Back to Life

In Moss’s recently released Feral City, he chronicles how New York reverted to this long-lost scruff-and-tumble avatar of itself when Covid-19 hit. Moss’s firsthand account portrays a pandemic-era city typified less by fear than by freedom, not atomized by remote work but unified by protests and outdoor parties. The book stands as a paean to the latent potential of New York and all great cities on life support, nearly drowned by capital. Yes, the vital signs of the urban body politic look weak—but under the right conditions, the city can still be jolted back to life.