourself in the deafening music and crowded strobe-lit dance floor where conversation was unthinkable; all you could do was dance, and believe me, it wasn't a waltz.  Long, long ago.

But I hope the House of Yes does in time revive, with all the wildness and weirdness of its former days.  They were an explosion of creativity and a fountain of joy.  I wish them vast success.

Source note: This post was inspired by Julia Carmel's article "Pining for a Brooklyn Club's Comeback," in the Metropolitan section of the  New York Times of Sunday, November 8, 2020.  The article is richly illustrated.

©  2020  Clifford Browder