Who knew there was so much to know about properly navigating the Big Apple? Don’t you just hop on the subway or hail a cab, and go about your merry way?

Not exactly.

Compiled for the benefit of newcomers and visitors and, NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette by Nathan W. Pyle is a humorous, informative look at how to behave in New York City with 136 tips.

The book is presented somewhat like a comic book, with each page containing one tip. Pyle uses simple line drawings to illustrate his words of wisdom and manages to pack in as much humor as good advice into each vignette. For example, if you’ll be driving around town, Pyle advises that you look up the parking regulations for your destination before you go instead of trying to interpret the often complex signage when you’re ready to park (he illustrates this particular tip with a group of dumbfounded settlers-of-yore staring and gaping).

There is practical advice about how to hail a cab (when the roof light is on), staying out of the way of others (standing in the bike lane will get you hit) and most amusingly, how best to deal with inebriates, pukers, panhandlers and other assorted potential pests. Other tips deal with how to approach a celebrity and how to watch out for a common phone theft scam.

One thing that comes through loud and clear here is that Pyle loves NYC. Even when he’s detailing the seamier side of city life, he lets readers know that this is a place to have unlimited fun if you just learn a few ropes.

Tourists will find that the book is a good NYC primer, but those who have no intention of going to the city can get a kick out of it too.
 
Grade: A