Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898

by Edwin G. Burrows, Mike Wallace

Amazon says:
Like the city it celebrates, "Gotham" is massive and endlessly fascinating. This narrative of well over 1,000 pages, written after more than two decades of collaborative research by history professors Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace, copiously chronicles New York City from the primeval days of the Lenape Indians to the era when, with Teddy Roosevelt as police commissioner, the great American city became regarded as "Capital of the World."

The sheer bulk of the book may be off-putting, but the reader can use a typically New York approach: Those who don't settle in for the entire history can easily "commute" in and out to read individual chapters, which stand alone nicely and cover the major themes of particular eras very well.

1,424 page paperback |$23.07 |55 reviews

Seven Ages of Paris

by Alistair Horne

Amazon says:
In this luminous portrait of Paris, celebrated historian Alistair Horne gives us the history, culture, disasters, and triumphs of one of the world's truly great cities. Horne makes plain that while Paris may be many things, it is never boring.

With a keen eye for the telling anecdote and pivotal moment, he portrays an array of vivid incidents to show us how Paris endures through each age, is altered but always emerges more brilliant and beautiful than ever.

496 page paperback |$11.56 |27 reviews

London: The Biography

by Peter Ackroyd

Here are two thousand years of London's history and folklore, its chroniclers and criminals and plain citizens, its food and drink and countless pleasures. Blackfriar's and Charing Cross, Paddington and Bedlam. Westminster Abbey and St. Martin in the Fields. Cockneys and vagrants. Immigrants, peasants, and punks. The Plague, the Great Fire, the Blitz. London at all times of day and night, and in all kinds of weather.

In well-chosen anecdotes, keen observations, and the words of hundreds of its citizens and visitors, Ackroyd reveals the ingenuity and grit and vitality of London. Through a unique thematic tour of the physical city and its inimitable soul, the city comes alive.

848 page paperback |$13.57 |50 reviews

London: The Novel

by Edward Rutherfurd

Flashlight Worthy says:
While technically fiction and therefore breaking the mold of this list, we've heard too many good things about this book to leave it off the list.

Click through to Amazon to read the reviews of a lot of satisfied readers.

1,152 page paperback |$12.89 |196 reviews

Berlin Rising: Biography of a City

by Anthony Read, David Fisher

Amazon says:
By far the most accessible history of Berlin available, the authors present a thorough and popular history of the city of Berlin. The book charts the city's development, decline, and rebirth from the Middle Ages through German reunification. A lot of territory is covered in 24 short, cogent chapters: militarism, imperialism, revolution, hyperinflation, cultural excesses, totalitarian terror, total war, and regeneration. Anecdotes from everyday life and a generous array of photographs punctuate the smooth-flowing historical narrative.

376 page paperback |$19.95