Amusing the Million: Coney Island at the Turn of the Century (American Century)

Rating:
Summary: Gives a great overview of the famed amusement park
Review: An enjoyable reading if you desire a history lesson on the famed amusement park. Through great pictures and words the author suceeds in telling the story of the now ancient parks at Coney Island. We learn the stories of the men behind Dreamland, Luna Park, and Steeplechase. A weel put together story making it a must for anyone interested in Coney Island!

Rating:
Summary: The Photographs Tell the Story
Review: I purchased this book for a college course on American social history. It was nice to open a book with tons of pictures and interesting, but not too intellectually stimulating, text. Kasson's book was a welcomed change from most of the books required in my college classes. The basic theme of the book is that, during the turn of the twentieth century, the American social fabric was changing with industrialization, urbanization, and immigration. These well-known changes seeped down into leisure society as well. The rigid Victorian weekend activities of museum and symphonies was giving way to less "genteel" forms of entertainment such as movies, prize fighting and amusement parks. Coney Island was "a harbinger of modernity." The book covers the history of the park including specific attractions like the Steeplechase and Luna Park as well as its demise, losing "its distinctiveness by the very triumphs of its values." What's even more valuable than the text is the wonderful photographs that really capture the joy visitors experienced. It is only 112 pages and full of these photos, so it definitely makes a light, fun introduction to early 20th century American culture in general or, specifically, to Coney Island history.

Rating:
Summary: The Photographs Tell the Story
Review: I purchased this book for a college course on American social history. It was nice to open a book with tons of pictures and interesting, but not too intellectually stimulating, text. Kasson's book was a welcomed change from most of the books required in my college classes. The basic theme of the book is that, during the turn of the twentieth century, the American social fabric was changing with industrialization, urbanization, and immigration. These well-known changes seeped down into leisure society as well. The rigid Victorian weekend activities of museum and symphonies was giving way to less "genteel" forms of entertainment such as movies, prize fighting and amusement parks. Coney Island was "a harbinger of modernity." The book covers the history of the park including specific attractions like the Steeplechase and Luna Park as well as its demise, losing "its distinctiveness by the very triumphs of its values." What's even more valuable than the text is the wonderful photographs that really capture the joy visitors experienced. It is only 112 pages and full of these photos, so it definitely makes a light, fun introduction to early 20th century American culture in general or, specifically, to Coney Island history.

Rating:
Summary: Not quite what I expected
Review: I was a little disappointed with this book. NOT that it wasn't well-enough written, but it wasn't what I expected or was hoping for. I was looking for more details of the history and atmosphere of Coney Island at the turn of the century, and while this book DID provide some of that (along with some FABULOUS photography) it spent more time discussing the sociological reasons that people frequented there, than on the Island and its amusements. If that is what you're looking for, then this book will appeal to you.

Rating:
Summary: Not quite what I expected
Review: I was a little disappointed with this book. NOT that it wasn't well-enough written, but it wasn't what I expected or was hoping for. I was looking for more details of the history and atmosphere of Coney Island at the turn of the century, and while this book DID provide some of that (along with some FABULOUS photography) it spent more time discussing the sociological reasons that people frequented there, than on the Island and its amusements. If that is what you're looking for, then this book will appeal to you.

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Summary: Coney Island as an indicator of social change
Review: In these times, when entertainers bare body parts normally kept strictly covered, it is hard to believe the cover photo of this book was considered rather racy a century ago. It shows a line of girls on the beach at Coney Island where the skirts on their swimsuits have been raised to reveal the shorts underneath. Considering that they also appear to have full-length tights on underneath the shorts, to modern eyes, they look overdressed. There were many social commentators at the end of the nineteenth century that argued that the egalitarian social structure of Coney Island was debasing the social fabric of the nation.
Which was nonsense, as Coney Island was the most conspicuous example of the dramatic social changes taking place in the United States. By the turn of the century, the people were generally no longer rural tillers of the soil, having been transformed into urban tillers of the machines. Furthermore, by this time, the social distinctions between the upper and other classes were being blurred. As the author points out, at Coney Island, many of the stiff social restrictions came down. People who otherwise would not speak to each other became friendly and shared rides, beach water and other amusements.
The members of the compressed urban society craved simple and inexpensive recreation and Coney Island provided it. Therefore, as Kasson points out so well, it was a phenomenon that grew out of a social need and in many ways served as a social release. People could, for a very small fee, leave their crowded dwellings and engage in a day of escape. Everyone was equal on the rides and the beaches, so at least at that location, social distinctions disappeared.
Until I read this book, I had never considered the amusement park as a barometer for social change. However, it is now clear that Coney Island was a metaphor for a dramatic change in the social fabric of the nation and from this book, you can learn many of the details.