Mr. Personality

Mark Singer is a writer for The New Yorker magazine and collected here are 25 relatively short (2-3 pages) "Talk of the Town" pieces as well as 8 much longer "Profiles" written by him during the 1970s and `80s. The Talk articles are quirky human interest stories that spotlight unusual characters in and about the 5 boroughs of New York City: a group of handball players from Brooklyn, a street musician in Manhattan, a fruit seller named Tomato Bob, a "found objects" sculptor in SoHo. The Profiles are of the same mold, but are more leisurely developed and expansive. These include essays on the comic writer Goodman Ace, an art dealer named Graham Arader, a group of "court buffs" who as a hobby attend trials at the State Supreme Court in Brooklyn, and the Brennan brothers who are luxury apartment superintendents. Singer's style is light and humorous, and his goal is to entertain as well as to inform. If you want an inkling on why The New Yorker is often considered America's best-ever periodical, reading this collection of Mark Singer articles will help you get one. Most enjoyable.