New York City’s fountains are more than just decorative features — they are historical landmarks, cultural icons, and dynamic works of art that shape the city’s landscape.
In Fabulous Fountains of New York (Fordham University Press, 2025) award-winning author and native New Yorker Stephanie Azzarone takes readers on a captivating journey through the artistry, history, and hidden stories behind these remarkable waterworks.
From the grandeur of Central Park’s Bethesda Fountain to the sleek modern cascades of the Unisphere in Queens, this beautifully illustrated book showcases more than seventy fountains across all five boroughs.
Alongside these celebrated landmarks, Azzarone uncovers lesser-known gems, such as Triumph of the Human Spirit and the long-forgotten temperance fountains, revealing how they reflect the city’s evolving cultural and political landscape.
With vivid storytelling, accompanied by glorious photographs by Robert F. Rodriguez, she traces the work of the architects and artists who shaped these fountains, exploring the historical events they commemorate and the scandals, controversies, and tragedies that surround them.
Whether serving as refreshing retreats on hot summer days, symbols of civic pride, or gathering places for contemplation and protest, New York’s fountains have played a vital role in the city’s life.
Author Stephanie Azzarone is a former journalist (freelancer for The New York Times and New York magazine, among others), she also ran an award-winning Manhattan public relations agency.
Now a licensed New York City tour guide, Stephanie shares her knowledge of the city with natives and tourists alike, through walking tours and presentations.
A graduate of New York University, Azzarone has a degree in journalism. Her first book, Heaven on the Hudson: Mansions, Monuments, and Marvels of Riverside Park, published in fall 2022, received the Victorian Society Book of the Year Award.
Photographer Robert F. Rodriguez is formerly a photo editor for The Daily Mail and Gannett Newspapers. He has more than 40 years of experience photographing New York City and its environs and editing the photos of others.
He was the photographer and photo editor for Heaven on the Hudson: Mansions, Monuments and Marvels of Riverside Park and was an artist-in-residence at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Rodriguez has a degree in journalism from New York University.
The author the photographer met at NYU and have been married for over 40 years. This is their second collaboration on books about New York City.
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