Philadelphia Then and Now : 60 Sites Photographed in the Past and Present

by Kenneth Finkel, Susan Oyama

This book isn’t big (128 pages), and it isn’t that wordy (about 80% of the pages are taken up with pictures). But it is fascinating if you like Philadelphia, and you like history.

This book takes 60 locations and has pictures of them. The first part is an “early” picture anywhere from 1859-1952. Then there’s a picture on the next page which is more modern (1986-1988). There’s also a paragraph or so with each picture describing the area as it was in the old days, and now (the book was published in 1988). If you know the areas well, it’s a wonderful jog down memory lane for one’s own memory.

It’s a very fast read – I got through the entire thing cover to cover in well under an hour. I also wished the pictures (the modern ones anyway, the old time ones can’t be helped) were in color, but other than that, it was rather enjoyable. If you’re a fan of Philadelphia, and history, I recommend it.