|Listed in category:
Have one to sell?

The Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and...

by Shorto, Russell | PB | Good
Condition:
Good
Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, ... Read moreabout condition
4 available / 11 sold
Price:
US $5.21
ApproximatelyC $7.13
Breathe easy. Free shipping and returns.
Shipping:
Free Economy Shipping. See detailsfor shipping
Estimated between Thu, May 9 and Sat, May 11 to 43230
Estimated delivery dates - opens in a new window or tab include seller's handling time, origin ZIP Code, destination ZIP Code and time of acceptance and will depend on shipping service selected and receipt of cleared paymentcleared payment - opens in a new window or tab. Delivery times may vary, especially during peak periods.
Located in: Aurora, Illinois, United States
Returns:
30 days return. Seller pays for return shipping. See details- for more information about returns
Payments:
     

Shop with confidence

eBay Money Back Guarantee
Get the item you ordered or your money back. 

Seller information

Registered as a Business Seller
Seller assumes all responsibility for this listing.
eBay item number:194040049556
Last updated on May 02, 2024 21:52:33 EDTView all revisionsView all revisions

Item specifics

Condition
Good
A book that has been read but is in good condition. Very minimal damage to the cover including scuff marks, but no holes or tears. The dust jacket for hard covers may not be included. Binding has minimal wear. The majority of pages are undamaged with minimal creasing or tearing, minimal pencil underlining of text, no highlighting of text, no writing in margins. No missing pages. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections. See all condition definitionsopens in a new window or tab
Seller Notes
“Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, ...
Binding
Paperback
Weight
0 lbs
Product Group
Book
IsTextBook
No
ISBN
1400078679
Book Title
Island at the Center of the World : The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony That Shaped America
Item Length
7.9in
Publisher
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Publication Year
2005
Format
Trade Paperback
Language
English
Item Height
0.8in
Author
Russell Shorto
Genre
Biography & Autobiography, History, Political Science
Topic
American Government / Local, United States / State & Local / Middle Atlantic (DC, De, Md, NJ, NY, Pa), United States / Colonial Period (1600-1775), General, Historical, Modern / 17th Century
Item Width
5.1in
Item Weight
13.4 Oz
Number of Pages
416 Pages

About this product

Product Information

In a riveting, groundbreaking narrative, Russell Shorto tells the story of New Netherland, the Dutch colony which pre-dated the Pilgrims and established ideals of tolerance and individual rights that shaped American history. "Astonishing . . . A book that will permanently alter the way we regard our collective past." -- The New York Times When the British wrested New Amsterdam from the Dutch in 1664, the truth about its thriving, polyglot society began to disappear into myths about an island purchased for 24 dollars and a cartoonish peg-legged governor. But the story of the Dutch colony of New Netherland was merely lost, not destroyed: 12,000 pages of its records-recently declared a national treasure-are now being translated. Russell Shorto draws on this remarkable archive in The Island at the Center of the World , which has been hailed by The New York Times as "a book that will permanently alter the way we regard our collective past." The Dutch colony pre-dated the "original" thirteen colonies, yet it seems strikingly familiar. Its capital was cosmopolitan and multi-ethnic, and its citizens valued free trade, individual rights, and religious freedom. Their champion was a progressive, young lawyer named Adriaen van der Donck, who emerges in these pages as a forgotten American patriot and whose political vision brought him into conflict with Peter Stuyvesant, the autocratic director of the Dutch colony. The struggle between these two strong-willed men laid the foundation for New York City and helped shape American culture. The Island at the Center of the World uncovers a lost world and offers a surprising new perspective on our own.

Product Identifiers

Publisher
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
ISBN-10
1400078679
ISBN-13
9781400078677
eBay Product ID (ePID)
43111269

Product Key Features

Book Title
Island at the Center of the World : The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony That Shaped America
Author
Russell Shorto
Format
Trade Paperback
Language
English
Topic
American Government / Local, United States / State & Local / Middle Atlantic (DC, De, Md, NJ, NY, Pa), United States / Colonial Period (1600-1775), General, Historical, Modern / 17th Century
Publication Year
2005
Genre
Biography & Autobiography, History, Political Science
Number of Pages
416 Pages

Dimensions

Item Length
7.9in
Item Height
0.8in
Item Width
5.1in
Item Weight
13.4 Oz

Additional Product Features

Lc Classification Number
F128.4.S56 2004
Reviews
"Astonishing . . . A book that will permanently alter the way we regard our collective past." --The New York Times "A tour de force. . . . The dramatic story of New York's origins is splendidly told. . . . A masterpiece of storytelling and first-rate intellectual history." --The Wall Street Journal "As readable as a finely written novel. . . . social history in the Barbara Tuchman tradition."--San Jose Mercury News "Literary alchemy. . . . Shorto's exhaustively researched and highly readable book is a stirring re-examination. . . . Brilliant and magisterial narrative history" -Chicago Tribune "Masterly . . . A new foundation myth . . .Shorto writes at all times with passion, verve, nuance and considerable humor." -The New York Times Book Review "Rattlingly well tolda terrific popular history about a past that beautifully illuminates the present." -The Sunday Times[London] "A dramatic, kaleidoscopic and, on the whole, quite wonderful book. . . . This is one of those rare books in the picked-over field of colonial history, a whole new picture, a thrown-open window. . . . [A] full-blooded resurrection of an unfamiliar American patriot." The New York Observer "Deserves to be a bestseller . . .narratively irresistible, intellectually provocative, historically invaluable" The Guardian "A spry, informative history. . . . Shorto supplies lucid, comprehensive contexts in which to see the colony's promise and turmoil. . . . [D]elivers the goods with clarity, color and zest." The Seattle Times "As Russell Shorto demonstrates in this mesmerizing volume, the story we don't know is even more fascinating than the one we do . . .Historians must now seriously rethink what they previously understand about New York's origins . . ." The New York Post "Russell Shorto fires a powerful salvo on the war of words over America's origins . . . he mounts a convincing case [that], in Shorto's words, 'Manhattan is where America began.' Readers . . find themselves absorbed in what can only be described as a plot, revolving around two strong men with conflicting visions of the future of Dutch North America." America: The National Catholic Weekly "Fascinating. . . . A richly nuanced portrait set against events on the world stage."--Time Out New York "Shorto brings this . . . deeply influential chapter in the city's history to vivid, breathtaking life [with] a talent for enlivening meticulous research and painting on a broad canvas. . . . In elegant, erudite prose, he manages to capture the lives of disparate historical characters, from kings to prostitutes." Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Remarkable. . . . [C]ompulsively interesting. . . . . Shorto argues that during the brief decades of its Dutch colonial existence Manhattan had already found, once and for all, its tumultuously eclectic soul." New Statesman "Shorto delineates the characters in this nonfiction drama convincingly and compellingly." Fort Worth Star-Telegram "[An] absorbing, sensual, sometimes bawdy narrative featuring whores, pirates, explorers and scholars. With clarity and panache, Shorto briskly conveys the complex history of the age of exploration." Times Literary Supplement  "Shorto's book makes a con, "Astonishing . . . A book that will permanently alter the way we regard our collective past." --The New York Times "A tour de force. . . . The dramatic story of New York's origins is splendidly told. . . . A masterpiece of storytelling and first-rate intellectual history." --The Wall Street Journal "As readable as a finely written novel. . . . social history in the Barbara Tuchman tradition." --San Jose Mercury News "Literary alchemy. . . . Shorto's exhaustively researched and highly readable book is a stirring re-examination. . . . Brilliant and magisterial narrative history" -Chicago Tribune "Masterly . . . A new foundation myth . . .Shorto writes at all times with passion, verve, nuance and considerable humor." -The New York Times Book Review "Rattlingly well tolda terrific popular history about a past that beautifully illuminates the present." -The Sunday Times [London] "A dramatic, kaleidoscopic and, on the whole, quite wonderful book. . . . This is one of those rare books in the picked-over field of colonial history, a whole new picture, a thrown-open window. . . . [A] full-blooded resurrection of an unfamiliar American patriot." The New York Observer "Deserves to be a bestseller . . .narratively irresistible, intellectually provocative, historically invaluable" The Guardian "A spry, informative history. . . . Shorto supplies lucid, comprehensive contexts in which to see the colony's promise and turmoil. . . . [D]elivers the goods with clarity, color and zest." The Seattle Times "As Russell Shorto demonstrates in this mesmerizing volume, the story we don't know is even more fascinating than the one we do . . .Historians must now seriously rethink what they previously understand about New York's origins . . ." The New York Post "Russell Shorto fires a powerful salvo on the war of words over America's origins . . . he mounts a convincing case [that], in Shorto's words, 'Manhattan is where America began.' Readers . . find themselves absorbed in what can only be described as a plot, revolving around two strong men with conflicting visions of the future of Dutch North America." America: The National Catholic Weekly "Fascinating. . . . A richly nuanced portrait set against events on the world stage." --Time Out New York "Shorto brings this . . . deeply influential chapter in the city's history to vivid, breathtaking life [with] a talent for enlivening meticulous research and painting on a broad canvas. . . . In elegant, erudite prose, he manages to capture the lives of disparate historical characters, from kings to prostitutes." Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Remarkable. . . . [C]ompulsively interesting. . . . . Shorto argues that during the brief decades of its Dutch colonial existence Manhattan had already found, once and for all, its tumultuously eclectic soul." New Statesman "Shorto delineates the characters in this nonfiction drama convincingly and compellingly." Fort Worth Star-Telegram "[An] absorbing, sensual, sometimes bawdy narrative featuring whores, pirates, explorers and scholars. With clarity and panache, Shorto briskly conveys the complex history of the age of exploration." Times Literary Supplement  "Shorto's book ma
Copyright Date
2004
Target Audience
Trade
Lccn
2003-055227
Dewey Decimal
974.7/102
Dewey Edition
21
Illustrated
Yes

Item description from the seller

ThriftBooks

ThriftBooks

99% positive feedback
17.5M items sold
Usually responds within 24 hours

Detailed seller ratings

Average for the last 12 months

Accurate description
4.9
Reasonable shipping cost
5.0
Shipping speed
5.0
Communication
4.9

Seller feedback (5,170,950)

b***v (375)- Feedback left by buyer.
Past 6 months
Verified purchase
Swift delivery, excellent condition, highly recommend!
a***r (115)- Feedback left by buyer.
Past 6 months
Verified purchase
Quick shipping. Great condition. Recommended seller.
x***d (172)- Feedback left by buyer.
Past month
Verified purchase
An excellent history.
See all feedback

Product ratings and reviews

4.6
11 product ratings
  • 10 users rated this 5 out of 5 stars
  • 0 users rated this 4 out of 5 stars
  • 0 users rated this 3 out of 5 stars
  • 0 users rated this 2 out of 5 stars
  • 1 users rated this 1 out of 5 stars

Would recommend

Good value

Compelling content

Most relevant reviews

  • Top favourable review

    Opening a window into New York City's Early Days!!!!

    I am a lifelong student of History..... This book, very well researched and documented era, and opens a window on what many considered a lost era of History, the Dutch Colony of New Amsterdam, Manhattan Island. It reads easy, and engrosses you with the tale of a myriad of native american and dutch aspects and people that makes this book a page turner!

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-Owned

  • Top critical review

    Great book, poor publisher.

    I thought the book was hardbound. However, the worst part of the book is that the printing is so small. It wears on your eyes. I should have purchased the electronic version. Its any easier read.

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: NewSold by: bestbates

  • Interesting history.

    Story is about the early Dutch based on the translation of early Dutch court records who were meticulous record keepers. They went to court over the smallest perceived infraction. Interesting and amusing. A part of American history that is rarely told.

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: thrift.books

  • You must read this one!!!!

    Should be required for anyone who’s visits or lives in New York and the five boroughs. This is a masterpiece of a book!! Nnn

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: betterworldbooks

  • Island at the center of the world

    Excellent read. Exhaustive in-depth research. Highly recommend.

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-OwnedSold by: thrift.books