Join a Virtual Book Talk on Wild City: A Brief History of NYC in 40 Animals

Today at noon, Untapped New York will be virtually welcoming writer Thomas Hynes, who has written a love letter to the surprising ecological diversity of New York in Wild City, an illustrated guide to 40 of the most well-known, notorious, mythical, and sublime non-human citizens of the five boroughs. On this virtual book talk, you’ll learn surprising new facts and revisit some animals you’re all too familiar with, such as the viral sensation “pizza rat.”

An unconventional wildlife guide, a concise environmental history, and a celebration of some of the city’s most surprising residents, Wild City is an enchanting illustrated volume about the infamous and legendary creatures who are as much New Yorkers as their human counterparts. Each story has a connection to the built environment of New York City, in locations beloved by our audience — the black crowned night herons on North Brother Island, geese with Captain Sully and the “miracle on the Hudson,” grasshopper sparrows at Fresh Kills Park, New York City’s former landfill. Hynes has also included the quirky animals: the green parrots from Australia who inadvertently made Brooklyn home, the sheep who help clean up Old St. Pat’s cathedral, Staten Island Chuck (or Charlotte), the groundhog who foretells the weather. An underlying narrative of the Wild City addresses the return of flora and fauna to New York, especially its waterways, thanks to the Clean Water Act. We can now see whales, seals, and more right here in New York.

This live event is organized for Untapped New York Insiders — get two months free with code JOINUS. A video of the talk will also be made available to all our Insiders afterwards in the Video Archive section of our website.

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