5 comments about Blue Guide Rome, Ninth Edition (Blue Guide Rome).

1. The Blue Guides are all stellar tools and this one was a gem this Summer.



2. My husband and I travel every chance we get, and wherever we go, we take two guidebooks, one with color photos and overviews of major sites, and the other, the Blue Guide for the city or region in question. Blue Guides are not the practical choice for making reservations, finding out prices, or navigating the local transportation choices. When it comes to detail, however, about history, culture, not-to-be-missed or off-the-beaten-track treasures, they have no equal. City Guide Rome is no exception. Because of this resource, we discovered San Clemente, with its amazing subterranean world beyond the Coliseum, the remarkable early Christian Church of St Agnese Fuori le Mure, and the lovely Roseto rose gardens. The background information provided for all listings is well researched, detailed, and interesting. Blue Guide Rome is worth every penny for travelers in search of an in-depth adventure.



3. My husband and I travel every chance we get, and wherever we go, we take two guidebooks, one with color photos and overviews of major sites, and the other, the Blue Guide for the city or region in question. Blue Guides are not the practical choice for making reservations, finding out prices, or navigating the local transportation choices. When it comes to detail, however, about history, culture, not-to-be-missed or off-the-beaten-track treasures, they have no equal. City Guide Rome is no exception. Rome is a city best explored on foot, and this edition contains more than 25 guided walks. Because of this resource, we discovered San Clemente, with its amazing subterranean world beyond the Coliseum, the remarkable early Christian Church of St Agnese Fuori le Mure, and the lovely Roseto rose gardens. The background information provided for all listings is well researched, detailed, and interesting. Blue Guide Rome is worth every penny for travelers in search of an in-depth adventure.



4. The Blue Guides, while excellent, are not usually my go-to guides for travel. They usually tell me more than I want or need to know, and their lack of practical information means you can only use it in conjunction with another guide. Rome was an exception. There's simply so much there, and sites are often so poorly labelled and have so little information, that I found I actually needed to carry it around with me. In fact, my original Blue Guide was in a bag that BA lost, and after attempting to see the Roman Forum without it, I found an English-language store and paid 29 for a new copy. It's that essential.



5. I would advise those considering purchasing this book to look elsewhere. Don't believe the hype that is generated around these guides. I purchased The Rome Blue Guide, because I had heard so much about it. I had avoided buying it in the past because of the cost. I decided to purchase it, and I was so disappointed. The historical sections of the book are excellent, but the travel guide sections are horribly written, far too judgmental and often inaccurate.
   
   I was aghast to see cities, buildings and monuments described in such brutal terms as "ugly" -- this word is used many times throughout the book to describe locations in and around Rome. Read the section on Tivoli and tell me that the authors do not have something against it? Tivoli is one of the gems of Lazio, and anyone who has ever visited it would be hard-pressed to say otherwise. And there's much more to do there than see the Tivoli Gardens or Hadrian's Villa.
   
   I found the whole compilation to be poorly organized. For what the book costs, I was expecting better writing and a better (and less personal) assessment of the Eternal City and its offerings. The authors make for decent historians but the practical portions are useless, I'm afraid. There's a snobbish tone to the book that is bound to put most readers off, and many of their suggestions in the book reinforce this.
   
   Lonely Planet, Frommers, Rough Guides...they make for better value and are more accurate and much more useful. Steer clear of this work!

2 comments about Iceland (Bradt Travel Guide).

1. Andrew Evans clearly knows his stuff. His guide to Iceland is at the same time comprehensive and concise, encyclopedic and to-the-point. He provides both the intrepid backpacker and the urbane traveler with everything they'll need to know about how to get the most out of a visit to this exotic little island, without going broke, getting lost, freezing or getting scalded. His tips and insights are quirkily funny, preternaturally useful and spot-on in accuracy.
   Leave the "Lonely Planet" behind--this book is all you'll need, regardless of whether you're doing a 2-night stopover on your way to Europe, or a summer-long, whole-island trek.



2. An excellent, chock-full guide written by someone who clearly spent a good deal of time not only exploring Iceland, but also getting to know the country, its history, and its people. The book's insights and recommendations were spot-on and culturally-attuned. I especially liked the suggestions of itineraries for different length visits (pp. 68-69). My friend and I went for a long weekend -- our goal was plenty of geothermal soaking, nature, and good local eats. Mission accomplished!

1 comments about Ukraine - Culture Smart!: a quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart!).

1. A great travel resource, I read this after a trip to Ukraine to better understand interactions we'd had. Boy, do I wish I had read it *before* traveling. I will make a point of seeking out country-specific books from this series to get a jump on transitioning to a new culture.

2 comments about Frommer's Tuscany & Umbria's Best-Loved Driving Tours (Best Loved Driving Tours).

1. I didn't give this book enough respect when I first got it. I was more into the "deep" guidebooks I'd ordered, with depth of history and cultural context, food recommendations, architecture tips, etc.
   
   But when I got to Italy for a week-long stay in Tuscany with a rental car, this slim volume of car tours took pride of place by my bedside at night and on my dashboard by day. When I was on the ground on vacation, and plans changed day by day, it was great to have a simple reference that just showed where to go.
   
   The itineraries are clear, well-illustrated, and with good capsule descriptions both of road directions and of the way points along the route. I didn't complete any of the "tours" shown in the book, but used portions of the tours in each area of Tuscany that we went to (from Sienna to hill towns to Pisa/Lucca) to guide us to points of interest near every major destination that we aimed for. That's the point of renting a car, isn't it? This book gave us -- simply and clearly -- the valuable ability to wander into wonderful smaller sights every day.
   
   Highly recommended.



2. Great book with good ideas. I wished it had been a little more detailed, especially as it relates to places to stay and eat along the way. More detailed road directions, with numbers, would also be helpful. A distance chart from city to city would give us a better idea of time to allow. But, it did give us ideas of places to visit that we hadn't originally thought about when we first started planning our trip. We look forward to driving several of the various trips the book describes. You definitely need to have an Italy road map to follow the trips.

5 comments about Frommer's France 2008 (Frommer's Complete).

1. This book is very readable with extensive coverage of all areas of France. It is typical of Frommers ... excellent, comprehensive, good for both budget and luxury travelers.



2. I have always dreamed of going to France and I plan to next Fall or Spring. My only issue with Frommer's is the bulk and weight. Not something to carry around while you are walking all over Paris. I will be doing research and maping out where I want to go. I travel very light-no check in so I will take the map, numerous notes in a small pad and leave the guide back home. Otherwise, it is a very good guide and I recommend it.



3. I used this book to help plan our accomodations for our trip. It was more reliable than Tripadvisor or other websites with reviews that are quite conflicting. I was able to find a great deal in Paris thanks to a recomendation in the book.



4. The restaurant and hotel selections were 100% on target. However, Fodors has more interesting detail and is more user friendly.



5. Not a bad travel book, fairly complete, decent detail on many of the cities within the country, but the book does lack pictures, has a few in the front of the book. That would have made the book more complete and enjoyable. As the old saying goes, "A picture is worth a thousand words."

No comments about Frommer's Prague & the Best of the Czech Republic (Frommer's Complete).

4 comments about Eyewitness: Russia.

1. If you are afraid that you need to read War and Peace to learn about Russia, fear not. Russia (Eyewitness Books) succinctly and beautifully illustrates the life and people of Russia. The content is a bit deep for the audience of 9 to 12 year olds. But there is something here for lovers of things Russian of any age.



2. A few years ago, my father came home from a trip to Russia, he brought some matroyoshka nesting dolls and a gold toned porcelain hand painted serving dish. Now that one of my best friends is living in Russia, I was even more interested in seeing what her new world looks like.

   As the largest country in the world, there is so much to see although I would not mind heading over there to see a Siberian tiger! You will love the pictures of the ice festival in which the winter is enlivened with sculptures carved out of ice. There is also some interesting history to the story.

   This is a journey from Early Russia to the New Russia. While this book is written for children, adults will find it very interesting for the historical details alone.

   Educational!




3. Not so much a travel guide... As a look at Russian history.



4. My teen-aged son is fascinated by all things Russian. I wanted to get him a book that wasn't too little kiddie but also one that wasn't a slog to read through. This book is a children's book but it has lots of pictures and enough information to keep a teen or adult interested. My son has several books in the Eyewitness series and they're consistently good books. Eyewitness Russia is no exception.

5 comments about Waterproof Map of Rome by Rough Guide Maps (Rough Guide Country/Region Map).

1. At last - a map which is unfazed by sweaty pockets, being crumpled up in a tote bag, rain showers, or endless handling. We mauled this map all through hot sweaty Rome and it was perfect. Everything is on there. No, it is not a guide book! It's a map - and a really good one.



2. This was an excellent map of Rome. Like the other Rough Guide maps, it is extremely durable. After 4 days in Rome, it still looks brand new.



3. This map is great since it is designed to be water resistance. I am presently using it to plan our stay in Rome this spring.



4. Rough Guide maps make other maps look like child drawings. Do not leave home without one. The extras, like the "time map" with all the opening hours of major museums and churches, in addition to just the quality of the map itself (everything being to scale, the nice color scheme, etc.), make this map perfect. The fact that it's indestructible (plastic) is an added bonus!



5. Used the Rough Guide maps for Venice, Florence, and Rome and found them to be top notch. They have far more detail and accuracy than the maps handed out by hotels and local TI offices. The paper is coated so that it withstands serious abuse, fold, refold, stuff it in your pocket in a wad, it always comes out with all the print intact. The coating adds negligible bulk, more than worth it for the durability.

5 comments about Vienna Prague Budapest, 2nd (Country & Regional Guides - Cadogan).

1. We used this guide for just Budapest and Prague, not Vienna. It was usefully succinct in its description of the importance of the sights it reviewed. Also, it helped those having a limited amount of time to identify the "must see" sights and gave a quick introduction to the money, culture, etc., of the country involved. The only reason it's not 5 stars is that it failed to lay out walking routes to hit the sights it mentions, something that would have been even more useful.



2. This book covers the must sees in each city. Easy to navigate. Good photographs. I always hope that a guide book will cover some of the unusual spots to visit and I'm always looking for gardens or arboreta. This was very light on these things.



3. One of the reasons I chose to order this book was Amazon's mention of "color photographs." There are NONE, other than the cover. In fact there are no photographs at all. The very few illustrations are maps, no better than I've seen in the other books.
   
   Where this book seems superior to others is in the depth of its descriptions. For example, over two full pages on the Charles Bridge. Each country/city also has an introduction with several pages of history and art history.
   
   The font is of nice quality but just a little too small. I don't want to be whipping out the reading glasses while I'm sightseeing. Also, the book is nicely divided into the three cities, so could perhaps be cut into three parts to carry around -- but the publisher chose to put the Language section (3 languages) in the back. Why not put the Czech language section at the end of the Prague section? That would also put it closer to the restaurant listing, where a language reference would be handy.
   
   I'm going to read this thoroughly so I can better appreciate the sights, but a different book is going with me.



4. Maps are an important part of any guidebook, and the maps in this book are lacking. They do not include hotel locations on city maps nor Metro/bus stops. They have no key and are in a pink/white ink (like Rough Guide), making them difficult to read. In addition, it includes no information for budget travelers; no hostel information nor cheap eats (this book lists anything less than 25 Euros as a "Cheap Eat"). In addition, it does not include a list of bulleted "Must Sees;" it prefers to list sights by location, not importance. As a result, smaller, regional museums take precedence over more important sights, which may be listed in a different neighborhood. In addition, it does not list entrance fees to musuems, it simply says "Admission Charged." After two days, I stop using this book and started asking Tourist Information Offices for maps and suggested sights. This book would be good supplemental information for a tourist on a tour with a guide, but very poor for independent travelers.



5. It is nice to have the same book cover three major cities, often on the same trip. The book is good, both for lodging and restaurants and sightseeing. Others (Lonely Planet) are a little better, however, but only deal with one city.

5 comments about Four Seasons in Rome: On Twins, Insomnia, and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World.

1. In "Four Seasons in Rome: On Twins, Insomnia, and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World," Anthony Doerr accepted a fellowship with the American Academy of Arts and Letters in Rome, Italy and together with his wife, Shauna, and their newborn twins, they moved to Rome. The author wrote about his experience in Rome, trying to adjust to the way of life there as well as having to manage two babies. He also spent some time talking about Rome in a more unconventional sense (different from a travelogue) focusing on the history and literature.
   
   This was an okay read for me as I had hoped the author would focus more about the culture and people in Rome. It almost felt like he was writing about his own experience as a new father having to deal with both work and that Rome was just the backdrop of all that was happening. He spent a considerable time talking about authors and literatures which were not very interesting for me. The most fascinating part of "Four Seasons in Rome" was his coverage of the Pope's funeral and his observation of the people who adored and loved the Pope. It was just an average read for me - if you are looking for a travelogue type read, this would definitely not be in. This is more of a part memoir, part travel type book.



2. As an American who moved to Rome to have a baby, I can relate to this book. My experience is different. I live with an Italian and all my friends are Roman, but I still found Doerr's observations lyrical and prescient. As a new father, I actually enjoyed how he was learning the city as he became a parent, an experience I know and grok completely. It was useful to see how someone had to endure a lot of the same difficulties that I have experience. How often do you get to read something parallel to your own life? I also enjoyed his descriptions. For me they came quite close to my own observations, as distant as they may be (a fact that he acknowledges). I read the book on a the train from Rome to Turin, so it's something that is quite fast and easy on the mind. Additionally I enjoyed his sense of impermanence and how that is a character of Rome. Bravo!



3. 4 Season's in Rome, is essentially a story within a story. Doerr struggles day in and day out with trying to write his next novel, while living in a foreign land, and raising his first TWO children (they're fraternal twins). Throw in the death of one of the greatest religious figures of the 20th century and it makes for a very interesting time spent abroad. In the end, his next novel, becomes this story about trying to to write his next novel.
   I think if you've been to Rome and lived there, this book will invoke those memories of a magnificent place. You can sympathize with what he has gone through.



4. I thought it would be a tale of The Great Man writing about being the father of twins whilst the drudgery of actually caring for the babies is in the background. But, being a tragic Italophile, I knew I had to read it eventually. Am so glad I did. The author is a truly devoted parent, yet still possesses a sweet innocence himself towards this beautiful, new-to-him world of Rome. Just as one of the boys is wide-eyed over a taste of chocolate, the author seems reborn at the sight of the glorious skies Rome (apparently) has, the food, the poetry of the language. The writing is gorgeous but not in the artificial MFA manner (maybe he has one, I don't know)--it's genuine and vivid and...tangible. It reawakened in me a desire to not just read more American fiction, but to pull my old drafts off the shelves and see if I, too, could conjure up some similar magic. In one sense my prejudice was correct, though--with his love of family and openness and sense of humor about the world and himself, Four Seasons in Rome did turn out to be the tale of what seems to be a [lower case] great man. (One commentator "denounced" the author as "liberal"; what Doerr seems to be, of course, is humane.)



5. If you know next to nothing about Italy, are never planning to visit, and are perfectly content to allow your impressions of the country to be informed by *Under the Tuscan Sun*-like romanticism and shameless, treacly sentimentality, then *Four Seasons in Rome* is the travel book for you. Otherwise, Doerr's constant doses of high-sugar, low-fiber commentary about his and his family's year in Rome are only going to have you reaching for your insulin pen. Are we really (I mean, are we REALLY??) still at the stage where someone can publish a book about Italy in which his entire contribution to the genre is to rehearse postcard stereotypes and Merchant-Ivory clichés? Call me simple, but I'd truly have thought the market was completely glutted with sixteenth-of-an-inch thick observations on how "wonderful" and "beautiful" Italy is--made by people who don't speak the language, who never stop being tourists, and whose apparently unlimited financial and other resources insulate them entirely from the realities of Italian life. Being a casual visitor is a fine and respectable pastime, but it doesn't qualify you to write a book. Doerr, however, is undaunted, awhirl in whimsy and wide-eyed wonder. From his innocent astonishment that tomatoes actually taste good (he does live in Boise, Idaho, after all) to his tired (and tiring) insistence that he and his wife never saw a badly dressed Italian--or a fat one--to his second-rate tour-guide rhapsodies over the Pantheon, Doerr never lets a bromide or a platitude get away from him. When a Roman waiter makes him and his wife wait 90 minutes for their dinner check, Doerr's only reaction is to go all dewy-eyed over how "relaxed" and "laid back" people are in Italy. Please, Anthony. The waiter was rude. There's no great mystery to it. It happens all the time in Italy, especially to tourists, especially in Rome, and especially to people who are willing, as the Italians say, to fare il fesso--that is, let someone else make an a** of them. Gird your loins as well, Gentle Reader, for page after darling, cooing page about the marvel of Doerr's one-year-old twins and for detailed descriptions of just how darn difficult it was to try to wheel them around Rome in a double-stroller that I can only imagine was a special treat for all the people who had to contend with it on buses, down sidewalks, and in museums. But let's give credit where credit is due: Doerr's prose is pretty, even poetic. The trouble is, that's often all it is: a Fabergé egg, a festoon, the rich-and-creamy icing on a cardboard cake. In his 220-plus pages on Rome, there's almost no there there. (Don't be misled, either, by the subtitle's promise of information about "the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World"; Doerr didn't actually attend, and most of what he knows about it he saw on television.) In more than a few passages, he gets so carried away making perfect little netsuke sentences that he forgets he's supposed to be transmitting actual meaning in the process. Yes; I admit it. I have a bone to pick: Doerr has nothing particularly interesting, profound, insightful, or new to say about Italy. That sure didn't keep him from getting a book contract, however, which suggests that attending the right cocktail parties is a sure shot to success. Merit, while appreciated, is not required. And *Four Seasons in Rome* is yet more evidence that, when it comes to anything with the word "Italy" stamped on it, the American public is all too willing to fare il fesso.