Have you ever passed a small park between buildings and wondered? What's that? Who built it? What's its name?

Vest pocket parks began in New York City as a solution to the problem of little green space in a tangle of concrete buildings. The first was built around 1965 and they have been springing up ever since. BEST Pocket Parks of NYC will help you find a park near your office, near your apartment, or just learn the name of that park you pass by on your way to work every day.

BEST Pocket Parks of NYC is for the adventurous traveler as well as the local intrigued by the 'little green spaces in the middle of the city.' There are over 520 privately owned public spaces (POPS) in New York City, but many are simply widened sidewalks or empty plazas. BEST Pocket Parks of NYC takes the best of these spaces, those with seating and ambience, and compiles them into a guide with interesting bits of information scrounged from databases, articles and all manner of public documents.

"The information is in various places and can be difficult to find," according to the author. "I have visited every park (over 500 total), researched from a variety of sources, and have come up with a guide to those pocket parks and public spaces that lend themselves to stopping and relaxing for a while before you go on with your day."

Editorial Reviews

"... A handy guide to some of New York's hidden gems of public space that will delight tourists and natives alike." - Kirkus Reviews kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/rosemary-obrien/best-pocket-parks-of-nyc/

"...a comprehensive guide for adventurous travelers which goes above and beyond the realms of mainstream guide books. This paperback takes the reader on a journey around Manhattan's parks and public spaces that lend themselves to stopping and relaxing for a while before you go on with your day." - onthesetofnewyork.com
"It's a fascinating read, and I will be giving copies to two of my friends who are moving to New York. This would be a wonderful gift to anyone, particularly someone new to this vibrant city!" - JK

"This unique book will be a must have guide for the first-time visitor and for the native New Yorker to navigate their way through the small pocket parks in the area." - A reader

"If you want to learn which park has a green market or which has a drinking fountain with this inscription: "On this site in 1897, nothing happened," then you need to get this guide." - A reader

"If you're looking for some greenery in NYC, this book has you covered. It shows you the best pocket parks in the center of the concrete jungle where you can chill out, sit back and relax." - A reader

From the Author

"I began with New York City because it is my favorite city in the world," explains O'Brien. "I used to live there, I go there often and I hope to retire there one day." In her first career, she was an actress and discovered the parks in between auditions and jobs. They are free public spaces where people can stop and rest. When she finally began the preliminary research to see if this was a viable project, she was surprised to discover there were approximately 530 vest pocket parks on the city's books, but many fewer were used for their intended purpose. Combine this knowledge with a desire to get into the city as often as possible and you have BEST Pocket Parks of NYC. She hopes to write guides for other cities in the future.

Tell your friends by tweeting it, putting it on Facebook or shouting it from the top of the nearest tall building. (Just make sure to hang on if you do that last one.)

X: @pocketparksnyc #pocketparks @writerobrien
FACEBOOK: Facebook.com/pocketparksnyc.

Thank you in advance for helping me spread the word about those 'little green spaces in the middle of the city.'

Rosemary O'Brien