Enchanted New York takes a unique look at New York's history through a lens of magic and mysticism. Unfortunately, the writing left a lot to be desired. It was rather boring and not aided by quoting of large passages. Instead of a fun look at a much-less discussed part of New York's past, Dann crafted a book that read similar to a textbook. Dann also seems to believe that the past is full of real magic, rather than examining the how fanciful became lore. I find it interesting that Enchanted New York is published by a university press when the author does not look critically at the historic information.

Unlike old-world cities, New York has no ancient monuments to mark its magical adolescence. There is no local memory embedded in the landscape of celebrated witches, warlocks, gods, or goddesses--no myths of magical metamorphoses. As we follow Kevin Dann in geographical and chronological progression up Broadway from Battery Park to Inwood, each chapter provides a surprising picture of a city whose ever-changing fortunes have always been founded on magical activity.

I was so excited to read this book, I love history and all things strange. Unfortunately, I was very bored while reading and I had a hard time finishing,

The definition of “enchanted” here is pretty broad, and the material included ranges in how much interest it elicits and how well it meets the stricter definition of the word accordingly.

The best material and that which feels more like it meets the literal criteria is that which takes place before about 1930. After that, it’s mostly nuclear threats and UFOs, which don’t exactly say “enchanted” to me, even if the research on them was well executed.

Of far greater interest are earlier discussions of spiritualism and the occult. Many of the players are well known to most readers (the Fox sisters, Arthur Conan Doyle and Houdini, etc) but mesmerism and spiritualism are still the most interesting connectors between New York and the “enchanted,” and Darin does a particularly good job of linking events with specific locations in and around New York.

The inclusion of some of the more nebulously “magical” topics means that some sections of the book are of decidedly less import to the topic and interest to the reader, but it’s all well organized and well researched, and the narrative is smooth enough considering the unavoidable jump from one movement to the next, which is not always a slow and methodical transition, tasking the author with finding (and largely succeeding to find) other links from one to the next.

This is perhaps the most interesting book on New York I've ever read. It goes through the decades, showcasing everything that makes New York so special.

This was a really interesting and well written book about the history of Manhattan. I really enjoyed reading it.

Well, I expected more from the book. There are very interesting parts but I need more content and visualization. Sometimes I lost the track of the story and the chapters can be organized better. I will keep the copy in my Kindle because of some facts and intriguing chapters.

I REALLY wanted to love this book. New York City is one of my favorites to visit and finding someone who had delved into the hidden alcoves and alleyways to tell the untold stories was such an amazing draw for me. The information within was meticulously researched as many things were learned throughout the text, but I had a horrible time getting truly immersed in the writing that Kevin Dann was providing. I am currently a Master's student and have quite a few textbooks that are in the rotation, so unfortunately I felt that Enchanted New York: A Journey along Broadway through Manhattan's Magical Past, read more like a textbook. Maybe if I wasn't already reading several at the time of this book, it would have been more appealing. I think many people will be delighted with the intricate details provided, but it was not one for me.

Thank you Net Galley and the publisher for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I guess I should have read the full description of this book before requesting it. As a NY/History/anything paranormal fanatic, I should have loved this book.. but I didn't. The content was too matter-of-fact and the information did not include enough visual support.
I did learn quite a lot about New York's magical/esoteric/dark past. What shocked me the most was all the content regarding eugenics. I had no idea there was such a thing and that professionals used to gather to discuss this unnatural practice.

Kevin Dann's Enchanted New York is not nearly as enchanting as I had hoped. The book considers the presence of everything from mesmerism and phronology to Freemsonry and Spiritalusm from 1789 to the present occuring in a variety of places throughout New York. Dann's text is a strange combination of the academic and the magical--a blending that left me frustrated. Nevertheless, the topic of Enchanted New York is fascinating and readers especially interested in the academic study of mystical beliefs and practices will want to look through this volume.

A meticulously researched alternative travel guide/history to Manhattan. Dann traces New York's magical past--including mesmerism, psychoanalysis, seances, etc.--coupling locations with the stories linked to them, as well as archival images.

It's easy to think of New York as a center of commerce, publishing, theatre, etc., but this book adds another component to New York's storied past. I requested it during the height of the first wave of the pandemic, when New York was hard hit, imagining by the time I read it, I would be free to travel to New York again. No such luck, but it whetted my appetite to return to New York for a different kind of sightseeing.

As an archivist, I cannot even fathom the amount of research this comprehensive book required. I am in awe. #EnchantedNewYork #NetGalley

I was really excited to read this book. I love history and I love all things strange and unusual. So in theory I should have love this book.

But.

I. Was. So. Bored.

The book covers the history of all sorts of things magical and strange from 1789 to the present, chronicling where related events took place in New York throughout history.

In the first half of the book alone, we read about mesmerism, Freemasonry, Mormonism, phrenology, psychometry, cryptozoology, clairvoyance, and Spiritualism. The author quotes long passages from esoteric tomes of the day and drops names left and right.

It seems like it should be interesting, but the book has two things going against it:

1) It reads like a textbook. The writing is dry, boring, and longwinded:

"The rise of scientific anthropology and ethnology in the nineteenth century engendered the proliferation of conceptions of and definitions for magic predicated on the explicit and vehement rejection of it as real."

And that brings us to 2) The author writes as if he believes all the crazy crackpot humbuggery of the past centuries was in fact real magic. And what makes this really bad is that he comes across as arrogant, insulting the people who disagree with the realism of all this magic, while simultaneously insulting the people who DO believe in the few bits that he himself thinks are fake.

"Phrenology could have become a science and remains as pseudoscience only because our divinatory faculties remain asleep."

Asleep my faculties must remain, at least while reading this book, because instead of intriguing and entertaining me, it really just made me want to take a nap.

I love New York City. I am thoroughly obsessed. I have yet to visit myself, and have been waiting until my daughter is a little bit older, so she will be able to appreciate it as much as I do. As a result of my love for this city I have never been to, any book relating to the history of NYC especially and people/places/events in general, gets my attention immediately.

This would make for a great guide book, if you are interested in the magical side of the City That Never Sleeps. The author takes readers on a ride starting at the Battery and weaving up Broadway, making various pitstops at locations along the way to introduce a whole cast of characters that even many New Yorkers might not know once strolled the sidewalks of the most famous street in the world. We meet magicians, Freemasons, alchemists, seers, spiritualists, occultists, mediums, wizards, and fortune tellers, among many others.

As you can imagine, this is not your average history book. The author begins in 1789, the year George Washington was inaugurated as our first president. From there, the book is split into seven distinct chapters and stays on a roughly chronological course right up to the present day. Within each chapter, the author further breaks down the history by location. There are tons of stories and anecdotes, all related to that wider theme or topic of the chapter.

Personally I found some of the stories more interesting than others, only based on my preference - for example, I am not terribly interested in alchemy. Even so, those stories did not distract from those topics I was interested in.

I do have to say that this did take me longer than usual to get through, but I think that is more due to the nature of the book itself, almost as an encyclopedia of information. Some might be able to read this straight through cover to cover. Others might enjoy it more as one they skip around in, from one entry to another in a different chapter perhaps. I do think the book can be enjoyed either way.

Highly recommended, especially to those who love any and all history of NYC.

There are scores of books about New York City. But Enchanted New York takes us on a deeper journey into its magical past of Freemasons, occultists and seers. Beginning with Washington’s inauguration, the book charts a real journey down Broadway and forward in time.

Even though travel is discouraged right now due to the pandemic, I feel like I have taken a time machine to travel to old New York by reading this book. If you too feel like you have already visited NYC through the multitude of movies and shows set there, you will enjoy this well-researched look into the history of Enchanted New York. 4 stars!

Thanks to NYU Press and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Unexpectedly earnest and not quite my cup of tea. I love a good trip through NYC but didn't expect this to be about real magic.

I think this is just really not the book for me. It was billed as a history of New York, as well as a travel guide. It actually reads as an anti-science message telling the reader that science is wrong and that magic is what is really happening around us.

Given the style of the writing, I think that I would have enjoyed this more if it was billed as a fictional travel guide for the actual New York. Because this is written as non-fiction, I struggle to really get into the descriptions of magic throughout New York.

This was a super interesting read! The author gives us a taste of the history and locations in Manhattan through its relationship to magic. It was fascinating, enlightening, and filled with details and information. New York has always been on my bucket list and now I am more excited than ever to visit!

Fascinating and wonderful book! I have never been to New York, but have always loved reading anything about the city! Now I am more determined than ever to visit!!

i really enjoyed going through the history of New York, it was amazing that there was so much history from a place that I grew up in.

Who knew?! Now I have another reason to revisit my favorite city! I had no idea so much more magic existed there. I enjoyed the story of the Fox sisters and the Phelps family. Good spooky events. Just in time for Halloween, too. New York is a magical city in it's own right, this book just made it more fun!