A coming of age tale that focuses on brothers Arty and Jay, left in the care of their Grandma Kurnitz and Aunt Bella in Yonkers, New York. Their desperate father, Eddie, works as a traveling salesman to pay off debts incurred following the death of his wife. Grandma is a severe, frightfully intimidating immigrant who terrified her children as they were growing up, damaging each of them to varying degrees. Bella is a sweet but mentally slow and highly excitable woman who longs to marry an usher at the local movie house so she can escape the oppressive household and create a life and family of her own. Her brother Louie is a small-time, tough-talking hoodlum who is on the run, while her sister Gert suffers from a breathing problem with causes more psychological than physical problems. Missing much of the sentimentality of the plays comprising Simon's earlier Eugene trilogy, Lost in Yonkers climaxes with a dramatic confrontation between embittered mother and lonely daughter that creates a permanent fissure in this highly dysfunctional family.

YONKERS Yonkers! is for Young Adult readers, yet readers of all ages can learn how our turbulent political times have been shaped by our past. Welcome to working class Yonkers circa 1969-71! This coming-of-age story captures Woodstock, the Vietnam War, a bad President in the the White House, chaos and a fundamental breakdown of social order.

Over the centuries, Yonkers, New York, has evolved from a small village to a dynamic industrial powerhouse. The city firmly established itself as one of the largest cities in the state in the post-Civil War era, with downtown Getty Square as its bustling center.

Former NYPD officer and current ghost hunter Jason Medina travels up the Hudson River to a hotbed of paranormal activity. The quiet New York suburb of Yonkers hides a history of hauntings. Now converted into apartments, old Public School 13 is the site of strange apparitions that may be ghosts of former students and teachers who died in a tragic fire. The Boyce Thompson Institute’s lofty goal of solving world hunger was never met, and unfulfilled spirits are said to lurk in its abandoned laboratory. Wealthy colonial landowners still watch over stately historic homes like Philipse Manor Hall. Even the iconic Untermyer Park is a playground for the otherworldly. Local ghost investigator Jason Medina reveals these and other ghosts of Yonkers.

From the edge of the Hudson River, we travel with fifteen year old Cookie Colangelo into The Heart of Yonkers. Close to the river's edge, it was hot enough to take your clothes off and think about jumping into the water. Cookie has been slow to mature sexually. When her sexual awakening does occur, it's a huge explosion, all-consuming and emotionally powerful. She desperately wants a boyfriend but will not settle for a dumb Yonkers guy. Then she meets Stanley di Falco and falls hard. This Vietnam War Vet has recently returned home. Stanley is vulnerable and trying to come to terms with his own humanity. While Cookie does everything in her power to seduce him, her age is an obstacle to consummating the relationship. Throughout this story, the presence of the river is a brilliant metaphor providing context for unforgettable characters. Meet Jimmy the Midget who owns the Midget Bar on top of hardscrabble Nodine Hill. This popular watering hole is a refuge for working stiffs to drown themselves in the drink and to get solace from a midget who possesses uncanny insight into people. As a ruse to get close to Stanley di Falco, Cookie befriends his mother Bertha Sokól, who is a refugee and survivor of the slaughter at Nowy Targ in Poland. Many characters from the first Yonkers book are back too. They're older but are they wiser? Black B-boy dancer Herman Lynch and his grandmother Mable Kerry continue to be the ballast in Cookie's unstable world. Cookie's parents are stranger and funnier than ever. The Queen Bee of Italian girls Toni Ferlinghetti embarks on a new reign of terror. Ultimately, The Heart of Yonkers is about kissing...well, learning how to kiss, or maybe, it's about much more than kissing.

Traces the economic, political, and social evolution of New York State’s fourth largest city during the twentieth century. Yonkers in the Twentieth Century chronicles the decline and rebirth of the fourth largest city in New York State, once known as “the Queen City of the Hudson” and “the City of Gracious Living.” Previously an industrial powerhouse, the city’s factories turned out essential items that helped the United States win two world wars. Following World War II, the industrial base of Yonkers eroded as companies moved away, contributing to an increase in poverty. To address the housing needs of its low-income residents, Yonkers built public housing, resulting in a nearly thirty-year court case that, for the first time in United States history, linked school and housing segregation. The case was finally settled in the early years of the twenty-first century, a time that also witnessed the continuation of the city’s economic redevelopment efforts along the Hudson River and contiguous downtown area. Striving to once again become “the Queen City of the Hudson,” Yonkers is being rebuilt beginning at its historic waterfront. “Yonkers in the Twentieth Century provides readers an in-depth perspective of our city that has not yet been told. From the glory days at the dawn of the twentieth century to its later turbulent decades, Marilyn E. Weigold thoughtfully takes us through the vibrant history of our city, affording us the knowledge needed to appreciate our past so to best plan for our future. I encourage those who have an insatiable interest and pride in Yonkers to explore Weigold’s comprehensive narrative and take a step back in time.” — Mike Spano, Mayor of the City of Yonkers “Yonkers has such an interesting and vibrant history that it needs to be preserved and told. This book is a major accomplishment providing a comprehensive look at the life of the city and will leave a lasting legacy for residents, historians, and all those who appreciate and value knowing how we got to where we are today.” — James J. Landy, Chairman, Hudson Valley Bank