DC Washington Books

I highly recommend this wonderful presentation of the story of Washington's Jewish community. I was fortunate enough to see the exhibition that culminated in the publication of this book, and reading the book is like another visit to the exhibit, with the added advantage of being able to read the fascinating essays at my leisure. The story of a community is many stories, and the editors present a compelling overview of a 350 year saga.

SInce I grew up in Washington, D.C., the daughter of a grocer whose family lived above the store at first, I was expecting something more like what I saw at the 350 years of Judaism exhibit- lots of picture of the grocery stores, the dances on the JCC roof, fraternities and sororities, the large percentage of jewish students at Roosevelt and Coolidge High Schools, the Gallatin St. Hot Shoppe, etc. It seemed to me this book, although it had some of that, focused on those families who became very wealthy, built big projects, etc., not on the folks who made a living and more, but were still simple family folks who struggled so their kids could go to college, gave them simple bar mitzvahs and really nice weddings and were very proud of those accomplishments.

I really enjoy the Let's Go series, and have used them as a college student traveling overseas, through graduation and during my work experience in eastern Europe.
I was tranferred back to Washington, D.C., and thought of no better reference book for cool, interesting, and affordable (!) sightseeing and entertainment options in the area than Let's Go.

This book, like all other books I've read in the Let's Go series, displays standard characterisitics:

Strengths: lyrical, entertaining prose, wide range of places and things described, in both tastes and prices. Sometimes when I'm feeling a little "wanderlust," I'll glance over my Let's Go books from overseas trips and just enjoy the write-ups of local history and sights!

Weaknesses: some things are out of date by the time the book is published, and I've found the indexes in the Let's Go books to be weak for the most part. You often can't find very common things in the index based on how you expect them to be listed. They are either in the index under an obscure heading, or simply not indexed. Minor qualm.

Another nice feature of this book is that it is written with interns or recent graduates who are moving to the area for their first jobs in mind.

So whether you're coming for a few days and want a guide book, moving for the summer as an intern, or perhaps taking up residence for an extended stay, I'd highly recommend this book.

I've always been a faithful Lonely Planet user, but my old standard didn't stack up to this Let's Go. Since it is the 2004 edition, it has much more updated info than LP, and I've only found one mistake so far (that being that a camping store supposedly located downtown is not there because it looks like they're turning that block into a parking garage). It's only other downfall that I've noticed is that it's a little heavy on the nightlife side, and I'd like to see more of the suggested walking tours that they have in the front of the book. Otherwise, it has my reccommendation!

I have to admit, although beautifully produced, this slim book about one of America's greatest urban parks left me a little disappointed. It consists of four main sections followed by four appendices, interwoven with photographs, paintings, sketches, and a few maps. The first section presents a brief, broad overview of the park's history. The second section focuses on the highly influential 1902 McMillen Plan, and discusses some of the backroom politicking surrounding it. The third section is a brief overview landscape architecture pioneer Frederick Law Olmsted and his family firm. The fourth main section consists almost entirely of excerpts from the Olmsted's 1918 report on the park. The appendices include a brief chronology of park administration (buried in here is a lovely little anecdote about Teddy Roosevelt skinny-dipping!), a brief overview of the park flora, a little on bridges across and within the park, and some basic visitor information.

The material isn't bad, it's just somewhat dry, and reads somewhat like an official history or publication. It would have been nice to get a little of the social history of the park, more on how people actually used it, possibly culled from newspaper archives and the like. It also would have been nice to hear a little more on some of the problems faced by the park, such as homeless squatters, pollution, and safety and crime (the most famous example being the discovery of Chandra Levy's corpse). Another area not touched upon is the fauna, for example, there's a huge deer problem in the park, as well as numerous red foxes, and recently, confirmed coyote sightings. There's definitely room for a more comprehensive book on the park, for example, the section on bridges was great -- but there are plenty more interesting examples that could have been included. Similarly, while the photos and illustrations were all very nice (most were drawn from collections at the Library of Congress and DC Public Library), there wasn't a whole lot of variety to them -- they tend to show similar sun-dappled views of the creek surrounded by foliage. It would have also been nice to get an orienting map at the very front of the book, instead of toward the end.

In sum, it's not a bad book, just a little thin for such an important part of Washington's cultural and geographic history.

A meticulously researched, beautifully written treasure, filled-with fascinating photographs, plans, drawings and paintings as well as apt quotations. Even includes a map of plant associations and lists of the different species as well as places to picnic, golf, ride and play ball to be found in Washington's planned city wilderness. A fitting tribute to the positive impact of the Olmsted family of landscape architects on the nation's capital.

Not being an ethnographer, urbanist, or sociologist, I almost hesitate to comment on this book, since it is rooted in those fields. However, since it is written at a level appropriate to a general audience, and concerns my home town, it seems reasonable to do so. The brief book's six chapters seek to explore the ethnography of Washington, D.C.'s Mt. Pleasant neighborhood during a time of transition in the mid-1980s. Williams attempts to disguise her study's location (which was also her home) by calling it "Elm Valley" and using fake street names, but people from D.C. will recognize Mt. P pretty quickly. Williams is a good writer and each individual section reads well, however, the chapters feel quite separate and it is sometimes a bit of a struggle to connect them to any larger thesis.

Chapter 1 briefly discusses the common "myths" of Washington as a city and traces the migration of one extended family from the Carolinas to D.C. Chapter 2 focuses on a particular block and its inhabitants, in an attempt to demonstrate how the prevalence of migrants from the south (such as the family from Chapter 1) has led to a local microculture which mimics those origins, especially in relation to food and gardening, which are treated in some detail. Chapter 3 shifts to another block, where an old apartment building faces a series of row houses. Williams spent a great deal of time talking to inhabitants of both, and is able to paint a fine picture of the dichotomy between them. Renters vs. home-owners, gentrifiers, asians, etc. However this gets a little bogged down in the finer semantic distinctions between "home" and "house", and veers off-course a little into a critique of how the idea of "home" has been culturally sold in post-war America.

Chapter 4 discusses the ethnography of "Main Street" (ie. Mt. Pleasant Street), and is striking in that the issues of twenty years ago remain largely unresolved, and if anything, are only heightened. For example, There are still economic tensions between shopping at local markets and an excursion to suburban supermarkets (although this is changing rapidly as chain stores take root several blocks away) and the issue if people hanging out on the street at all hours remains. However, the "stalled" gentrification has clearly been "unstalled" as every year sees more upscale-oriented businesses dotting the streetscape (such as a coffeehouse called "Dos Gringos", a bar called "Marx Cafe", and a boutique pizzeria).

Chapter 5 focuses on television viewing habits, contrasting the aspirational viewing habits of the poorer renters (who favor "Dallas", "Dynasty" and other such "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" viewing) with that of the more affluent homeowners (who favor "Hill Street Blues", "St. Elsewhere", and other such "gritty" representations of big city life). Williams has some nice analysis here, pointing out the obvious problems of the wealthy watching shows which more or less reinforce stereotypes of "city life", and how children of all classes watch the same shows. But this veers off-course again in a mini-rant against how children's programming has become commodified and exists primarily as a marketing vehicle. None of this is untrue, it's just not particularly germane.

The final chapter begins by outlining two grassroots efforts at creating community: a street festival highlighting the cultural traditions of Mt. Pleasant's diverse inhabitants, and a homeowner-led attempt to gain "historic" designation for the neighborhood. Then, in a hasty ten final pages, Williams attempts to pull everything together into a meaningful conclusion. Somewhat unhelpfully, she concludes that "the problems of Elm Valley are inseparable from the problems of militaristic consumer capitalism." To be more precise: "The problem in Elm Valley was that newer residents lent time and resources too rarely and that they too often undertook efforts in their own interest without considering others' sentiments and needs. Middle-class people...did not really know how to root their connections and resources in local life. Despite their rhetoric, they did not really know how to live in an integrated neighborhood." This is rather an interesting conclusion, since throughout the book Williams has treated all perspectives and demographics with respect and clarity (despite somewhat romanticing the 1950s-70s). So it's somewhat surprising to learn at the end that basically it's all the fault of those damn yuppies. Williams does offer some salves, such as the idea that the people of the neighborhood must "democratically invent community" through the "construction of a ritual life" (such as that of festivals or the faux-Carolina of the back alleys), and need to build a "world of routine interactions" in such shared spaces as day-care centers, the thrift store, and the farmer's market. Presumably the idea is that by these kind of regular interactions will foster cross-cultural understanding.This all sounds nice, but is contradictory to Williams' own findings that spaces currently shared by different ethnic and class groups (such as apartment hallways or alleys behind houses), can serve as catalysts for the mistrust and dislike of "the other."

Overall, the book provides strong examples of urban ethnographic fieldwork and writing, while being somewhat weak on context and focus. For example, the analysis in Chapter 2 of how neighbors interact via their backyards and shared alleys is striking. Another example of her keen ear appears in Chapter 3, where she explores the differing perceptions of public space, such as hallways and laundry rooms, between longtime black residents of the apartment building, and newer Latino residents. However, the racial and class issues she delves into lack solid contextual grounding. It would have been nice if she'd been able to mine some census or city data to empirically demonstrate how the neighborhood's demographics have changed over time. And despite the centrality of the housing and rental market to her study, she kind of dances around it, failing to provide any real data on how housing prices have escalated disproportionately to wages in the period she examines. Still, this is a good quick read for anyone with a strong interest in Washington, D.C.'s ethnography, or simply as an example of how to translate painstaking fieldwork into a narrative.

Note: Gabriella Modan's "Turf Wars: Discourse, Diversity, and the Politics of Place" picks up the ethnographic and economic story of Mt. Pleasant almost twenty years later.

Not being an ethnographer, urbanist, or sociologist, I almost hesitate to comment on this book, since it is rooted in those fields. However, since it is written at a level appropriate to a general audience, and concerns my home town, it seems reasonable to do so. The brief book's six chapters seek to explore the ethnography of Washington, D.C.'s Mt. Pleasant neighborhood during a time of transition in the mid-1980s. Williams attempts to disguise her study's location (which was also her home) by calling it "Elm Valley" and using fake street names, but people from D.C. will recognize Mt. P pretty quickly. Williams is a good writer and each individual section reads well, however, the chapters feel quite separate and it is sometimes a bit of a struggle to connect them to any larger thesis.

Chapter 1 briefly discusses the common "myths" of Washington as a city and traces the migration of one extended family from the Carolinas to D.C. Chapter 2 focuses on a particular block and its inhabitants, in an attempt to demonstrate how the prevalence of migrants from the south (such as the family from Chapter 1) has led to a local microculture which mimics those origins, especially in relation to food and gardening, which are treated in some detail. Chapter 3 shifts to another block, where an old apartment building faces a series of row houses. Williams spent a great deal of time talking to inhabitants of both, and is able to paint a fine picture of the dichotomy between them. Renters vs. home-owners, gentrifiers, asians, etc. However this gets a little bogged down in the finer semantic distinctions between "home" and "house", and veers off-course a little into a critique of how the idea of "home" has been culturally sold in post-war America.

Chapter 4 discusses the ethnography of "Main Street" (ie. Mt. Pleasant Street), and is striking in that the issues of twenty years ago remain largely unresolved, and if anything, are only heightened. For example, There are still economic tensions between shopping at local markets and an excursion to suburban supermarkets (although this is changing rapidly as chain stores take root several blocks away) and the issue if people hanging out on the street at all hours remains. However, the "stalled" gentrification has clearly been "unstalled" as every year sees more upscale-oriented businesses dotting the streetscape (such as a coffeehouse called "Dos Gringos", a bar called "Marx Cafe", and a boutique pizzeria).

Chapter 5 focuses on television viewing habits, contrasting the aspirational viewing habits of the poorer renters (who favor "Dallas", "Dynasty" and other such "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" viewing) with that of the more affluent homeowners (who favor "Hill Street Blues", "St. Elsewhere", and other such "gritty" representations of big city life). Williams has some nice analysis here, pointing out the obvious problems of the wealthy watching shows which more or less reinforce stereotypes of "city life", and how children of all classes watch the same shows. But this veers off-course again in a mini-rant against how children's programming has become commodified and exists primarily as a marketing vehicle. None of this is untrue, it's just not particularly germane.

The final chapter begins by outlining two grassroots efforts at creating community: a street festival highlighting the cultural traditions of Mt. Pleasant's diverse inhabitants, and a homeowner-led attempt to gain "historic" designation for the neighborhood. Then, in a hasty ten final pages, Williams attempts to pull everything together into a meaningful conclusion. Somewhat unhelpfully, she concludes that "the problems of Elm Valley are inseparable from the problems of militaristic consumer capitalism." To be more precise: "The problem in Elm Valley was that newer residents lent time and resources too rarely and that they too often undertook efforts in their own interest without considering others' sentiments and needs. Middle-class people...did not really know how to root their connections and resources in local life. Despite their rhetoric, they did not really know how to live in an integrated neighborhood." This is rather an interesting conclusion, since throughout the book Williams has treated all perspectives and demographics with respect and clarity (despite somewhat romanticing the 1950s-70s). So it's somewhat surprising to learn at the end that basically it's all the fault of those damn yuppies. Williams does offer some salves, such as the idea that the people of the neighborhood must "democratically invent community" through the "construction of a ritual life" (such as that of festivals or the faux-Carolina of the back alleys), and need to build a "world of routine interactions" in such shared spaces as day-care centers, the thrift store, and the farmer's market. Presumably the idea is that by these kind of regular interactions will foster cross-cultural understanding.This all sounds nice, but is contradictory to Williams' own findings that spaces currently shared by different ethnic and class groups (such as apartment hallways or alleys behind houses), can serve as catalysts for the mistrust and dislike of "the other."

Overall, the book provides strong examples of urban ethnographic fieldwork and writing, while being somewhat weak on context and focus. For example, the analysis in Chapter 2 of how neighbors interact via their backyards and shared alleys is striking. Another example of her keen ear appears in Chapter 3, where she explores the differing perceptions of public space, such as hallways and laundry rooms, between longtime black residents of the apartment building, and newer Latino residents. However, the racial and class issues she delves into lack solid contextual grounding. It would have been nice if she'd been able to mine some census or city data to empirically demonstrate how the neighborhood's demographics have changed over time. And despite the centrality of the housing and rental market to her study, she kind of dances around it, failing to provide any real data on how housing prices have escalated disproportionately to wages in the period she examines. Still, this is a good quick read for anyone with a strong interest in Washington, D.C.'s ethnography, or simply as an example of how to translate painstaking fieldwork into a narrative.

Note: Gabriella Modan's "Turf Wars: Discourse, Diversity, and the Politics of Place" picks up the ethnographic and economic story of Mt. Pleasant almost twenty years later.

A neat book that chronicles the inaugural season of the Washington Nationals in 2005. It also represents the author's first book out of the chute -- and he has written a winner. The book is written from the perspective of a fan -- a seasoned fan who has watched baseball for many years -- and provides many of the highlights and lowlights of the Nationals first season -- and insight into the mind of a fan who is passionate about baseball and captures the essence of baseball in DC. I attended a few of the games he wrote about and he captures the crowds and the games quite well and the social milieu that is Washington DC and RFK Stadium. Other than a few typos here and there, the book is worth the read if you are a true fan of baseball. While sometimes discursive and pendantic, it balances digging in on some topics and raising other issues that are worthy of consideration. Now that the Nationals are no longer owned by MLB and will be moving into a new stadium in a few years, this book represents an important benchmark regarding the "history" of the Nationals. I recommend this book to others interested in the Nationals or a different take on the national pastime.

The most interesting thing about this collection is that the author writes in a variety of different voices in a convincing way. Anyone who's toiled at a daily newspaper will appreciate the one about the sad reporter. There's a lot of sadness here, the kind of short stories that kind of put you in a funk! But in a good way.
I bumped into the author in an unlikely setting and immediately ordered this book, and I'm glad I did.

This book contains wonderful photographs and brief descriptions of many of Washington's well known and lesser known sites. However, it is already out of date since the WWII Memorial is not included. The book also lacks photos of some of the sites it discusses. However, this doesn't detract from the book's impact. I look forward to it being updated and expanded.

I really enjoyed this book. As a baseball fan (and a NYY fan), I had to read about Ruth. A great person from some aspects, this book took a look at the Babe from every point of view. It showed Ruth from his private and public life, his love life to his Saturday night (to Sunday morning)life. This was a very good book.

This book is an excellent visual record of Washington baseball in it's own right but is outstanding as a companion piece to Tom Deveaux's The Washington Senators, 1901-1971 (a top notch history containing no pictures). It's great to put a face to a name from a bygone era. This book is chock full of historical photos (all b&w) that extend beyond just the Senators. After all this glowing praise, why do I rate it only 4 stars? I received it a week before Ted Williams' passing. In going back through it a week later, I was struck at the gloss job that the expansion Senators (1961-1971) received. At 14 pages (out of 128), the Senators of my youth are barely represented here. One photo each of Ted Williams and Frank Howard? Reprehensible!!! Hondo isn't even given an action photo (of him crushing another homer) but a tame head shot. Sort of reminds me of James R. Hartley's Washington's Expansion Senators (1961-1971). All in all, a must have that could have been so much better.

Though not all the small details and streets are noted on this laminated folding map, I find it very useful to keep in my glove compartment or purse. You never know when you might need to find a different route or find your destination so the size and durability of this map makes it ideal for keeping on-hand. The National Mall is present which makes it ideal for tourists and residents alike.