New york holds a special place in americas national mythology as both the gateway to the usa and as a diverse vibrant cultural center distinct from the rest of the nation from the international atmosphere of the dutch colony new amsterdam through the expansion of the city in the nineteenth century to its unique appeal to artists and writers in the twentieth new york has given its writers . Amazoncom the cambridge companion to the literature of new york cambridge companions to literature 9780521514712 cyrus r k patell waterman bryan books. The cambridge companion to the literature of new york january 2010 doi 101017 ccol9780521514712. Cambridge companions are lively accessible introductions to major writers artists philosophers topics and periods all are collections of specially commissioned essays shaped and introduced to appeal to student readers