A Coney Island Reader: Through Dizzy Gates of Illusion

The ever-contradictory nature of Coney Island is brought to light in this collection of literature from some of the 19th and 20th centuries’ most prominent writers. The brothers Parascandola, a professor of English and historian of medicine, respectively, present Coney Island as a multifaceted location: relaxing ocean-side resort, site of three great amusement parks, a place of violence and racial tension, and repository of history deserving preservation. Organized chronologically in four sections, the selections begin with a Walt Whitman essay and include such writers as José Martí, Maxim Gorky, Delmore Schwartz, Djuna Barnes, Colson Whitehead, and even a press release published in 2009 by the Coney Island Development Corporation that presents its rezoning plan. It is a diverse collection that crosses genres and gives readers a taste of the best and worst of Coney Island. The editors also present an appendix of related movies and music. One downside is that many of the selections have been excerpted from longer works. Still, it succeeds in demonstrating Coney Island’s “timeless” nature as a place that “continues to be reborn.” Illus. [em](Dec.) [/em]