14 candid family photos from the 1970s show the quirky ways Americans celebrate the holidays

Meryl Meisler

Some photographers think they have to travel to the ends of the world to get the most interesting and unique images.

Meryl Meisler, however, did the opposite. In the 1970s, she decided to take photos of her charismatic family at home, in their neighborhood on Long Island.

"I documented celebrations and daily life with close extended family, neighbors, friends, and friends of friends, portraying special relationships between the subjects, the joys and activities of everyday life," Meisler told Business Insider.

In her new book, "Purgatory & Paradise: SASSY 70s Suburbia And the City," Meisler's Long Island photos are juxtaposed with images of '70s street- and nightlife in New York City. The result is an unusual but strangely dynamic combination that flows cohesively as a singular narrative.