Al Dente, The Adventures of a Gastronome in Italy  •  William Black FOOD •  2004 •  PAPER  • 368 PAGES Clearly besotted by food, William Black travels throughout Italy in search of food and experience. (ITL548, $13.95)
Architecture in Italy 1500-1600  •  Wolfgang Lotz  •  Deborah Howard ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1995 •  PAPER  • 205 PAGES A classic, comprehensive introduction to 16th-century Italian architecture. In this highly readable book, Lotz discusses the work of Renaissance architects including Bramante, Giulio Roman, Michelangelo and Palladio. Originally published in 1974 as part two of "Architecture in Italy, 1400-1600." With hundreds of color photographs and site plans, the book is an excellent companion for visitors to Venice, Florence or Rome. (ITL247, $37.00)
The Architecture of the Italian Renaissance  •  Peter Murray ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1997 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES A classic, informative guide to Renaissance architecture throughout Italy, with black-and-white photographs and site plans. Beginning with the 14th century, Murray surveys major works and influences through the Italian Renaissance up to the 17th century. Ideal for travelers to Italy with an interest in architecture. (ITL34, $20.40)
Art in Renaissance Italy  •  Gary M. Radke  •  John T. Paoletti ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2001 •  HARD COVER  • 512 PAGES A complete, scholarly and remarkably readable overview of Italian Renaissance painting, sculpture and architecture, co-authored by two leading art historians. Paoletti and Radke examine the political, social and artistic currents that produced the unprecedented art of the 15th-17th centuries. With 600 illustrations (more than 200 in color). (ITL412, $85.00)
Art of the Byzantine Era  •  David Talbot Rice ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1985 •  PAPER  • 286 PAGES An indispensable classic and a thoroughly illustrated introduction to Byzantine art, wide-ranging and literate. Though it focuses on the extraordinary early Christian treasures of Constantinople (including site plans and photographs of mosaics, carving and decoration), the book also includes chapters on Sicily, Venice and Slavonic art of the Balkans. With 250 illustrations, many in color, and accompanying text, it is a compact introduction to the art and architecture of the era. (TKY22, $16.95)
The Art of the Renaissance  •  Peter Murray ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1992 •  PAPER  • 286 PAGES A brief, illustrated survey of the world of the Renaissance and its art, complete with illustrations. This fine book puts the flowering of art and culture that began in Florence in 1420 in its historical context. With 251 well-integrated illustrations, 51 in color. Organized geographically and thematically, it includes chapters on Florence and its artists, the Netherlands, early illustrated books, and many individual artists. (ITL14, $18.95)
Birds of Europe  •  Killian Mullarney  •  Lars Svensson  •  Dan Zetterstrom  •  Peter J. Grant FIELD GUIDE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES • FAVORITE This Princeton Field Guide features 3,500 illustrations by Killian Mullarney and Dan Zetterstrom. Color plates depict every species -- and sometimes several different variants -- for 722 birds found from the Urals to the Atlantic, Scandinavia to the Middle East. (FG47, $29.95)
The Birth of Venus, A Novel  •  Sarah Dunant LITERATURE •  2004 •  PAPER  • 397 PAGES This tasty tale of art, passion, politics and danger, memorably set in Renaissance Florence in the days after the death of the powerful Lorenzo de Medici in 1492, comes to us from British novelist, broadcaster and critic Sarah Dunant, who brings her experience as the creator of the private investigator Hannah Wolfe to this new era. The malevolent political reformer (and zealot) Girolamo Savonarola figures prominently -- and even Michelangelo makes an appearance. Not surprisingly, Dunant divides her time between London and Florence, which she so vividly depicts. A runaway bestseller. (ITL532, $13.95)
Blue Guide Northern Italy, from the Alps to the Adriatic  •  Paul Blanchard GUIDEBOOK •  2005 •  PAPER  • 735 PAGES This Blue Guide by a popular tour leader provides a thorough overview of the history, art and architecture of northern Italy from Trieste across to the Valle d'Aosta, Venice, Verona, Milan, Genoa and Bologna. With 36 maps and site plans. 12th edition. (ITL48, $32.95)
Cadogan Venice  •  Michael Pauls  •  Dana Facaros GUIDEBOOK •  2003 •  PAPER  • 336 PAGES A guide in the respected British series with insightful cultural and historical background, and up-to-date practical information, illustrations and maps. (ITL326, $17.95)
Casa Rossa  •  Francesca Marciano LITERATURE •  2003 •  PAPER  • 340 PAGES This is Italian filmmaker Marciano's second attempt at the pen, her first being a novel of Kenya, titled Rules of the Wild. This second popular novel, set in Southern Italy, Rome, and New York City, follows the lives of a mother, daughter, and granddaughter, and their ties to modern Italy. The novel opens as the narrator, Alina Strada, prepares to sell the family farm (Casa Rossa) in Puglia. The author, as you might guess, divides her time between Italy and Kenya. (ITL534, $14.95)
City Secrets: Florence, Venice, and the Towns of Italy  •  Robert Kahn GUIDEBOOK •  2001 •  HARD COVER  • 383 PAGES A connoisseur's guide to Italy featuring 200 short recommendations, many by artists, architects and other members of the American Academy in Rome or the organization Save Venice. Each contributor provides a brief profile of a favorite walk, restaurant, garden, market, work of art, building or other attraction. With maps and travel information. (ITL277, $19.95)
The Dark Heart of Italy  •  Tobias Jones TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2004 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES An insightful portrait of contemporary Italy by an inquisitive British journalist author, who moved to Parma in 1999. Jones roamed widely in Italy, soaking in art, society and politics. It's the fame, popularity and audacity of Berlusconi at the heart of the book. (ITL533, $15.00)
The Devil in the Hills  •  Cesare Pavese LITERATURE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 220 PAGES This book, the most personal of the many stories, poems and novels of Pavese, follows the summer adventures of three young men in the hills, vineyards and villages of the author's native Piedmont. Cesare Pavese was one of the most influential Italian voices of the mid-20th century. Unable to publish during Italy's fascist government, he turned to translation of Melville, Joyce and other modern masters. This book, like most of his work was published in the short period between WWII and the author's death in 1951. Translated from the Italian by D.D. Paige. (ITL430, $23.95)
Edith Wharton's Italian Gardens  •  Vivian Russell BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1997 •  HARD COVER  • 192 PAGES Edith Wharton's essays on the magnificent villa gardens of Lombardy, Veneto, Florence, Siena and Rome are as full of interest today as when they were first published in 1904. With commentary and color photographs of the villas and gardens by Vivian Russell, who retraced Wharton's journeys. She includes literary excerpts by Wharton, Charles Dickens, Henry James and other admirers. (ITL716, $45.00)
Eyewitness Guide Umbria  •  Eyewitness Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2004 •  PAPER  • 192 PAGES A marvelously illustrated, compact guide to the culture, history and attractions of Umbria, organized geographically and especially helpful for its innovative site plans, building diagrams and local maps. With select, annotated listings of where to eat and sleep and what to buy. (ITL512, $20.00)
Fodor's See It Italy  •  Fodor's GUIDEBOOK •  2006 •  PAPER  • 462 PAGES An inaugural volume in this new line of guides by Fodor's this book is notable for its especially vibrant presentation of the country. Each page displays full-color photos accompanied by much useful information on how to eat, sleep, shop, and sightsee in Italy. With seven sections choc-full of tips to help make your visit memorable. The "Out and About" section features pre-planned walking and touring routes such as "A Lover's Walk in the Cinque Terre," "A Wine Tour from Alba to Cuneo" and "The Salentine Peninsula." (ITL550, $24.95)
For the Beauty of the Earth: Birding, Opera, and Other Journeys  •  Thomas Urquhart BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2006 •  PAPER  • 320 PAGES Urquhart chronicles a lifelong affair with nature, combined with a passion for music, as he travels-- and bird watches-- through pastoral England, Italy, the Camargue in Provence, and the villages of Mali. (BRD35, $15.00)
The Garden of the Finzi-Continis  •  Giorgio Bassini  •  William Weaver LITERATURE •  1996 •  PAPER  • 197 PAGES Made into an Academy Award-winning film in 1971, this powerful book deals with unrequited love and classist society in the time of Mussolini, when anti-Semitic laws were beginning to melt down the social hierarchies. A wonderfully written and well-translated tragedy, it takes place in the town of Ferrara, between Venice and Bologna. (ITL205, $13.00)
The Gothic Enterprise, A Guide to Understanding the Medieval Cathedral  •  Robert A. Scott ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2005 •  PAPER  • 307 PAGES Scott, whose interest in the history of cathedrals began when he first saw the magnificent Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Salisbury, England, takes his reader on a historical, architectural and sociological tour of the magnificent spires and stained-glass windows that dot the landscape of Europe. It's an accessible, personable overview. (EUR190, $17.95)
Here Is Where We Meet  •  John Berger LITERATURE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES This novel weaves a portrait of several European countries through encounters with the dead, from the narrator's mother, whom he discovers on a park bench in Lisbon, to a childhood friend wandering a market in Krakow. "The dead don't stay where they are buried," the protagonist's mother tells him, and this becomes the mantra for this most unusual journey through Europe's history and people. (EUR189, $14.00)
History of My Life (Vols. III & IV)  •  Giacomo Casanova  •  Willard R. Trask BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1997 •  PAPER  • 704 PAGES Casanova's Venice is a city of intrigue and extravagance, a fitting homeland for a multi-faceted, extravagant man. The foremost scoundrel of the 18th century was also a memoirist of formidable talent. In the fourth volume of his autobiography, Casanova -- who was, variously, a spy, a diplomat, a soldier, an astrologer, and a cleric -- tells of his imprisonment in the dungeon of the Ducal Palace in Venice. The tale made him a wanted commodity throughout Europe in 1756, the year of his escape, and indeed it is no less sensational now. (ITL381, $25.00)
Il Postino  •  Michael Radford 1995 •  DVD The Italian comic actor Massino Troisi stars as a shy Italian postman living in a small fishing village on a Mediterranean island off the coast of Italy who learns the ways of poetry and romance while delivering mail to the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. In Italian with subtitles. (ITL541, $19.99)
Insight City Guide Venice  •  Insight Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2008 •  PAPER  • 313 PAGES In its trademark style, this handsome Insight Guide gives a profusely illustrated overview of Venice. Featuring concise essays by well regarded authors on the art, architecture, and history of the city, it contains hundreds of photos and maps as well as some limited practical information. This handy book is a popular and highly recommended one-volume introduction to Venice. (ITL23, $16.95)
Insight Guide Mediterranean Cruises  •  Insight Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2004 •  PAPER  • 300 PAGES Covering 120 ports of call throughout the Mediterranean from the Canary Islands to Egypt. (MED94, $22.95)
Insight Guide Northern Italy  •  Insight Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2007 •  PAPER  • 404 PAGES This handsome guide to northern Italy gives a profusely illustrated overview of the region. Featuring concise essays by well regarded authors on the history, culture and nature of the region, it contains hundreds of photos and maps, as well as some limited practical information. (ITL190, $24.95)
Italian Cinema, From Neorealism to the Present  •  Peter Bondanella ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2001 •  PAPER  • 544 PAGES Art historian Peter Bondonella tackles the history modern Italian film in this scholarly volume, starting in the 1940s with the Neorealists (De Sica, Rossellini, et al) and charting a course up to the auteurs of today. Detailed and well written, it is an essential reference to one of the world's most vibrant national cinemas. (ITL350, $29.95)
Italian Days  •  Barbara Grizzuti Harrison TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  1998 •  PAPER  • 479 PAGES • FAVORITE A literary celebration, portrait and guide to Italy and the Italians. Barbara Grizzuti Harrison writes with warmth and depth of her journey from Milan south to Calabria in this sprightly account. It's one of our favorite books about place. (ITL02, $15.00)
Italian English Bilingual Visual Dictionary  •  DK Publishing LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2005 •  PAPER  • 360 PAGES With thousands of neatly arranged color photographs, this compact book is impressively comprehensive, covering everything from the basics of la casa (house) to the vocabulary of le granaglie e i legumi secchi (grains and legumes). With a handy reference section in the back. (ITL626, $12.95)
Italian Hours  •  Henry James TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  1992 •  PAPER  • 376 PAGES A classic series of travel essays written between 1872 and 1909 on the art, religion and people of Italy. James is an observant guide to Rome, Naples, Florence and other great destinations in the 19th century. (ITL07, $16.00)
Italian Neighbors  •  Tim Parks BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2003 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES This sparkling memoir by the British novelist captures the travails and delights of life in Verona with charm and wit. Perceptive and supremely entertaining, Parks is an excellent interpreter of the Italian character. (ITL16, $14.00)
The Italians  •  Luigi Barzini CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1996 •  PAPER  • 352 PAGES The definitive portrait of the Italian people, noteworthy for its insight, grace and wit. It's a classic, scholarly essay on the Italian character, still worthwhile though first published in 1964. Much historical information is included. Highly recommended. (ITL05, $16.00)
Italy and Its Invaders  •  Girolamo Arnaldi HISTORY •  2005 •  HARD COVER  • 240 PAGES A wide-ranging history of the many empires and world powers that have invaded Italy, with either success or failure, and their lasting influences, both positive and negative, on Italian art, architecture and culture up to the present day. (ITL661, $19.95)
Italy, A Short History  •  Harry Hearder HISTORY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 294 PAGES Elegantly written, generous and enormously informative, this compact book takes in the fell sweep of Italian history from the Roman Republic up to the present, including the Renaissance and World War II. It has a welcome focus on the essential unity of Italian civilizations, as well as maps and a chronology. This revised second edition of the late Harry Hearder's classic book includes a new chapter by Jonathan Morris on recent history. (ITL56, $24.99)
Italy, A Traveler's Literary Companion  •  Lawrence Venuti ANTHOLOGY •  2003 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES This collection of tales by diverse Italian writers, organized geographically, captures the spirit, history and allure of the country. Not just a literary companion, this anthology is also a who's who of contemporary Italian writers. Bravo. (ITL466, $14.95)
La Dolce Vita  •  Federico Fellini 1960 •  DVD Fellini's celebrated masterpiece which stars Marcello Mastroianni as Marcello Rubini, a Roman tabloid reporter who fully indugles in the decadence of "la dolce vita"-- sex, money, and alcohol. Anita Ekberg is the American starlet whom Marcello takes up with. In Italian with subtitles. Part of the Criterion Collection. (ITL543, $34.98)
The Lives of the Artists, Vol 1  •  Giorgio Vasari  •  Julia Conway and Peter Bondanella BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1987 •  PAPER  • 477 PAGES Vasari offers short biographies of the art and lives of his Renaissance contemporaries in this classic and much-discussed book written in the mid-16th century. He focuses on painters both great and lesser-known, including Giotto, Michelangelo, Titian and others. This edition includes parts one, two and three of the huge original work. (ITL17, $14.00)
M, The Man Who Became Caravaggio  •  Peter Robb BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2000 •  PAPER  • 592 PAGES A masterful biography of the Renaissance painter by the author of "Midnight in Sicily." (ART47, $22.00)
Mammals of Europe  •  Priscilla Barrett  •  David W. MacDonald FIELD GUIDE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 320 PAGES Published by Princeton, this is a field guide to land and marine mammals throughout Europe, both endemic and introduced. With more than 600 color illustrations of over 200 mammals, it's a comprehensive handbook, with detailed descriptions, range maps and commentary on behavior. (FG61, $34.95)
Marco Polo and the Discovery of the World  •  John Larner EXPLORATION •  2001 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES A scholarly, insightful study of Marco Polo's famous travel account -- and its impact on European ideas and politics, particularly its influence on cartographers and explorers. The author looks too at the circumstances of Marco Polo's life and travels, arguing that Marco Polo really did visit China -- and that he must have had a highly talented co-author in Rustichello da Pisa. (EXP22, $19.00)
Master and Commander, The Far Side of the World  •  Peter Weir LITERATURE •  2003 •  DVD Peter Weir's exciting adaptation of two of Patrick O'Brian's popular novels, "Master and Commander" and "The Far Side of the World," starring Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany. Crowe is Captain Jack Aubrey, whose British ship, the HMS Surprise, is battling a mysterious French ship off the coast of Cape Horn during the Napoleonic Wars of 1805. An extended sequenced filmed on the Galapagos marks one of the first times the islands have been depicted in a feature film. (GPS66, $39.98)
The Middle Sea, A History of the Mediterranean  •  John Julius Norwich HISTORY •  2007 •  PAPER  • 720 PAGES • NEW A marvelous writer who has already tackled Byzantium, the Normans in Sicily and Venice, Norwich spins his magic in this story of culture, trade and politics, royalty and rulers, wars and religion in the Mediterranean from antiquity to the end of the First World War. (MED98, $20.00)
Modigliani  •  Doris Krystof ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 96 PAGES This slim illustrated book, part of Taschen's Basic Art series, showcases Modigliani's distinct colorful style of painting and portraiture, and places him within the context of his bohemian contemporaries (and friends), such as Pablo Picasso and Diego Rivera. (ART44, $9.99)
Northern Italy Map  •  Touring Club Italiano MAP A road map of Northern Italy at a scale of 1:400,000. (ITL38, $12.95)
The Olive, Tree of Civilization  •  John Train  •  Mark E. Smith HISTORY •  2004 •  HARD COVER  • 128 PAGES A history of the celebrated vegetable and the mythology behind it. (NAT72, $25.00)
On The Road with Francis of Assisi  •  Linda Bird Francke TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES Weaving tales of the 13th-century saint and her own 21st-century travels, Francke follows in the footsteps of Francis on her own pilgrimage. She lingers in Assisi, Venice and Rome, and takes in Siena, Bologna, Gubbio, and many hill towns, sanctuaries and chapels. The book nicely evokes both the spirit of Francis of Asisi, and the history and pleasures of Italy. (ITL647, $15.95)
One-Hundred & One Beautiful Small Towns in Italy  •  Paolo Lazzarin GUIDEBOOK •  2004 •  HARD COVER  • 276 PAGES A handsome book highlighting Italy's charming and scenic villages. Featuring color photographs and an overview of history and attractions, favorite accommodations and restaurants by photographer-journalist Lazzarin. Translated from the Italian (the book was originally published for the Italian market as an introduction to unique and wonderful places throughout the country). (ITL546, $45.00)
The Ottoman Centuries  •  Lord Kinross HISTORY •  1988 •  PAPER  • 638 PAGES A richly detailed, engrossing history of the Ottoman empire from its dawn in 1300 through its zenith under Suleiman the magnificent and up to the foundation of the modern republic in 1923. With maps and black-and-white photographs throughout. (ITL54, $18.95)
Palladio  •  James Ackerman BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1974 •  PAPER  • 170 PAGES James Ackerman's seminal biography of Venetian architect Andrea Palladio. (ITL234, $15.00)
Pilgrimages, The Great Adventure of the Middle Ages  •  John Ure HISTORY •  2006 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES (EUR202, $15.95)
Pimsleur Quick & Simple Italian  •  Pimsleur Language Method LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2005 •  AUDIO CD Four audio CDs with eight 30-minute lessons in basic Italian, covering elementary vocabulary and phrases used in travel and everyday situations. The Pimsleur method emphasizes the use of listening skills without reading materials (so there isn't a book to follow along). It's advertised as "Totally audio: hear it, learn it, speak it." (ITL630, $19.95)
Short Stories in Italian, Racconti in Italiano  •  Nick Roberts LITERATURE •  2001 •  PAPER  • 174 PAGES This bilingual collection, with the English and Italian alongside, features stories by contemporary and established Italian literary figures, including Italo Calvino and Primo Levi, Leonardo Sciascia, Goffredo Parise and Antonio Tabucchi. (ITL730, $13.00)
Spartacus  •  Stanley Kubrick 1960 •  DVD Stanley Kubrick's riveting epic about the leader of a Roman slave revolt, starring no less than Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, Jean Simmons, Charles Laughton, Tony Curtis and Peter Ustinov. The screenplay was written by the playwright Dalton Trumbo, who was blacklisted at the time. Part of the Criterion Collection. (ITL544, $49.95)
The Talented Mr. Ripley  •  Anthony Minghella 1999 •  DVD A screen adaptation of the first in Patricia Highsmith's popular Mr. Ripley mystery series. Matt Damon stars as the obsessive and murderous Mr. Ripley, whose jealousy of his dashing companion Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law) quickly turns sinister. The highlight of this thriller, which also stars Gwyneth Paltrow, Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Cate Blanchett, is its suspenseful portrayal of an exquisite sundrenched Italian town (the film was shot in, among other places, Venice, Tuscany, the Gulf of Naples and Southern Sicily), where life is carefree but a menacing potential for violence lurks behind every corner. (ITL542, $14.99)
That Fine Italian Hand  •  Paul Hoffman CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1991 •  PAPER  • 246 PAGES A former newspaperman in Rome, Hoffman spears the Italians in this affectionate portrait of Italian society with all its quirks, contradictions, and energy. (ITL346, $17.00)
Travelers' Tales, A Woman's Europe  •  Marybeth Bond  •  Mary Morris ANTHOLOGY •  2004 •  PAPER  • 298 PAGES This entertaining collection depicts Europe through the eyes of a diverse group of women writers, including Frances Mayes, Jan Morris and Mary Morris. These humorous and well-written true stories capture the misadventures, discoveries and slices of life that the continent (and travel!) has to offer. (EUR160, $17.95)
A Traveller's History of Italy  •  Valerio Lintner HISTORY •  2008 •  PAPER  • 287 PAGES A brief history of Italy through the 1990s -- wide-ranging, accessible and necessarily condensed. With a useful chronology and historical gazetteer, this book marches confidently through the centuries. (ITL86, $14.95)
Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere  •  Jan Morris TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 208 PAGES A loving celebration of the city and its faded glory. Morris, who first visited the city as a soldier during WWII, is especially good at evoking the varied history and fortunes of Trieste. This brief book, which Morris says is her last, captures the many political and economic transformations of this region at the head of the Adriatic Sea. (ITL347, $15.00)
Tuscany in Mind  •  Alice Powers ANTHOLOGY •  2005 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES These selections, including D.H. Lawrence, Robert Browning, Mary McCarthy, to Eric Newby, Erica Jong and David Leavitt, cover a wide range of subjects, from the region's geography to its history and culture and (of course) the food. Another fine literary anthology from the editor of Italy in Mind. Powers provides an appreciative introduction to each 8-10 page selection, focusing on the transforamtion wrought upon American and British writers. (ITL607, $14.95)
Venetian Life  •  William Dean Howells TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2001 •  PAPER  • 336 PAGES A leisurely account of housekeeping, touring and socializing in 19th-century Venice by the American consul and literary lion, first published in 1866. (ITL327, $16.95)
Venice and the Slavs, The Discovery of Dalmatia in the Age of Enlightenment  •  Larry Wolff HISTORY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 404 PAGES Professor of history at Boston College, Wolff's expertise is the divide between eastern and western Europe: its intellectual, political and artificial origins. For this volume he focuses on the Venetian empire in the Balkans in the 1700s, finding there much that explains modern Yugoslavia and westerners' attitudes toward the Balkans. (BLK35, $27.95)
Venice for Pleasure  •  J.G. Links GUIDEBOOK •  2001 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES For 30 years this marvelous book has been a favorite walking guide to the history, art and byways of Venice. Anecdotal, digressive and fascinating, Links' work takes you by the hand and shows you the city. (ITL104, $27.50)
Venice Map  •  Borch Maps MAP A colorful, detailed, laminated map of Venice at a scale of 1:6,500. Perfect for finding your way around the famously labyrinthine streets and canals. Plastic-coated. (ITL26, $7.95)
Venice, Lion City  •  Garry Wills HISTORY •  2002 •  PAPER  • 448 PAGES A magisterial history of Venice at the height of its power as a maritime republic in the 15th and 16th centuries. Wills shows the power and influence of the city through its magnificent Renaissance art and architecture. With 130 illustrations, 30 in color. An accomplished historian and political commentator, Wills is attuned to the nuances of Venetian religious and political power. (ITL324, $20.00)
Venice, The City and Its Architecture  •  Richard Goy ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1999 •  PAPER  • 320 PAGES In this oversize, illustrated book, architect and architectural historian Richard Goy discusses the diverse buildings of Venice, including fisherman's cottages, Christian basilicas, Palladio's masterpieces, and Longhena's Santa Maria de Salute. With 400 photographs, in color and black-and-white. (ITL251, $39.95)
The Vinegar of Spilamberto, And Other Italian Adventures With Food, Places, And People  •  Doris Muscatine  •  Alice Waters FOOD •  2007 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES An account of the author's travels and love of Italy, its food and culture. (ITL662, $15.00)
Voice of the Violin  •  Andrea Camilleri  •  Stephen Sartarelli MYSTERY •  2004 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES In this fourth installment in the popular Inspector Montalbano series. Camilleri delivers a delightful cast of characters and wry commentary on Sicilian ways, headed by the irresistible Inspector Montalbano, a small town police detective with a healthy appetite, roving intellect and wry sense of humor. It opens with a classic conceit of police procedurals: a beautiful blond woman is found dead. That's the least of it. (ITL537, $13.00)
Watermark  •  Joseph Brodsky CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1993 •  PAPER  • 135 PAGES A metaphysical, metaphorical meditation on Venice by poet Joseph Brodsky. His ruminations take the form of 48 short chapters, each prompted by an idea, memory or scene associated with his much loved city. (ITL105, $12.00)
World Food Italy  •  Gabriella Cossi  •  Matthew Evans FOOD •  2000 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES • COMING IN One in Lonely Planet's excellent "World Food" series, this compact illustrated book is an essential guide to Italian food. The authors explain ingredients, regional specialties, classic dishes and methods of preparation. With plenty of color photographs, it's equally useful for at-home cooks, gallivanting gourmands and point-and-order tourists. (ITL386, $12.95)