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What is your particular interest? I can offer you some general suggestions, but if you are interested in a certain era or neighborhood or person I can point you in that direction too.

For a succinct history going up until the 2000s, look to The Restless City. If you are more interested in power politics of the 20th Century, The Power Broker is the definitive source (boo Robert Moses). Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx is Burning is a great look at the city in 1977, a tumultuous time both politically and socially.

Much of the history of the city after the mid-19th Century centers around the development of railroads, elevated trains and the subway system. 722 Miles and A Century of Subways are both excellent books about the growth and evolution of the transit network. I picked up Grand Central: How a Train Station Transformed America for the 100th Anniversary of the Terminal, and it was an informative and lively read.

There's a great book you might find helpful or at least amusing: NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette


It's by a local NYC artist and offers some funny and helpful tips on moving to New York... also could make a fun gift for your fiancée when she joins you. Good luck!


Edit: updated to fiancée, not girlfriend

Ric Burns 8-part documentary, New York is excellent, albeit long, if you seek history.

The Alienist is a thrilling historical novel.

The Westies is a nonfiction book about the Irish mob in Hell's Kitchen in the 70s and 80s. Fascinating, grizzly, and psychopathic.

Some favorite movies for their unique look at NYC: The Naked City (1948), The French Connection (1971), Panic in Needle Park (1971--not great, butNeedle Park is 72nd and Bway), Death Wish (1974), Mean Streets (1973), Three Days of the Condor (1975), Cruising (1980--Pacino infiltrates the gay scene), and a host of Woody Allen movies like Annie hall, Manhattan, Broadway Danny Rose, Hannah and Her Sisters, he has a couple dozen set in NYC form the early 70s through the present.

Alternately, I have one of these which I snagged for half off when Gracious Home was going out of business. It works pretty well & is like a glorified salad spinner. I don’t think you could put more than a pair of jeans & a shirt in there, though, so perhaps that other one will be better for you.

install your own lock on the door, you don't need some asswipe lazy super to do it for you. also invest in a security camera system please

edit: jimmy-proof deadbolt or if you can't or don't want to modify the door, install one (or actually two, one on top and one on bottom) of these

You should also look into security alarms for your windows and doors, something like one of these. Or if you go through with the security system, you can get sensors that will let you know when doors are opened/closed.

People are psychopaths and can do really horrible things. People are also lazy (like your super or 311) and will only do as little as required. No one in this city will care about your security and well-being as much as you.

Brooklyn Brainery has some interesting walking tours when the weather is better. I've only done one walking tour through them so far (Crimes in NYC) but the guide was incredibly knowledgeable and the tour was interesting. I recommend all their classes, really. There are also plenty of books with guides to tours, I recently bought myself a City Walks book and while I haven't taken myself on any of the trips yet, it's a good starting point for ideas.

Yup. Truth, common here that in NYC renters buy their own ac units.

We've got maybe another month of cool weather ahead of us, but you should highly consider putting up some insulation. These are for windows but same principle would work here: http://www.amazon.com/3M-Indoor-Window-Insulator-5-Window/dp/B00002NCJI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1458664828&sr=8-2&keywords=plastic+insulation

Pretty easy to put up and can have a pretty large effect on the amount of heat you're losing.

Intrepid museum:

https://www.intrepidmuseum.org/The-Intrepid-Experience/Exhibits.aspx

South Steet Seaport Museum, but you might want to check right before you come to see which ships are open and when:

https://southstreetseaportmuseum.org/visit/

You might especially enjoy a morning or afternoon at Governor's Island, with Castle Williams and Fort Jay:

https://govisland.com/map

Also near where the ferry departs is Castle Clinton in Battery Park:

https://www.nps.gov/cacl/index.htm

This is an excellent book on early NYC history:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Island-Center-World-Manhattan-Forgotten/dp/1400078679

If you get one of these. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B005FD7Z82/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1469896410&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=The+Laundry+POD&dpPl=1&dpID=31valjx5fVL&ref=plSrch



When you wash, a little color safe bleach and a heavy scoop of borax. And after washing, rinse, rinse, rinse (most important part). Then use something like this. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B002QSXK60/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1469896618&sr=8-6&pi=AC_SX205_SY296_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=clothing+wringer&dpPl=1&dpID=21YceYbYTnL&ref=plSrch

You can't hand-wring shirts-it fucks up their sizing and fit.

Rinse again and wring again. Straighten shirt to minimize wrinkles. Hang on line (fire escape) to dry.

Your shirts will last a decade looking brand new.

Shure Shure SE215-K Sound Isolating Earphones with Single Dynamic MicroDriver are great!

I also have a pair of Sony Studio MDR700's which are my favorite (albeit a bit bulky).

For wireless I have the S2CDW Skullcandy bluetooth sports buds.

New York, by Edward Rutherfurd is a very enjoyable novel about New York throughout the ages. It follows a single (fictional) family from Dutch New Amsterdam through early 21st century NYC. Very quick, fun read.

This book is indispensable to transplants, giving some awesome information and details that will help them get going in the city.

Here are some pages in GIF form

https://www.amazon.com/Basic-Tips-Etiquette-Nathan-Pyle/dp/0062303112

For white noise I was using the Marpac Dohm for a while and really liked it. I finally just received my Kickstater award for the SNOOZ and have been using it for the last couple of nights, and I like it even more. It's lighter and smaller and the sound is a bit fuller, not to mention the fact that it can be controlled with a phone app.

I had the same issue for too long. I recently got one of these "scoop free" litter boxes and put it in a cat bench thing and it's honestly been a dream. 2 cats and I can go 4-5 days without smelling anything.

Not sure if you're into this, but I loved The Works - each chapter tells you how things like water and electricity end up in your house, how traffic works, how the roads are built, et cetera. It's got lots of diagrams and is fun.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Works-Anatomy-Kate-Ascher/dp/0143112708

The other recommendations are solid, and this may be a bit lighter than you want, but The Works by Kate Ascher is a great illustrated book on how the city's infrastructure is put together.

Before you resort to glue traps I'd give these mechanical traps one more shot.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004B9XPOO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_xhA0BbK1ZJ744

The key is to lay down all 6 and not just a couple. I used them last year and it solved all of my mouse issues. They're more more effective than the standard mouse traps you buy on the corner.

Two of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00GFSF402/ref=mp_s_a_1_8_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1482194225&sr=8-8&keywords=white+noise+machine


This one is also really good:https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HD0ELFK/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1482194225&sr=8-1&keywords=white+noise+machine&pi=SY200_QL40


I have each one situated on a bedside table on either side of the head of the bed. The head of the bed is even against the wall closest to the subway noise, white noise machines work great.

Shure SE215 sound isolating in-ear monitors. These help filter out the noise of the subway and have a flat EQ response so music sounds like it should. I also wear them with no music playing while reading on the subway and I can't really hear anything unless someone is talking very loudly or yelling. They also have a replaceable cable.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HD0ELFK/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_2qhVDb9DKC3QF

Learn it, live it, love it

If you ever feel like a 1,900-page tome, though, the little-known The Enclyclopedia of New York City is amazing. Actually, it's only 1,392 pages. It weighs 7.6 pounds. It has everything — streets, policitians, artists, buildings, companies, lots of really interesting trivia. The second edition came out in 2010 and isn't cheap, but the first edition is still available for just a few dollars.

We bought one of these. Its kind of expensive and maybe you could buy something similar from goodwill and modify it to add a cat entry to save money. At any rate we notice far more odor if the front doors get left open so it is effective, but its not a silver bullet.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004E8M7PK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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We also use the Dr. Elsey's blue box litter.

The Power Broker by Robert Caro. Humongous and incredibly compelling biography of Robert Moses, the guy responsible for the bulk of infrastructure projects you just mentioned and many more.

There are British food exporters that will sell them to you on Amazon for a cool $7/can.

Also, apparently Canada's into ketchup-flavored chips?

The Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony That Shaped America is a fantastic read!

$7.49 with free shipping on Amazon

my favourite bit:
> Please know this product travelled over 10 thousand miles so the chips may be broken

City Walks: New York: 50 Adventures on Foot

The Power Broker by Robert Caro is supposed to be excellent. Doesn't really fit in the architecture / food / pictures criteria.. but hey

The Power Broker

They haven't turned mine on yet either. Just get one of these in the interim.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000TGDGLU/

https://www.amazon.com/New-York-Novel-Edward-Rutherfurd/dp/0345497422

The Encyclopedia of New York City from Yale University Press.

https://www.amazon.com/Basic-Tips-Etiquette-Nathan-Pyle/dp/0062303112/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526939666&sr=8-1&keywords=new+york+city+etiquette

Look at the American Institute of Architecture Guide to New York City. That should cover, actually, all of them, except for anything built in the past few years.

Subway map (PDF)

Metrocard

NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette by u/nathanwpyle

Barclay Street is located close to Chambers Street (A/C), Park Place (2/3) and City Hall (R/W) stations.

https://www.amazon.com/Works-Anatomy-City-Kate-Ascher/dp/0143112708

http://www.amazon.com/Works-Anatomy-City-Kate-Ascher/dp/0143112708

I've had one of these going on 10 years now:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HD0ELFK/ref=sspa_dk_detail_1?pd_rd_i=B00HD0ELFK&pd_rd_w=zzl5S&pf_rd_p=f0dedbe2-13c8-4136-a746-4398ed93cf0f&pd_rd_wg=uiRZI&pf_rd_r=V2CS391XDZ0F2DXB5H8A&pd_rd_r=ce3d3bcb-28b2-11e9-898b-bde429f25e46&th=1

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In all that time it has only required a deep cleaning.

Put plastic weather seals on all of the windows in the two cold rooms. http://www.amazon.com/3M-Indoor-Window-Insulator-5-Window/dp/B00002NCJI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1415047492&sr=8-1&keywords=plastic+weather+window+seal

Call the Strand and see if they have this book

I've had the marpac below for 5+ years without any issues. I can't imagine sleeping in the city without it.

https://www.amazon.com/Marpac-Dohm-DS-All-Natural-White-Machine/dp/B000KUHFGM

If it involves New York City and architecture, it's in this book.

7-part series, American Experience: New York

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https://www.amazon.com/American-Experience-York-Documentary-Burns/dp/B000BITUF2

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I believe you can find episodes on Youtube if you search, not sure how complete they are.

When I had a mouse problem due to construction next door (they even started nesting in the walls of my oven), the only thing that worked was putting down a ton of mouse traps along baseboards and under furniture (where my cat could not get to them). I found these to work wonderfully and be very easy to set. I put out poison but I don't think it accomplished much, if anything.

I live in old building and I see cockroaches every once in a while in garbage area, but not so much in my apt. However, a few years ago I started seeing a few (maybe 3 in a month) so I got the below product. I think it works well because I see maybe one a year now, and every once in a while a dead one.

For your first go, i’d use four tubes, to make sure you get it under control, but now i use maybe 2 tubes evert 4 months for “protection.”

https://www.amazon.com/advion-Plungers-Cockroach-Insecticide-Australian/dp/B00730QW70/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?keywords=cockroach+killer&qid=1569766850&s=gateway&sprefix=cockro&sr=8-3

Get some of this stuff:

https://www.amazon.com/advion-Plungers-Cockroach-Insecticide-Australian/dp/B00730QW70/

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Lay it down, just in pea sized amounts on a piece of paper and place it under your sink and/or in the corners of your kitchen. If you have roaches, they will come out and be obliterated within a couple of weeks. I just moved into a new apartment on 145th and I am doing this just a precaution - my last apartment was a 5th floor walkup (im in a 6th floor now) and we ended up getting a small infestation when they started doing construction on the apartment below us.

I second this, and get these while you’re at it, too: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00178HMCI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_TSfVBb30TKP5G

They’ll alert you if the window has been cracked or a door has been opened, and likely scare a burglar off. I bring them to hotels with me because I am a crazy person.