People stand crowded together inside a train carriage. In the foreground, a person in an orange top holds onto a metal handrail. Behind them, another person holds a red card with a grid of white and blue circles.

Ourit Ben-Haim 's photos of people reading on the NYC subway are amazing

Words: Rob Alderson
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Date: 10 August 2012; Work
Photography

We all know not to judge a book by its cover, but we’re all guilty of judging people by the cover of the book they are reading. This is especially true on public transport where confined for a set period of time our minds are free to run wild – how often have you mentally mapped out a possible love affair based on spotting a much-loved title among the armpits of fellow commuters.

Ourit Ben-Haim has indulged this idea with the Underground New York Public Library site, a project that is conceptually ambitious but beautifully simple in execution. Travelling the NYC subway she snaps pictures of people reading and posts them along with the title of the tome on her site.

She says the library: “freely lends out a reminder that we’re capable of traveling to great depths within ourselves and as a whole,” and what she’s built is a collection of pictures that speak to our relationships with great writing, with books and with each other.

There’s some regulars– a Sunday morning Bible post, a Tuesday translation, a mystery book her readers help identify on a Friday and her E-reader post but on the whole it’s all about eclecticism, of our tastes, passions and prejudices – with works ranging from Nietzsche to Star Wars, Malcolm X to Mitt Romney.

A person with a long white beard and glasses sits on a blue train seat, reading a book. A large black bag rests across their lap. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: William Napier – Attila: The Judgment

People sit together on a train. A person in a green shirt looks at a phone, while a child beside them reads a book titled “Grapes of Wrath”. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: John Steinbeck – The Grapes of Wrath

Three people sit side by side on a subway train. One person looks down at their phone, while the person next to them reads a book titled “The Road”. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Jack Kerouac – On the Road

A person sits on a worn wooden bench at a train station, reading a book. They hold a large yellow plastic shopping bag on their lap. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Lillian Browse – Augustus John: Drawings

A split image showing two people in a tiled setting. On the right, a person in a waistcoat and yellow tie reads a small red book. On the left, a person in a burgundy T-shirt and baseball cap walks past a red and white striped barrier. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Dr R. L. Travers – Mary Poppins

A person sits on an orange subway seat, reading a book. The book cover features a portrait of Mitt Romney and the title “No Apology”. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Mitt Romney – No Apology, Believe in America

Four people sit side by side on a train. They look ahead or down at their phones and books, avoiding eye contact with one another. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Erri DeLuca – The Day Before Happiness

Three people sit side by side in a lift. The person in the centre wears a blue polo shirt and orange cap, looking upwards. To their right, a person in a white polo shirt and blue cap reads a book titled “The Birth of Tragedy”. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Friedrich Nietzsche – The Birth of Tragedy

A person sits on a bright yellow plastic seat inside a train, reading a book. They wear a yellow T-shirt, black leggings, and a colourful patterned scarf. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Fiódor Dostoyevski – Crimen y Casting

A person stands on a train, reading a book with a red and yellow cover titled “The Enchantress of Florence” by Salman Rushdie. They wear a patterned headscarf with sunglasses perched on top and hold onto a metal handrail. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Salman Rushdie – The Enchantress of Florence

Two people sit side by side on a train. A person in a grey suit looks away with a thoughtful expression, while the person next to them reads a book titled “Star Wars”. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Sean Williams – Star Wars (The Old Republic): Fatal Alliance

A person sits on a wooden bench in a busy transit station, focused on reading a small black book. Around them, other people wait or walk past under a sign that reads “Boarding Area”. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Eric Van Lustbader – Last Snow

A person sits on a yellow train seat, focused on reading a small book. Behind them, another person sits leaning back, looking towards the camera. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Philip K. Dick – A Scanner Darkly

A person wearing sunglasses and a striped tank top leans against a red pillar on a subway platform. They hold a foil-wrapped parcel and read a copy of the book “A Thousand Acres” by Jane Smiley. — Above
Ourit Ben-Haim: Jane Smiley – A Thousand Acres

Further Info

www.undergroundnewyorkpubliclibrary.com

About the Author

Rob Alderson

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Rob Alderson is a freelance writer, editor and strategist. He was previously editor-in-chief of It’s Nice That and WePresent, and editor of Design Week. He publishes the newsletter Undo, which tries to make sense of how AI is changing design work, the design process and the design industry.

Ourit Ben-Haim 's photos of people reading on the NYC subway are amazing

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