Not For Tourists Guide To New York City 2005 (Not for Tourists: New York City)

Rating:
Summary: I call it the Bible
Review: I also have to respectfully disagree with the "For Tourists" review. I'm normally stingy with a perfect rating (everything can be improved somehow) but this one gets five stars just by dint of its heavy rotation. Granted, I am a Manhattan resident, so I'll concede that some of the outer borough areas get short shrift.
HOWEVER - I love the neighborhood in-depth format. Let's face it, your immediate community is the hub of your universe. The book (in one its previous editions) was invaluable during my last apartment hunt. Everytime I learned of a new potential home, I pulled out The Book and immediately knew where the nearest supermarkets, banks, coffee shops, etc were to be found.
This is a good one.


Rating:
Summary: More Like Tourists Guide to Manhattan
Review: The Good:
1) It's tiny, extremely portable, but still has good detail. It's like a little book. Read the dimensions.
2) Includes a subway map overlaid with the neighborhood.
3) Most maps are very legible, with good use of color.


The Bad:
- The detailed coverage is limited to mostly Manhattan. It includes portions of Queens bordering the East River like Astoria, but forget about Jackson Heights, Flushing, etc. The same goes for Brooklyn - you basically get just the hip areas that tourists might want to visit.

The Ugly:
- Like with the other NFT books, I have issues with their judgement on what to include. For me, the strength of the NFT series is the format of the maps. Period. I use it to get around, and most of them are easily portable, especially the ones for cities that are walkable or have good public transport. This could be covered with one map version per neighborhood, instead of the triplicate form used in this issue. The only version needed is the one with the streets and the subway, and you can even throw in some landmarks. But please get rid of other 2 versions of the map that only serve to add locations for lame restaurants, gyms, and whatever else may quickly become defunct. These pages only bulk up the book. I just don't think NFT makes a good guidebook, especially for anyone who is a resident of their respective city and has access to Google.

How about having only one version of each map, but including coverage for the ENTIRE city, instead of just the tourist-friendly areas? Live up to your name. All of Queens, Brooklyn, The Bronx, and even Staten Island could have been included by getting rid of the extra unnecessary maps of Manhattan. Focus on the navigational strength of the map.



Rating:
Summary: Re- last review: It's called NOT for tourists
Review: The reason that I like this book so much is that it includes things that I need as a resident-- parking garages, ATMs, grocery stores, etc.
This new version actually includes many more neighborhoods outside of Manhattan than in previous versions.
Yeah, some of the restaurant reviews may be superfluous, but overall this is a great resource!