Taxi!: A Social History of the New York City Cabdriver
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • A Great Way to Learn About Cabbies
  • Exhaustive but pedantic
Taxi!: A Social History of the New York City Cabdriver
Graham Russell Gao Hodges
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 080188554X

Book Description

Naturally identified with the Big Apple, New York City cabdrivers hold a special place in the American folk culture writ large. Cabbies proverbially counsel, console, and confound, all the while flitting through the snarling traffic and bustling masses of the nation's largest city. Variously seen as the key to street-level opinion, a source of reliable information, or mysterious savants who don't speak much English, the hacks who move New Yorkers have been integral to the city's growth and culture since the mid-nineteenth century when they first began shuttling residents, workers, and visitors in horse-drawn carriages. Their importance grew with the introduction of gasoline-powered cars early last century and continues to the present day, when more than 12,000 licensed yellow cabs operate in Manhattan alone.

Taxi! is the first book-length history of New York City cabdrivers and the community they compose. From labor unrest and racial strife to ruthless competition and political machinations, this deftly woven narrative captures the people -- lower-class immigrants for the most part -- and their hardscrabble struggle to capture a piece of the American dream. Hodges tells the tale through contemporary news accounts, Hollywood films, social science research, and the words of the cabbies themselves.

Whether or not you've ever hailed a cab on Broadway, Taxi! provides a fascinating new perspective on New York's most colorful emissaries.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars A Great Way to Learn About Cabbies.......2007-09-06

Graham Hodges cares about cabbies and drivers past. It's easy to see -- while many writers only rely on economic studies or interviews with current cab drivers, Hodges plows through history and gives us the viewpoint of taxi drivers through the ages. He's able to paint a picture for readers of a New York hack's life.

One of the most enjoyable parts of this book is a photographed collection of taxi memorabilia published with the book, including taxi-themed post cards full of sexual innuendo and a picture of female cabbies filling in for their men during the war. He has a unique way of showing the place of the yellow cab in U.S. pop culture, making the book much more interesting than a "just the facts" history lesson.

3 out of 5 stars Exhaustive but pedantic.......2007-07-21

Graham Hodges's new book, "Taxi!", is as thorough a study of cabdrivers in New York over the past hundred years as I'm sure one will ever see. Tracing the beginnings of the taxi business, Hodges takes the reader through many phases of its development and one thing can be certain...today's cabbies face dilemmas not unlike their predecessors. One assumes, through a back cover photo, that the author was a cabbie at one time. No mention is made of this in the book. It would have been nice to have had him offer his own reflections. Yet he is wonderfully good at educating us as to how the taxi industry works.

The problem with "Taxi!" is that it's just flat. At slightly over 180 pages of narrative it feels like a very long book. The first chapters deal with wages, strikes and way too many examples of Hollywood's mirroring and mimicking of New York cabdrivers. There are good stories of women who hack as well as African-American contributions, but by the end of the first half I wanted to give up. Going more or less decade by decade, there is a good chapter about taxis in the fifties. Here Hodges shines as he offers some good anecdotes...especially by Hy Gardner. But after that, the book loses its appeal.

"Taxi!" could have been a better book if it had been more fluid. A study is great but it has to be appealing. Hodges has given a deep insight about a segment of the population which has taken its hits but has fought back and keeps going.
Taxi Driver (BFI Film Classics)
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Compelling
  • A brief look at Scorsese's 1976 film
  • A flawed examination
  • Inside Travis Bickle
  • One of the better BFI Film Classics
Taxi Driver (BFI Film Classics)
Amy Taubin
Manufacturer: British Film Institute
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0851703933

Book Description

Paul Schrader was in meltdown in 1972. Drinking heavily, living in his car, he was hospitalized with a gastric ulcer. There he read about Arthur Bremer's attempt to assassinate Alabama Governor George Wallace. This story was the germ of his screenplay for Taxi Driver (1976). Executives at Columbia hated the script but when Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro, who were flying high after the triumphs of Mean Streets (1973) and The Godfather Part II (1974), signed up, Taxi Driver became too good a package to refuse.
Scorsese transformed the script into what is now considered one of the two or three definitive American films of the 1970s. De Niro is mesmerising as Travis Bickle--pent up, bigoted, steadily slipping into psychosis, the personification of American post-Vietnam masculinity. Cybill Shepherd and Jodie Foster give fine support and Scorsese brought in Bernard Herrmann, the greatest of film composers, to write what turned out to be his last score. Crucially, Scorsese rooted Taxi Driver in its New York locations, tuning the film's violence into the hard reality of the city. Technically thrilling though it is, Taxi Driver is profoundly disturbing--finding, as Amy Taubin shows, racism, misogyny and gun fetishism at the heart of American culture.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Compelling.......2007-01-23

I thoroughly enjoyed this insightful little book, especially it's satisfying psychological portrait of Travis Bickle, "Taxi Driver's" disturbed and fascinating protaganist, deftly played by Robert De Niro. Amy Taubin is a gifted writer, whose acute sensitivity--perhaps a bit too acute regarding some of her comments about Bremmer--makes for an engrossing read. It's inconceivable to me that anyone who reads this work could put it down without a deeper appreciation of this seductive, volatile film.

2 out of 5 stars A brief look at Scorsese's 1976 film.......2003-11-22

This is a very short book that summarizes the plot of Taxi Driver. The author adds a handful of ideas along the way, ranging from the obvious (Travis Bickle is a borderline personality) to the questionable (when buying guns, he's choosing from a wide range of penises). It helps that the author is a woman. Her take on the violence and sexuality of the story is slightly different from the other (male) reviews I have read. However, there's so little here that is new, it's not worth buying. This would be better as a chapter in a larger book.

2 out of 5 stars A flawed examination.......2003-10-06

I felt that many of the ideas 'behind' Taxi Driver postulated here were rather far-fetched to the point of being ludicrous. I can't elaborate as it's been years since I've read it.

5 out of 5 stars Inside Travis Bickle.......2002-08-05

This is a very good look at "Taxi Driver." Taubin covers the making of the film (the money Scorsese got for making it might buy one day's worth of catering today) and gives the movie a very close analysis. She touches on key issues such as 1)how it stays close to and deviates from Arthur Bremer's experiences as he tracked George Wallace 2) the interplay between Bernard Herrmann's score and the images 3)how "Taxi Driver" can be seen as borrowing from the horror film 4) how Travis Bickle relates to black people. These are topics that, to me, have not really been covered in such depth before.

"Taxi Driver" is very well done, one of the best in the BFI series.

5 out of 5 stars One of the better BFI Film Classics.......2000-10-04

With this entry in the BFI Film Classics collection, Amy Taubin has written a very well-researched, entertaining and informative examination of this indisputable American film classic. In addition, this book isn't too literate or hard to understand, as some of these type of film analyses can be. It is written clearly and with a great deal of detail. A must for any fan of this film, anyone interested in American cinema of the 70's, or fans of legendary director Martin Scorsese. Excellent!
Taxi Driver Wisdom
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Just like Riding in a Taxi
  • the best coffee table book!
  • Behind the Plexiglass, not much.
  • Check your mind
  • Caveat Emptor
Taxi Driver Wisdom

Manufacturer: Chronicle Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0811811654

Book Description

Hail a taxi cab, open the door to a burst of easy listening music, breathe in the poppy air freshener, lean over the seat, and say hello to the next Jean Paul Sartre or Kahlil Gibran. Taxi Driver Wisdom takes readers behind the Plexiglass curtain with pearls of wisdom from the most multicultural, multiethnic, multireligious group of philosophers ever assembled: New York Cab drivers. Atmospheric black and white photographs are paired with pithy quotes from downtown Descartes and freeway Foucaults-and bound with a faux leather cover just like the finest cab upholstery. Cheaper than an ashram and less of a hassle than Freudian analysis, Taxi Driver Wisdom is the shortest possible route to enlightenment. You may never want to take the bus again.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Just like Riding in a Taxi.......2005-02-05

Taxi Driver Wisdom offers a glimpse into the world of the New York cabbie through lots of blunt advice, and photos of what drivers witness on a daily basis--cars in garages, crashes, street scenes, and tourist landmarks. The book is handsomely bound with thick padded covers, with duotone images printed on thick postcard-weight pages. Each photo measures 2 x 3 inches, and is accompanied by "advice" in large bright yellow text. The presentation has a "straight in your face" feel to it, similar to how a stereotypical new york cabbie might dispense some advice to you. rkchin. http://www.tenementcity.com/books_photo1.html

5 out of 5 stars the best coffee table book!.......2003-08-25

well... I found this book about two or three years ago Since then, I can't find a better book to replace it from my collections. Normally books only stay on the table for one month or so, but this one actually stays there ever since I got a copy of it. Many great sentences in it!

2 out of 5 stars Behind the Plexiglass, not much........2002-09-16

If you stand at a bookshop cash register you will most likely see `Taxi Driver Wisdom' along with `The Tao of Elvis' or `The Little Book of Belches' or `You and the True Meaning of Crop Circles'. Publishers love these little volumes placed as they are near the register for casual purchase. Why anyone should think that taxi drivers have any great insight on life is beyond me, mostly average guys doing an average job. Like barbers they deal with a captive public so this book could just as easily be called `Barber Shop Wisdom'.

I was expecting something much funnier and wry instead of the shallow observations that fill these pages. Another reviewer has referred to "lots of bumper sticker wisdom", quite right, once through the carwash and it's gone. All these taxi driver `thoughts' are dressed up in a pretty sumptuous package though, thick black hardback covers and each spread has a black-and-white street scene photo on the left with a bright yellow page on the right for the type, all on glossy paper. The book comes with the ultimate pretension, a faux yellow silk bookmark, just in case the readers lose their place in the unnumbered pages.

I'll end this review with a thought from Jean De La Bruyere (1645-1696) `The exact contrary of what is generally believed is often the truth'. Now that's what I call wisdom!

5 out of 5 stars Check your mind.......2002-07-09

Taxi Driver Wisdom (TDW) is one of the most impressive books I've met through my nearly 40s. I've been traveling a lot, being European and having seen a piece of USA, my experience is - TDW through the eyes of mostly non-US reflects the present reality as if you'd examine it under a microscope. The great thing is - results of this examination in our times of globalization is applicable for US the same way as for the rest of the world. Take this: "TO PREPARE YOURSELF FOR MARRIAGE YOU MUST THINK - I AM GOING TO BURY THIS PERSON."
If you like this - you would like also "New York Vertical" by Horst Hamman - e.g.: "WE WILL PROBABLY BE JUDGED NOT BY THE MONUMENTS WE BUILD BUT BY THOSE WE HAVE DESTROYED." Have a nice day!-) Or at least - try2 ... :-)

4 out of 5 stars Caveat Emptor.......2002-03-23

Taxi Driver Wisdom in itself may be an oxymoron, however as a taxi driver myself, I found it to be funny and thought provoking, and lacking in some of the more baser universal truths.
I drive a taxi in Toledo Ohio. The Glass City is not New York, but we do have our share of people who do give you a unique outlook on life. Recently, I began asking myself exactly WHY I do this instead of going to Law School. The plain and simple answer is..."No two days are exactly alike". That is the lure of cab driving; Every day presents a new set of challenges and problems that must be dealt with.
Taxi Driver Wisdom is a cute book. I highly recommend it to anyone who has ever rode in, or driven a cab. But, dont expect EVERY cab driver to impart wisdom on demand. There are some out there who would have trouble finding thier [behind] with both hands.
Memoirs of a Taxi Driver
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Snapshots of Life as it Happened.....
  • Memoirs of a Taxi Driver
Memoirs of a Taxi Driver
C. E Patterson
Manufacturer: Trueblood Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 097152520X

Book Description

Memoirs of a Taxi Driver is a book about the relationship between man, woman, and nature

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Snapshots of Life as it Happened............2007-07-08

C.E. Patterson captures moments in life that were shared with him as a taxi driver on the streets of Chicago. He paints beautiful portraits of tidbits of life and its characters that many may fail to appreciate as they pass by. His stories will grab your emotions, make you love your fellow man, lament moments that have passed without notice. I was so touched by Patterson's deep observations that I was compelled to write this review, my first ever on Amazon.com. You MUST READ this book...

5 out of 5 stars Memoirs of a Taxi Driver.......2002-12-09

This book consists of a series of short stories that depict the essence of human life: love, determiniation, desire, forgiveness, revenge, desperation. I strongly recommend this book for the reader seeking adventure , drama, and a realistic view of human relationships. This book is a page turner full of excitement. My favorite short story is 'Hospice For A Snow Bird'. It captures the relationship between humans and nature which parellels the relationship between men and women.
Paul Schrader: Collected Screenplays Volume 1: Taxi Driver, American Gigolo, Light Sleeper
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Great Collection Of Screenplays
  • Great Value
Paul Schrader: Collected Screenplays Volume 1: Taxi Driver, American Gigolo, Light Sleeper
Paul Schrader
Manufacturer: Faber & Faber
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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  5. PULP FICTION PULP FICTION

ASIN: 0571210228

Book Description

Since the seventies Paul Schrader has been hailed as one of America's most gifted screenwriters. From his work with Martin Scorsese, such as The Last Temptation of Christ and Raging Bull, to the films of his own direction, such as Mishima and Affliction, Schrader has created a dark and affecting body of work that has had a profound effect on cinematic storytelling. The works in this volume represent some of his key moments as a writer and a director, including the script for what is perhaps his crowning achievement: Taxi Driver -- one of the most influential films of the seventies and an American classic.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Great Collection Of Screenplays.......2004-10-13

Reading a Paul Schrader screenplay is like reading a book. His writing style is so natural that you don't feel you reading a script but a text that can stand by it's own. This should be required reading for all screenwriters.

4 out of 5 stars Great Value.......2002-07-27

Paul Schrader positions Taxi Driver, American Gigolo, and Light Sleeper as the first three film in a quartet depicting, as he puts it, "...a certain character... who drifts on the edge of urban society, always peeping, looking into the lives of others. He'd like to have a life of his own, but doesn't know how to get one." This character is angry in his 20s (Taxi Driver), narcissistic in his 30s (American Gigolo), and anxious in his 40s (Light Sleeper). In his brief introduction to the collected screenplays for these three films, Schrader announces the existence of a fourth script that will show this "certain character" in his 50s, after which "I'll retire him. It's getting too difficult to finance existential character studies." Schrader finds the genesis for this character in his own strict Calvinist upbringing and subsequent escape to LA, where he says "I was not unlike Travis Bickle: a bundle of tightly wrapped contradictions." He thus wrote the script to Taxi Driver in a chapter format "because I wanted to capture the seeming randomness of Travis' life..." Several years later finds the script for American Gigolo in a conventional format because "I was `in' Hollywood... and wanted scripts that looked like everyone else's." Light Sleeper, being an independent film, was able to return to the chapter format (for better or worse). Both Taxi Driver and Light Sleeper were previously published as single volumes by Faber & Faber, and in the case of Taxi Driver, it's shame to have lost the 14 page dialogue between Schrader and Martin Scorcese that was in that book. Still, it's hard to complain about getting three Schrader scripts in one book, and judging from the "1" in the title, further Schrader collections are forthcoming.
Max's Wacky Taxi Day
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Good for all ages
Max's Wacky Taxi Day
Max Grover
Manufacturer: Harcourt Children's Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0152009892

Amazon.com

Max drives a taxi. One morning when he goes outside to get in his cab, something very strange is going on: spring showers are coming from the sky, but they look like whirly spring things! Max's day gets crazier by the page as he runs into more zany situations. Among the wonders of his wacky, pun-filled day are a "tooth ferry" to take Marina and her mom to the dentist and a jar of "traffic jam" blocking intersections in the middle of town. Puns pop out from the page in bright red type, so no new punster will miss the tricks, and the colorful, imaginative illustrations are just right for the text.

Fun, funny, and a great introduction to the multiple uses of words and phrases, Max's Wacky Taxi Day is a worthy sequel to writer-illustrator Max Grover's debut: Parent's Choice winner The Accidental Zucchini. (Ages 4 to 8)

Book Description

Come along for a ride on some of the strangest streets you’ve ever seen as Max drives his taxi through a not-so-normal day. Which way to go? No need to decide until you come to the FORK IN THE ROAD. A stalled car blocking traffic? “He’s lucky the BIG TOE TRUCK came so quickly,” says Max. BASEBALL DIAMONDS? SPRING SHOWERS? ROCK CONCERTS? Max and his bright yellow taxi make every trip an amusing adventure.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Good for all ages.......1999-07-01

This book is great for all ages. It is funny and colorful. It is the best out of all his books, it is defently worth buying!!!!!!! Kim grover
Taxi Driver (Faber Film)
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Dream before the fade to black
  • taxi driver!
  • The film is classic, the screenplay is timeless
  • The screenplay to the movie that changed cinema FOREVER!
  • One of the most haunting screenplays ever written.
Taxi Driver (Faber Film)
Paul Schrader
Manufacturer: Faber & Faber
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0571144640

Book Description

A loner, Travis Bickle takes up driving a taxi in search of an escape from his sleeplessness and his disgust with the corruption he finds around him. His pent-up rage, fuelled by his doomed relationship with the political campaign worker Betsy, leads to an inevitable descent into psychosis and violence.

This volume also contains an extended interview between Schrader and Martin Scorsese in which they discuss their unique relationship-one which stretches from Taxi Driver through Raging Bull to The Last Temptation of Christ.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Dream before the fade to black.......2005-11-30

Travis Bickle is a social pariah. He can't sleep and needs something to do, so he decides to work the night shift as a New York City cabbie. Travis ruminates (in his journal?) about his difficulties making companionships in his life as well as his dislike for all the filth on the streets. Travis's loneliness, a more concrete manifestation of his alienation problem, is a driving force for his nose dive into psychosis. He hates what he sees in the city until Betsy (Cybil Sheppard) appears as a beacon of light on the street dressed in white. His pursuit of Betsy describes his manic quest for unobtainable companionship and purity. Yet, while his behavior indicates his loneliness, Travis consistently doesn't really know why he keeps behaving badly and often sabotages his own attempts to end his loneliness. For example, his date with Betsy is made unbearable by poor choice of movie. Loneliness is the emotional manifestation of the alienation Travis experiences; it is both a source of great pain and a source of psychosis. He does not understand common social topics, such as popular music, politics or love. His failed attempt at conventional companionship with Betsy leads to his warped effort to be a knight errant for young prostitute named Iris (Jodie Foster).

Travis's descent into psychosis descent ends in a trail of destruction and blood. To save Iris from her life of prostitution, he becomes an army of one. All pimps and Mafiosos in his way die a brutal death. After an unsuccessful suicide attempt, Travis dies quietly on the couch as the authorities enter the building. Then, the strange denouement begins. The ending must be seen as a brief flash of his life. The closing scene reflects how Travis would like his life to be remembered. Director Martin Scorsese utilized a similar method in "Last Temptation of Christ" when Jesus sees his life as would be if he got down from the cross. In movie time, the scene takes about a half hour, but the scene only takes a flash to play in Jesus' head prior to his actual death on the cross. Similarly, Travis does not really become a savior or hero, but dies in a self-induced blood bath. During last scenes of Taxidriver, Travis dreams himself as a hero who makes amends with Betsy, receives a grateful letter form Iris's parents and makes friends with his fellow cabbies. The last scene is just a pre-morbid flash in his mind before his lights go out for eternity.

Taxidriver is set in the pre-Giuliani streets of New York, depicted with all its sin and psychosis. Nighttime in New York is filled with explosive violence, pervasive cynicism, and ubiquitous prostitutes. Director Martin Scorsese even indulges himself in such small details as a depiction of a street drummer, traveling gun salesman, and failed store robbery as side trips in Travis's long journey. Travis's disgust for the streets is depicted in his need to clean the semen and blood off his seats after his shift is over.

Several small events act as act harbingers to his own violent rampage. Travis is made to listen to a customer's (played by Martin Scorsese) ravings while the philandering wife's silhouette is visible from the street. The customer discloses to Travis the merits of the 357 magnum and what it will do to his wife when he shoots her. Also, while innocently shopping at a local grocery store, Travis successfully breaks up a robbery.

Awesome movie. What a cast: De Niro, Shepherd, Albert Brooks, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle. But the best character may be the streets of the city themselves. Scorsese gives the cold pavement of New York an actual living presence in the movie. Smoke, water, blood, grit.

5 out of 5 stars taxi driver!.......2000-08-07

taxi driver by martin scorsese is a true masterpiece of american cinema.the screenplay written by paul schrader,is one of the best screenplays ever written.the story is about a new york city cabbie who gets tired of seeing all the criminals and scum that the city has to offer.he's a loner who is just trying to make friends and help people out.as a result of all the madness he sees on the sreets,he grows violent and courageous.recommended.

5 out of 5 stars The film is classic, the screenplay is timeless.......1999-02-03

O.K. we all love the film. Martin Scorcese's portrait of a loner slowly slipping into his own obsession with the horrors of inner-city life is seminal, and is still great viewing. De Niro's performance is brilliant as are his supporting actors. However...it is not until one reads the screenplay by Paul Schrader that the film comes to life. It is written almost like a novel, with directions that give the reader new insight and appreciation into the workings of the film and Travis' state of mind. Not only is it a great compliment to the film, it is actually better than the film. When I first saw 'Taxi Driver' I was blown away (along with all those pimps and drug dealers at the end), when I read the screenplay a new appreciation of the art of screenwriting was revealed to me. If you ever want to give someone who is interesting in writing films a present, give them this. Give them the film too. Make them watch the film, then make them read the screenplay, then watch them weep.

5 out of 5 stars The screenplay to the movie that changed cinema FOREVER!.......1998-08-04

This positively has to be one of the best written screenplays of all cinematic history. In this text lies a story of desperation, loneliness, and insanity. Paul Schrader has not only captured the mentaility of a sociopath, but the emotions and profound thoughts of a man, driven to insanity by not being able to understand a world unlike his own. If you love well written screenplays, Taxi Driver is a must have!

5 out of 5 stars One of the most haunting screenplays ever written........1998-06-03

Taxi Driver was one of the seminal films of the seventies. It broke many boundaries with its use of violence, and it was critically applauded. It was, in my opinion, one of the best films ever made. The script is fascinating, especially to read the bits which were left out of the film.
King Lear of the Taxi: Musings of a New York City Actor/Taxi Driver
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Must read... for the poet in all of us.
  • taxi-driver-eye-view of life
King Lear of the Taxi: Musings of a New York City Actor/Taxi Driver
Davidson Garrett
Manufacturer: Advent Purple Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

GeneralGeneral | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0977444600

Product Description

King Lear of the Taxi: Musings of a New York City Actor/Taxi Driver is a philosophical glimpse of an ever-changing city by an actor who must drive a taxi for survival. Through poetry and prose, Davidson Garrett documents his thespian dreams and artistic struggles from behind the wheel of a cab as he glances at humanity in his rearview mirror.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Must read... for the poet in all of us........2006-09-08

We all have stories to tell. Poems to share. Davidson has a unique talent for telling the mundane in the most fabulous form. Poetry lends itself to historical epics and the smallest of tales. In this book he does it all. Enjoy and buy for friends, family, cab drivers. Hand it out to New Yorkers or leave in a cab way across the country. Stories are universal share them all. Thank you Davidson for your wonderful writing.

5 out of 5 stars taxi-driver-eye-view of life.......2006-09-08

Off-beat and interesting poems (and a few anecdotes)all from the point of view of a New York City taxi driver. Every would-be actor and would-be poet should keep this book on a bedside table. The poems will encourage anyone who feels that the world is just too daunting to get on with it and go forward and keep striving to reach the goal that inspired them to begin with. Garrett has sprung back from EVERYTHING and writes poems about it!
In My Taxi: New York After Hours
Average customer rating: Not rated
    In My Taxi: New York After Hours
    Ryan Weideman
    Manufacturer: Thunder's Mouth Press
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Paperback

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    ASIN: 1560250240
    Taxi!: Cabs and Capitalism in New York City
    Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
    • A Mixed Bag
    • Uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business
    • Uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business
    • Uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business
    • Uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business
    Taxi!: Cabs and Capitalism in New York City
    Biju Mathew
    Manufacturer: New Press
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Hardcover

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    ASIN: 156584811X

    Book Description

    A front-seat ride through the yellow cab industry of New York City.

    The yellow cab is a striking metaphor for New York City and its exuberant twenty-four-hours-a-day rush. But just as the city has changed in recent years, so too has the industry that keeps it on the move. As Biju Mathew reveals in this fast-paced survey of New York's taxi business, just about everything has changed dramatically except the yellow paint.

    An immigrant working class in an industry that pioneered outsourcing, taxi drivers have a tough job with long hours and low earnings. The recent fare hike represents a major step forward for them. Behind the victory is a long campaign by the Taxi Workers Alliance, of which Mathew is a volunteer organizer, stretching back to the 1998 strike against the harassment of Mayor Rudy Giuliani. The scale of this action, with twenty-four thousand drivers participating, was achieved despite the diversity of a workforce that speaks at least eighty different languages. Drawing extensively on Mathew's interactions with the drivers, Taxi! is as much a critical commentary on globalization, urban renewal, migration, and multiculturalism as it is a captivating account of the struggles and triumphs of life behind the wheel. Buckle up, sit back, and enjoy the ride.

    Customer Reviews:

    3 out of 5 stars A Mixed Bag.......2006-11-03

    In the end, this book wasn't what I hoped it would be, but was still worth the read. As a cabbie in Boston, I picked this up hoping to get a feel for the cab business in NY. And as a history buff, I was particularly interested in the promise of a good back-story. Unfortunately, there's very little history here. Despite the book's extensive footnotes section, most of the "history" comes from the memories of a few old-time drivers, and is generally concerned with settling grudges and exposing exploitation. In addition, this book reads like a doctoral thesis in hardcover. "White middle class suburbanites" get almost as much page time as the immigrant drivers. And there's barely a word about the interesting job these drivers have, instead the focus is on their place as it relates to globalization, exploitation of Third World labor, and "neoliberal economic practices." Not exactly what I thought I was getting into.

    That being said, even though I'm in Boston and not New York, I can safely say that the subjects of Mr. Mathew's book are not exaggerating, and the tale he tells is true at its core - driving a cab is a tough job, and the driver has to dodge the brokers, the cops, the city and the frequently abusive passengers just to make a basic wage. If you're looking for some scholarly views on the function of immigrant labor in cities, strategies for labor organizing in a diverse workforce, or another reason to distrust Giuliani, this is a great read. If you're looking for a good history of cabs in NYC, or just an interesting peek into the lives of the people who risk life and limb to roam the streets, this isn't it. I'm still waiting for that book.

    A final nit-pick: as you'd expect from an organizer for the Taxi Workers Alliance, there's not a single word about the possible role of the drivers in the heat brought down on them. In my view, it's simply irresponsible to ignore the significant number of rude, ignorant, criminal and even dangerous people who drive cabs. If I were given the choice between reforming the lease agreement (an odious situation, to be sure) and cleaning the Boston fleets of the worst drivers, I'd probably boot the drivers. There are issues in the industry that go beyond race, class and economics, and even those issues go much deeper than Mr. Mathews takes them.

    5 out of 5 stars Uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business.......2005-12-03

    New York City taxi drivers work long shifts, seven days a week: most are lease drivers on a daily or weekly contract and until the relatively recent Taxi Workers Alliance was formed, most bore the brunt of bad business. Taxi! comes from Biju Mathew, a long-time organizer of the Alliance, and uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business. Chapters focus on labor struggles and urban politics in New York as much as on immigrant history and influences on the taxi industry as a whole.

    5 out of 5 stars Uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business.......2005-12-03

    New York City taxi drivers work long shifts, seven days a week: most are lease drivers on a daily or weekly contract and until the relatively recent Taxi Workers Alliance was formed, most bore the brunt of bad business. Taxi! comes from Biju Mathew, a long-time organizer of the Alliance, and uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business. Chapters focus on labor struggles and urban politics in New York as much as on immigrant history and influences on the taxi industry as a whole.

    5 out of 5 stars Uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business.......2005-12-03

    New York City taxi drivers work long shifts, seven days a week: most are lease drivers on a daily or weekly contract and until the relatively recent Taxi Workers Alliance was formed, most bore the brunt of bad business. Taxi! comes from Biju Mathew, a long-time organizer of the Alliance, and uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business. Chapters focus on labor struggles and urban politics in New York as much as on immigrant history and influences on the taxi industry as a whole.

    5 out of 5 stars Uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business.......2005-12-03

    New York City taxi drivers work long shifts, seven days a week: most are lease drivers on a daily or weekly contract and until the relatively recent Taxi Workers Alliance was formed, most bore the brunt of bad business. Taxi! comes from Biju Mathew, a long-time organizer of the Alliance, and uses interactions from the drivers themselves to reveal the history of the taxi business. Chapters focus on labor struggles and urban politics in New York as much as on immigrant history and influences on the taxi industry as a whole.

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