THE PLAZA The Secret Life of America's Most Famous Hotel

Narrator Jefferson Mays delivers something between a conspiratorial and a conversational tone in his impeccable performance of this revelatory story. He seems to delight in the machinations that are part of The Plaza hotel's decidedly checkered history. Mays subtly evokes the crowded cast of guests--from the fictional Eloise to the Beatles--and owners--from Harry Black and Conrad Hilton to Donald Trump, all of whom yearned to possess the symbol of Manhattan's high life. Here Truman Capote threw his conspicuous one-off Black and White Ball in 1966. Sadly, the fate of the hotel became more tenuous with each mega-sale. Julie Satow's detailing of the various ownerships, colorful residents, and resolute staff members of the Plaza make for a tour de force of storytelling. A.D.M. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2019]