No comments about An Italian Journey (Marlboro Travel).

No comments about Medieval Tuscany and Umbria.

1 comments about A Traveller in Southern Italy.

1. "A Traveller in Southern Italy" carries on in the fine tradition of "A Traveller in Rome" and the imprecisely-named "A Traveller in Italy." Like them, "A Traveller in Southern Italy" is as entertaining as it is enlightening, and it is immensely sad that, unlike them, it is still out of print in the US (it is in print in the UK). I write this review in homage to a writer who has given me so much pleasure and in the hopes that his third Traveller book on Italy will be reprinted in the near future.

   In case you're new to H.V. Morton, you should be aware that his "Traveller" books are not traditional guide books, but rather accounts of his travels into which he seamlessly weaves descriptions, observations, and fascinating history. For example, his discussion of Mount Vesuvius begins with an amusing account of his arduous trek up to the top, proceeds to a reflection on how modern man is tougher than his ancestors (the young Goethe was pulled to the top hanging onto the belt of a guide), detours to a pleasant Vesuvius story concerning the 18th century Mrs. Thrale, and concludes with a dramatic description of Vesuvius's eruption as seen through the eyes of Pliny the Elder, who died trying to rescue Pompeians by ship. I read this book before a trip to southern Italy last fall and was glad I did. Morton's wonderful narrative on Paestum gave life to my trip to this lovely 6C BC Greek site south of Salerno, his insights into the Neapolitan persona delighted me, and his account of Cumae, the very ancient shrine of the Sibyl, beckoned to me. However, because the book was first published in 1969, there are some lacunae in it: for example, his account of Reggio di Calabria lacks a description of the magnificent 5C BC bronze Riace Warriors which were pulled out of the Mediterranean in 1972 and which would surely have made Morton swoon if he ever saw them.

   This argues strongly for supplementing your research with, say the Michelin Green Guide. But if you can get your hands on a copy of this splendid book by H.V. Morton, you will find that reading it is like taking a vacation in your armchair.

No comments about MOT Atlas Italy (Michelin Tourist & Motoring Atlases).

5 comments about Frommer's Tuscany & Umbria.

1. I found this book practical and usefull from the beginning - We havn't gone yet but the car rental information alone saved us $100 on a 4 day rental. It's a little heavy compaired to our other book but it looks like it covers Tuscany and Umbria thoroughly.



2. This book was extremly usefull and accurate. As an example we could visit the Brolio Castle because we read that you have to find a rope, hang to it and wait until somebody opens the door. Two tourist who arrived before us this not entered...they did not carried the frommers.... All the directions, tips, locations of hotels, rating of resturants, where hundred percent accurate. I will never travel without my frommers. Congratulations.



3. This was a wonderful guide with witty, opinionated, (accurate in my estimation) comprehensive comment on the many sights and scenes that Tuscany has to offer. We used this guide constantly and exhaustively in the one week we recently spent there. The restaurant and hotel recommendations were uniformly splendid and we were fortunate to discover a new town and a new pasta shape when we ate pici in the hilltop town of Montepulciano, where we would never have considered staying but for this guide. Although I would also have liked to have had a guide with pictures of the attractions, the attraction of this guide makes it well worth that slight quibble. I would highly recommend it to anyone going to the region and I will certainly use it, or a newer edition, upon my hopefully soon return.



4. If you're going on the whirlwind "Rome-Florence-Venice" tour, don't bother with this book. It isn't for you.

   If you have a week or 2 to spend in central Italy, buy and read the whole book before you leave, and carry it with you everywhere.

   My wife and I spent a month in Italy, and 2 weeks in Tuscany and Umbria. We had Rick Steeve's, Eyewitness, and Frommers with us. In large towns with good tourist infrastructure (Assisi, Sienna, etc) we found most of the books comparable. In the smaller towns where we usually spent our nights (Spoleto, Montepulciano, Sovana), only Frommers was worth looking at. We consistently found their hotel rooms most closely matched up with the written descriptions in the book, and their recommended restaraunts, while not as cheap as Rick Steve's, were very good.

   Particularly if driving (which is really the only way to see this region), the maps and directions far surpassed the other 2 books. Great maps of almost every town, no matter how small. The only deficiency was the lack of marking of the inbound and outbound roads on the map. Once I figured out where I was entering the town from though, the maps in this book could take me anywhere.

   In the final analysis, all 3 books were useful, but we used each differently. We looked at Rick Steves and Eyewitness each morning, but carried only Frommers with us during the day. When we go back, this will be the only book we take.




5. Warning to readers! We bought this book in March 2004. A more recent edition (called Florence, Tuscany & Umbria) came out in January 2004. This edition was written in 2001 and still quotes prices in lire! We're returning the book and swapping it for the other one.

5 comments about The Companion Guide to Florence (Companion Guides).

1. A lot of things began in Florence. The way businesses keep their books, the way sovereign states relate to each other, the way people use art to tell stories and create beauty. These things and many more elements of modern society have their origins in this smallish Tuscan city. These impulses were born in the middle of the last millenium - during a century or so when Florence blossomed as an intellectual and artistic supernova of the Italian Renaissance. Today, Florence remains densely packed with the memories of that time. Eve Borsook's "THE COMPANION GUIDE TO FLORENCE" is the key to the city. In addition to all the names, dates, places of history, Borsook skillfully weaves in meaning and context so that you may not only know who painted what fresco in which church - but why it remains meaningful 500 years down the road. You can go to Florence to shop for many beautiful Italian creations. But with this book, you can gain a clear appreciation about why the names and images from this amazing city's glorious past still resonate in our lives today.



2. A lot of things began in Renaissance Florence: the way businesses keep their books, the way sovereign states relate to each other, the way people use art to tell stories and create beauty. These things and many more elements of modern society have their origins in this smallish Tuscan city. These impulses were born in the middle of the last millenium - during the century or so when Florence blossomed as the intellectual and artistic supernova of the Italian Renaissance. Today, Florence remains densely packed with the memories of that time. Eve Borsook's "THE COMPANION GUIDE TO FLORENCE" is the key to the city. In addition to all the names, dates, places of history, Borsook skillfully weaves in meaning and context so that you may know who painted what fresco in which church - but why it remains meaningful 500 years down the road. You can go to Florence to shop for many beautiful Italian creations. But with this book, you can gain a clear appreciation about why the names,images and achievements from this amazing city's glorious past still resonate in our lives today.



3. A lot of things began in Renaissance Florence: the way businesses keep their books, the way sovereign states relate to each other, the way people use art to tell stories and create beauty. These things and many more elements of modern society have their origins in this smallish Tuscan city. These impulses were born in the middle of the last millenium - during the century or so when Florence blossomed as the intellectual and artistic supernova of the Italian Renaissance. Today, Florence remains densely packed with the memories of that time. Eve Borsook's "THE COMPANION GUIDE TO FLORENCE" is the key to the city. In addition to all the names, dates, places of history, Borsook skillfully weaves in meaning and context so that you may know who painted what fresco in which church - but why it remains meaningful 500 years down the road. You can go to Florence to shop for many beautiful Italian creations. But with this book, you can gain a clear appreciation about why the names,images and achievements from this amazing city's glorious past still resonate in our lives today.



4. I lived in Florence as a full time tourist for a year in the early eighties. I could divide my year into before and after finding this book; it's that good. The maps reveal every nook and cranny, helping you to see the hidden wonders right before your eyes in this city that is so immensely rich in wonders. The recommended walking tours make your time more meaningful, as the buildings and artwork become not only isolated splendors, but also pieces of the history of this remarkable city. I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of the latest edition so that I can plan a return visit for next year. Buy yours early and plan your time, and you will have a visit beyond what even the best tour guide could ever offer. Buon viaggio!



5. Borsook offers a comprehensive overview of the history and culture of the cradle of the Renaissance, and a guide to the many nooks and crannys of old Florence. This book details all the important venues open to the public, plus many that are not. It gives invaluable insight into the context of the city, and site maps to all the important works of art and science.
   
   I read this book before a recent trip to Florence, using it to plan the visit. I left it home, thinking it too heavy to tote along. I won't make that mistake when we return. Forget the guidebooks; Borsook is all you need to enjoy Florence.

5 comments about Venice (Citymap Guide).

1. I purchased this map based on reviews on Amazon. It is next to useless. The map is divided into sections that fold out. I took a walk in Venice and tried to use this map to orient myself. First, one of the streets I was on in Section A wasn't shown on the map and two of the streets were misnamed. Compounding this, there is no street index. If you want to find a street you have to already know approximately where you are and then scan the map to find the street you are looking for. Try doing that when you want to go to a restaurant and you only have the address. I left the map at the hotel I stayed at (Hotel Campiello--highly recommended). Use it at your own risk.



2. If you're going on a cruise or tour and have one day in Venice, forget it - don't bother with this book. But if you have any time to spend, this guide will provide you with some context for everything you're going to see. And if you don't want context, don't want to understand the city, why not just go to the casino in Las Vegas? The gondola ride will be WAY cheaper.

   But if you do want to understand Venice, what it was, why it was important, and how its role in the world has changed, then dive into this wonderful book. Have a glass of wine and read through it again at night when you come home from your touring.

   I loved this guide - read it cover-to-cover twice, then again when I got home. But one warning - it's not really the kind of book you tote with you in your bag to help you identify landmarks as you walk the city - the Eyewitness Guide works better for that. Neither is it the kind of book that will tell you where to buy the best marbelized paper. It's the kind of book that will tell you how marbelizing got started, who revived it, and how it's actually done.




3. We used this on a recent trip to Venice and found it to be very helpful. The maps and sites referenced for each section of the city were easy to read. Venice is confusing, even with the best maps and map reading skills, so we found this easy to carry around and great for quickly looking up info. We used this in conjunction with a Time Out Venice guidebook, and when used together with the Time Out maps, we could always find our way around.



4. This was an EXCELLENT little book. Of the small pile of guide books that we had in Venice, this is the one that we used most frequently. It's compact, the fold out maps are conveniently devided into sections of the city,and the maps are very clearly readable. I only wish that I had had one for Florence and Milan, too! What a gem.



5. This Knopf city guide is a handy description of the history of the various palces in Venice. However, I was looking for more of a guide to make recommendations on what not to miss, where to eat, where to shop, etc. Hopefully it will make a good walking guide book when we get there, but does not seem to help us plan.

3 comments about Fodor's See It Italy, 1st Edition (Fodor's See It).

1. This nicely illustrated guide certainly was useful when my family spent ten days touring Italy recently. We learned all about what to expect in Rome, Florence, Pompeii, and various other towns. We looked up restaurants, tourist sights, and metro stops. We learned where to find stores of all sorts (including, for example, a gelateria in Rome that had an amazing assortment of flavors: kumquat, kiwi fruit, papaya, mango, twenty different kinds of chocolate, and so on). We used the maps of Florence and Rome to find our way through these cities. This book was more than worth the price, and I recommend it.



2. Very good general reference for people planning a visit to Italy. However, I found it a little heavy on the information regarding churches. One might get the impression that there's not much else to do in Italy except visit old churches and buildings. Practically every town listed highlights at least one church or monastery. Good value for the money.



3. Although nicely illustrated, this book does not contain the abundance of information that you will find in Fodor's standard guidebooks. I far prefer the information in "Fodor's Italy" to their new "See It" series.

1 comments about Venicewalks (Henry Holt Walks Series).

1. This is quite possibly my favorite guidebook for any city in the world. It will take you on detailed walks through the hidden streets of Venice to places you'd never find on your own, such as the only remaining doorway of Marco Polo's childhood home.
   
   Now, make no mistake--this should not be the only guidebook you bring to Italy. For one thing, it's been out of print for 20 years, so any copy you buy will be out-of-date when it comes to restaurants, opening times, etc. (That's why I give it only 4 stars.)
   
   For another thing, this book's greatest strength is also it's major weakness: it doesn't try to tell you everything about the city; instead, it focuses on fascinating detail on a handful of blocks.
   
   For both those reasons, you'll want a more recent and more conventional guidebook to supplement this one.
   
   But do take this guide as well--it's like having a private tour of the city with somebody who knows the fascinating story behind every secret corner.

No comments about Brunetti's Venice.