Sign-In
Cart
Knickerbocker's History of New York, Complete
Hardcover
Publisher: Bibliotech Press
Published: Feb 17 2025
Pages: 270
Weight: 1.10
Height: 0.81 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
In every reader's life there are a few books which seem to come out of nowhere at just the right moment to surprise and delight and affirm your hope that there are still treasures lurking in the double-stacked shelves. This was that sort of book for me.
Published in 1809, the young Irving's book is a satirical novel/history of the Dutch New Netherlands, ostensibly written by a crotchety old fellow named Diedrich Knickerbocker - and printed by his former landlord after the author mysteriously disappeared while still owing a considerable amount of rent. Irving himself engaged in a sort of viral marketing campaign for A History of New York, writing missing person notices for Knickerbocker in several New York papers prior to publication.
Knickerbocker's history of New York begins with the creation of the world, of course. It moves on to the origin of species and the peopling of Earth, then jumps right into the discovery of the New World by Europeans (especially Henry Hudson). There's a fantastic, biting chapter on the ethics of colonization and relations with the Indians. The bulk of the history, however, has to do with the gloriously comical reigns of the three Dutch governors of The New Netherlands. There's a lot of inside-baseball for people familiar with the politics of New York in Irving's own day, but unfamiliarity in no way detracts from enjoyment of the book.
A History of New York is hilarious, and terrifically entertaining. There's nothing quite like it in early American literature. Looking for comparisons, I can only turn to Tom Jones, Tristram Shandy, and maybe Rabelais. Supposedly Byron and Dickens, among others, were huge fans of this book. I read that Dickens carried a copy with him for years. A History of New York ought be more widely read and appreciated than it is today. It's a real classic of American literature and belongs up on the top shelf with the likes of Moby Dick and Huckleberry Finn, etc. (Graychin)
About the Author
Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 - November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He wrote the short stories Rip Van Winkle (1819) and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1820), both of which appear in his collection The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works include biographies of Oliver Goldsmith, Muhammad, and George Washington, as well as several histories of 15th-century Spain that deal with subjects such as the Alhambra, Christopher Columbus, and the Moors. Irving served as American ambassador to Spain in the 1840s.
Irving was born and raised in Manhattan to a merchant family. He made his literary debut in 1802 with a series of observational letters to the Morning Chronicle, written under the pseudonym Jonathan Oldstyle. He temporarily moved to England for the family business in 1815, where he achieved fame with the publication of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. which was serialized from 1819 to 1820. He continued to publish regularly throughout his life, and he completed a five-volume biography of George Washington just eight months before his death at age 76 in Tarrytown, New York.
Irving was one of the first American writers to earn acclaim in Europe, and he encouraged other American authors such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Herman Melville, and Edgar Allan Poe. He was also admired by some British writers, including Lord Byron, Thomas Campbell, Charles Dickens, Mary Shelley, Francis Jeffrey, and Walter Scott. He advocated for writing as a legitimate profession and argued for stronger laws to protect American writers from copyright infringement. (wikipedia.org)
7 different editions
Also available
Also from
Irving, Washington
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories (Collector's Edition) (Laminated Hardback with Jacket)
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories (Royal Collector's Edition) (Case Laminate Hardcover with Jacket) (Annotated)
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Sixty Year Dream: Mandarin Companion Graded Readers Level 1, Traditional Character Edition
Irving, Washington
Paperback
A tour on the prairies. By: Washington Irving: Indians of North America, Oklahoma
Irving, Washington
Paperback
Christmas Classics Collection: The Nutcracker, Old Christmas, a Christmas Carol (Deluxe 3-Book Boxed Set)
Dickens, Charles
Hoffmann, E. T. a.
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: Washington Irving's Iconic American Ghost Story - The Headless Horseman Rides (Deluxe Hardbound Edition)
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
Old Christmas (Illustrated): Warm-Hearted Tales of Christmas Festivities & Celebrations
Irving, Washington
Paperback
A History Of New York ... To The End Of The Dutch Dynasty, By Diedrich Knickerbocker
Irving, Washington
Paperback
Whimsical Halloween: Spooky Folktales for Brave Kids I Halloween Stories for Kids I Gothic Stories for Children
Irving, Washington
Grimm, Brothers
Perrault, Charles
Paperback
The Alhambra; The Conquest of Granada; The Conquest of Spain; Spanish Voyages of Discovery
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Rocky Mountains: Ar Scenes, Incidents And Adventures In The Far West; Volume 1
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
Wolfert Webber Golden Dreams (16pt Large Print Edition) (Large Print Edition)
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Devil and Tom Walker: A Faustian Fable of Greed, Damnation & Deals with Darkness in Early America (Deluxe Hardbound Edition)
Zengerink, Tim
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle, and Other Stories (with an Introduction by Charles Addison Dawson)
Irving, Washington
Paperback
Les Humoristes ou le Château de Bracebridge. Traduit de l'anglais. Tome 2
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus: His Discovery and Exploration of the Americas
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus: Together With the Voyages of His Companions; Volume 1
Irving, Washington
Columbus, Christopher
Paperback
A History of New York (Royal Collector's Edition) (Case Laminate Hardcover with Jacket) (Annotated)
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
Notes And Journal Of Travel In Europe, 1804-1805
Club, Grolier
Irving, Washington
Ruzicka, Rudolph
Paperback
Tales of the Alhambra: To Which Are Added Legends of the Conquest of Spain
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Devil and Tom Walker: A Faustian Fable of Greed, Damnation & Deals with Darkness in Early America
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Adventures of Captain Bonneville, U. S. A., in the Rocky Mountains and the Far West
Bonneville, Benjamin Louis Eulalie De
Irving, Washington
Paperback
Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving illustrated by Arthur Rackham: illustrated by Arthur Rackham
Rackham, Arthur
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle: The 1864 and 1919 Classic Edition with Original Illustrations
Irving, Washington
Paperback
Rip Van Winkle; and, The legend of Sleepy Hollow. By: Washington Irving ( with fifty -three illustrations )
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: Introduction by Marcia Lynn McClure
Irving, Washington
McClure, Marcia Lynn
Paperback
Astoria (a Western Classic): True Life Tale of the Dangerous and Daring Enterprise Beyond the Rocky Mountains
Irving, Washington
Paperback
Antología de Relatos Románticos Tormentosos
Gaskell, Elizabeth Cleghorn
Irving, Washington
Poe, Edgar Allan
Hardcover
The Home Book Of The Picturesque, Or, American Scenery, Art, And Literature
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Home Book Of The Picturesque, Or, American Scenery, Art, And Literature
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Adventures Of Captain Bonneville U. S. A.: In The Rocky Mountains And The Far West
Irving, Washington
Bonneville, Benjamin
Paperback
A History Of New York ... To The End Of The Dutch Dynasty, By Diedrich Knickerbocker
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Best of America: Seven Classic Short Stories
Irving, Washington
Hawthorne, Nathaniel
Poe, Edgar Allan
Audio Book
Astoria (Esprios Classics): or, Anecdotes of an Enterprise Beyond the Rocky Mountains
Irving, Washington
Paperback
A History of New York (Collector's Edition) (Laminated Hardback with Jacket)
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.: A Collection of Essays and Tales by Washington Irving
Irving, Washington
Paperback
Old Christmas: From the Sketch Book of Washington Irving
Irving, Washington
Caldecott, Randolph
Hardcover
A History of New-York, From the Beginning of the World to the end of the Dutch Dynasty; Containing,
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Rocky Mountains: Ar Scenes, Incidents And Adventures In The Far West; Volume 1
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Life of Oliver Goldsmith: The Citizen of the World, Continued. Miscellaneous
Irving, Washington
Paperback
Adventures Of Captain Bonneville, Or: Scenes Beyond The Rocky Mountains Of The Far West
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
A Chronicle of the Conquest of Granada. to Which Is Added Legends of the Conquest of Spain
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: A Haunted American Classic, First Published 1820
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Alhambra; The Conquest of Granada; The Conquest of Spain; Spanish Voyages of Discovery
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, by W. Irving, Abridged by the Same
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
Rip Van Winkle, As Played by Joseph Jefferson
Boucicault, Dion
Jefferson, Joseph
Irving, Washington
Hardcover
Biography and Poetical Remains of the Late Margaret Miller Davidson
Davidson, Margaret Miller
Irving, Washington
Paperback
La vie de Mahomet: L'épisode fondateur de la puissance de Mahomet: Le combat de Bedr
Irving, Washington
Paperback
The Romance of Mary W. Shelley, John Howard Payne and Washington Irving
Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft
Irving, Washington
Payne, John Howard
Paperback
Also in
Classic Fiction
James Fenimore Cooper: The Leatherstocking Tales Vol. 1 (Loa #26): The Pioneers / The Last of the Mohicans / The Prairie
Cooper, James Fenimore
Hardcover
Four Comedies: The Taming of the Shrew, a Midsummer Night's Dream, the Merchant of Venice, Twelfth Night
Shakespeare, William
Paperback
Before Gatsby: The First Twenty-Six Stories
Baughman, Judith
Fitzgerald, F. Scott
Bruccoli, Matthew J.
Paperback
The Princess Bride Deluxe Limited Edition: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure
Goldman, William
Paperback
The Fellowship of the Ring: Being the First Part of the Lord of the Rings
Tolkien, J. R. R.
Paperback
The Lord of the Rings Illustrated by the Author: Illustrated by J.R.R. Tolkien
Tolkien, J. R. R.
Hardcover
The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure
Goldman, William
Hardcover
The Pilgrim's Progress: A Readable Modern-Day Version of John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress (Revised and easy-to-read)
Vermilye, Alan
Bunyan, John
Paperback
Frankenstein, Dracula, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Shelley, Mary
Stevenson, Robert Louis
Stoker, Bram
Paperback
The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure
Goldman, William
Paperback