Up in the Old Hotel and Other Stories Study Guide & Plot Synopsis

Up in the Old Hotel and Other Stories Plot Summary

Preview of Up in the Old Hotel and Other Stories Summary:

The book opens with a description of a saloon named "McSorley's." The saloon was probably the oldest in operation in the city at the time of the writing and the author, Joseph Mitchell, described the place and the regular customers in detail. From there, Mitchell moved on to tell the story of a woman named Mazie Gordon, who had spent most of her adult life working in a theater she owned as a ticket taker. But most nights after work, Mazie took some soap and change and went to the streets where she distributed both and checked up on anyone who seemed to be in distress. The stories continued with Joe Gould, who claimed to be able to talk to seagulls and was writing an extensive work he titled "An Oral History of Our Time." A longer story about Gould concluded the book with Mitchell noting that he'd come to...
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