Review of “The North End” by Alex Goldfeld

I recently finished reading, “The North End, A Brief History of Boston’s Oldest Neighborhood” by Alex Goldfeld. I was fortunate to be at the book launch in July where the author shared some of the book’s stories in person at the Old North Church.

I enjoyed the book so much that I posted a positive review on Amazon.com which is also shown below.

The author of The North End does a masterful job of engaging the reader with tales from the earliest years of the North End, through the changing periods and generations, all the way up to the neighborhood we know today.

Of course, there is plenty about Paul Revere and the neighborhood’s historic landmarks, many that still exist today such as the Old North Church. But there are also captivating chapters on the North End cultural history of African-Americans, the Irish Ascension, the Jewish Colony and Little Italy.

Goldfeld’s street by street descriptions are especially wonderful for anyone that has walked the North End/Waterfront section of Boston. The book is well-researched and documented with the extra effort of true to period pictures, helping the reader visualize the times gone by.

The North End reads more like a series of short stories than a history book. Alex Goldfeld does a terrific job telling the tales of our forefathers and does not sugar-coat the less than favorable elements of history.

People that know the North End will relish the graphic and detailed descriptions while those new to the history will benefit from the concise coverage of 300+ years fit in to less than 200 pages.

You can find out more about the book at www.alexgoldfeld.com.