Confessions of a New York Taxi Driver
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4.4 • 46 Ratings
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- £0.99
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- £0.99
Publisher Description
Driving a cab for more than 30 years Gene Salomon has collected a remarkable selection of stories. He shares the very best in this unforgettable memoir.
Eugene has had everyone in the back of his cab: Lauren Bacall, Leonardo di Caprio, John McEnroe, Sean Penn and Dennis Hopper, Simon and Garfunkel, Robin Williams, Norman Mailer, Diane Keaton and, yes, even Kevin Bacon.
He’s taken all sorts of people for a ride: Mafiosi, hookers, the rich and famous, down and outs, young lovers, tourists from every corner of the globe, lifetime New Yorkers, passengers in a rush, and others with no particular place to go.
So sit back and enjoy the ride, but remember . . . the meter’s running.
Reviews
‘Bursting with anecdotes from a 36-year career that spans hitmen and heart attacks, via Paul Simon, Norman Mailer, a llama and a coyote.’ INDEPENDENT
About the author
Eugene Salomon has been driving a taxi in New York since 1977. This is his first book.
Customer Reviews
NY Serenade
Great stories of the weird and wonderful world of New York. Many are funny, some are touching, most are bizarre.
I would say you stand to gain more from the book if you have visited the city itself but you shouldn't feel put off if you haven't.
The written style is chatty, without being verbose. Eugene does a great job of being very forthright and entertaining without sacrificing the more thought provoking passages, for instance when discussing New York's Homeless.
My main gripe is that some of the stories can be somewhat anti-climatic or without an ending at all. It seems, following both the laws of the road and the flow of traffic, Eugene at times begrudgingly had to drive away the unfolding tales he saw around him. Luckily these stories are few and far between but it's nonetheless frustrating when they occur.
Given the amount of stories and anecdotes in this book, it's perhaps obvious to say that there are some which are weaker than others. All are readable and the majority enjoyable but having just finished the book, there are only a handful which really stick in my mind (The couple driving through Central Park was a particular favorite).
On a personal front, It made me really miss New York having visited for the first time only a few months ago. The ambience of the city- good, bad, ugly and beautiful - are captured in so many of these stories. For that alone, I'd recommend you tap the buy button.
👍🏿
I've never been to New York but it felt I was there, intrigued to go in a yellow cab.
Fantastic!
This book was funny, clever and full of little stories. I enjoyed it massively and will recommend to my friends and family. Read this and you won't regret it!