No comments about Knopf MapGuide: Dublin (Knopf Mapguides).

2 comments about Michelin Toscana, Umbria, San Marino, Marche, Lazio, Abruzzo (Michelin Maps).

1. These Michelin individual maps are really too big to be of much use unless you have a navigator who can fold it up on their lap. Michelin sells spiral bound volumes. If they have one for where you are going it's the best. This map would be OK for planning for travel by car. Not much help for train travel.



2. Bot this to plan a 3 wk. car trip to Tuscany, Umbria & Lazio & brought it along for using during the entire trip. Absolutely fantastic! Even when we missed a turn because a road sign was misplaced or missing, we could still figure out where we were and how to get to our final destination easily with this map. Michelin's maps always work superbly for us, and that's all we use whenever we're doing a car trip on our own for countries they map.

5 comments about Italy (Eyewitness Travel Guides).

1. This makes a good coffee table book for pre and post-travel. The photos and drawings are wonderful. However, the lack of specific reccomendations for restaurants, tips on how and when to see things, and local customs is obvious If you have to carry just one book with you, this one wouldn't be the one. If you want to impress your friends with what you'll see or have seen, by all means buy it.



2. 
   Because we were going to Florence, Venice, Rome and Lake Como, this was the general guidebook I chose as one of the key references for our trip. I read the sections that pertained to the trip beforehand. Soon, what I found myself doing was filling it with small post-it notes on which were notations like "must see" and "yes" and "wow".
   
   It was not that other guidebooks might not have held information about these places but this one had such fine photos and so many pithy details that it was just about all I needed to plan the trip.
   
   The 3-D drawings of the Uffizi and similar buildings, the Street-by-Street birds-eye perspective maps, and the small sidebars about painters such as Giotto were all so very helpful. I would recommend this book to all who are planning to go to Italy, and while I have not seen the new and updated version, this one worked fine in the summer of 2006 for our family.



3. The only bad thing I can say about this book is that they must think the people who buy it have money, because most of their restaurant/hotel offerings are for those who have it.
   
   That said, it is just an incredible book. Don't even bother with the others. When I lead pilgrimages, this is the book I recommend.



4. This is the greatest for snapshots of where to go and what to see. Not terribly good on eating places and lodging, but on sightseeing, it beats all the rest---hands down!



5. I bought this more for my grandparents and they LOVED it! When they were done with it, they gave it back and I am even more excited to visit Italy now thanks to this book. It is so detailed as far as region and food and wine and points of interest. I realize that I will have to plan to visit Italy more than once to see everything. The pictures and charts and maps are WONDERFUL!!!! I would recommend this book for any one planning on visiting Italy. I will buy other books about other countries from this book line before I travel.

1 comments about American Notes and Pictures From Italy (New Oxford Illustrated Dickens).

1. Charles Dickens wrote a detailed log of his trip to America--from the boat in England to his travels on early American trains. His style is very light and entertaining. If you are familiar with his novels about the dark side of London and the social problems that Dickens himself grew up with, this book is quite a contrast. He is writing the book as an Englishman for other Englishmen.

   I was expecting to find a lot of satire against Americans. (His comic piece "Martin Chuzzelwit" had this). However, Dickens was very positive toward the social reforms that he saw in America. He also makes some interesting comments on seeing black slaves for the first time.

   Unfortunately, he wasn't able to travel far, so his impressions of America are limited. Nonetheless, this is a book that I enjoy reading and re-reading.

1 comments about The Guide to Jewish Italy.

1. I have the paperback and I flip through it all the time. What beautiful synagogues. They are a remnant of what was once a rich culture.

5 comments about City Walks: Rome: 50 Adventures on Foot (City Walks).

1. A splendid concept: Fifty 6.5 x 3.75 hard cards, each with a little map on one side, and on the other descriptions of the area's sites, even with dining suggestions. Most guides lack adequate maps; this one provides mapping with a vengeance.
   
   Why then only four stars? The Porta Maggiore, Santa Croce, San Lorenzo fuori le Mura, San Paolo fuori le Mura, The Borghese Gallery, the Villa Giulia, and The Vatican (Museums and San Pietro) are omitted. Well, I suppose something had to be left out, but why the Vatican? Every schoolboy knows the two poles between which Rome revolves are the Forum and the Vatican. If there's a card for those born to shop (#4, The Via Condotti), then why not one for Christians? I had suspected at first Cultural Marxist PC crime, yet the author's laudatory use of B.C. and A.D. suggests otherwise. Yet A.D. comes before the year, thank you, not after.
   
   There are factual errors that a good editor should have caught; e.g., The Aurelian Walls were built after A.D. 270, not 270 B.C. The site descriptions are very brief, needing as they do to fit on the back of a card. So pilgrims (religious, historical, aesthetic, gustatory) would need another guide for the detail. _The Blue Guide Rome_ in its latest edition, _The Oxford Archeological Guide to Rome_, and _The Companion Guide to Rome_ (A.D. 2003 ed.) would serve all purposes except for shopping, eating, and sleeping.
   
   For those who wish not to lug a book, a commendable job.



2. The deck is made of heave paper board. We will not be taking it with us. I did enjoy the recommended paths. Have made a choice of several routes that I scanned on #24 paper to take with us.



3. We recently spent 4 days in Rome, staying in a wonderful apartment we found on the internet. While we had a number of tour books and information we downloaded from the internet, we mostly used our City Walks: Rome cards to organize and follow a daily walking tour. Rome is quite compact and you can walk to most sites, or take a quick cab ride if pressed for time. We often did two or even three walking tour cards in one day. They are clear and useful while walking from one point to another, and if you work it well, you can start one where another ends. We stayed near Piazza Navona, which we found very convenient for The Villa Borghese, The Vatican, the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, the Coliseum, The Spanish Steps and some of our favorite restaurants. We have now given these cards to several of our friends that where going to Rome, and they loved them as well.



4. This is a fun deck of cards. Having been to Rome a couple of times, I know that a first time visiter will also need a more detailed street map to go with this set. I look forward to using them on my next trip.



5. I didn't find the cards too useful for information. They do provide a simple route to follow though which is good. Rome has so much to see and these cards provide some info but not enough for a repeat visitor looking for more to discover. The cards would be easy to carry and also you can combine more than one card to allow a longer walking tour of an area.

5 comments about Frommer's Italy's Best-Loved Driving Tours (Best Loved Driving Tours).

1. Excellent guide to seeing Italy with a car or a Vespa moped. You will enjoy some great driving tours and routes through Italia.
   
   Frommers has recently come out with a "Best-Loved Driving Tours" series ... guides that are not very inexpensive, but are very well researched and quite comprehensive. One will have plenty of driving tours and routes to chose from, whether you like arts and museums, scenic roads and breathtaking views, urban towns and shopping, or just want to experience a regione's culture and life.
   
   Unlike the other Frommer guides that are fatter and heavier, this little book gives you not too many specifics on lodging or eating. It is geared strictly for the person behind the wheel and her or his passengers.
   
   I have had a great experience using this guide and will recommend it to anyone who can afford it. Also, you might want to check to see if your library carries it and check it out for the duration of your visit abroad.
   
   When I backpacked 4 months through Europe I had a copy of the Lonely Planet for Europe (a thick and heavy book) because it covered more cities and esoteric towns, a ripped chapters of all the international youth hostals Europe of the countries I visited, and as primary guide for nominal cities and capitals I used Frommers (ripped the book and kept only chapters of countries planning to visit - so I can keep the weight down).



2. I would recommend the new 7th edition (2005) instead of this one.
   
   Excellent guide to seeing Italy with a car or a Vespa moped. You will enjoy some great driving tours and routes through Italia.
   
   Frommers has recently come out with a "Best-Loved Driving Tours" series ... guides that are not very inexpensive, but are very well researched and quite comprehensive. One will have plenty of driving tours and routes to chose from, whether you like arts and museums, scenic roads and breathtaking views, urban towns and shopping, or just want to experience a regione's culture and life.
   
   Unlike the other Frommer guides that are fatter and heavier, this little book gives you not too many specifics on lodging or eating. It is geared strictly for the person behind the wheel and her or his passengers.
   
   I have had a great experience using this guide and will recommend it to anyone who can afford it. Also, you might want to check to see if your library carries it and check it out for the duration of your visit abroad.
   
   When I backpacked 4 months through Europe I had a copy of the Lonely Planet for Europe (a thick and heavy book) because it covered more cities and esoteric towns, a ripped chapters of all the international youth hostals Europe of the countries I visited, and as primary guide for nominal cities and capitals I used Frommers (ripped the book and kept only chapters of countries planning to visit - so I can keep the weight down).



3. When we travel to Italy we love to rent cars and take the road less traveled to cities that are typically off the tourist path. I have a number of books on driving tours through Italy. I find that I return time and again to the books on driving tours because very little changes in Italy from year to year, which I think it part of the beauty of Italy.
   
   At the beginning of each section the book provides a narrative regarding the larger cities in each area. I have listed these cities in brackets after the regions below.
   
   This book has outlined 25 tours through Italy these are as follows:
   
   Piedmont, Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, Veneto (Torino, Milano, Bologna, Rimini, Asolo, Verona)
   Tour 1: The Foot of the Mountains
   Tour 2: Of Alps, Lakes & Plain
   Tour 3: La Grassa - the Fat Country
   Tour 4: Of Mosaics, Sun & Sea
   Tour 5: The Gentle Veneto
   Tour 6: Beyond Venice - Inland Veneto
   
   Liguria & Tuscany (San Remo, Genova, Pisa, Firenze)
   Tour 7: The Lingurian Hilltowns
   Tour 8: The Riviera of Levante
   Tour 9: Treasures of Tuscany
   Tour 10: The Cradle of the Renaissance
   
   Umbria & The Marches (Perugia, Ancona, Urbino)
   Tour 11: The Green Heart of Italy
   Tour 12: Italy's Best Kept Secret
   Tour 13: The Northern Marches
   
   Lazio, Campania, Abruzzo (Roma, Napoli, Pescara, L'Aquila)
   Tour 14: The Apennines & the Adriatic
   Tour 15: Abruzzo - the Remote Interior
   Tour 16: Roman Country Retreats
   Tour 17: The Roman Countryside
   Tour 18: In the Shadow of Vesuvius
   Tour 19: Small Cities of Campania
   
   Calabria, Basilicata, Puglia (Catanzaro, Cosenza, Matera, Bari, Brindisi, Foggia)
   Tour 20: The Toe of the Boot
   Tour 21: The Highlands of Calabria
   Tour 22: Forgotten Basilicata
   Tour 23: Ancient Puglia
   Tour 24: The Heel of Italy
   Tour 25: The Gargano Peninsula
   
   For each tour the book provides the following information:
   1. Time required
   2. Total distance in both kilometers and miles
   3. Distance between towns
   4. Driving directions
   5. Brief narrative about each city on the tour
   
   The book does provide limited lodging information in the back of the book. However, I don't find it to be adequate to make an informed decision. I would recommend a lodging only book to make those decisions.
   
   If you were interested in driving to the smaller cities and towns in Italy, I would also recommend "Italy on Backs Roads" by Hunter Publishing and "Driving Tours of Italy" by Macmillan Travel.
   
   The book does contain some pictures, although fewer than the typical guidebook. I would also recommend that you supplement this book with a good map of Italy. I use the Michelin map of Italy. That way if you get a tip from a local you can venture even further off the beaten path. Some of our best memories of Italy were as a result of a tip from someone in a restaurant or a shop. Italians love to chat and share their country. If you ask them questions they will point you to some of the most lovely places.
   
   This book is a small size and fits easily into a big purse or suitcase. I find it works best to copy the sections of all the guidebooks that apply to my trip and bind these together as a personal guidebook that also saves space in my suitcase.



4. This is a great book if you're looking for possible itineraries. However, if you already have your trip planned, this book won't be much help.



5. My husband and I have been travelling to Italy every summer for years and we use this book extensively! It is my favorite of all of our travel books and has been on many trips with us. Each year we like to see different areas and this book provides maps and detailed information about what you can see in a few days. It has the driving tours grouped by region, so you can select a few close to each other or select one in the north, central or south, for example. It has maps, driving directions, photographs and great descriptions of important things to do and see. It contains things that we would have definitely missed if we didn't refer to this book! It is also great if you decide to change plans at the last minute. Sometimes we expect to spend a few days in one town, but get bored or want to see the country side instead of the city. It is great for quick references as to what is worth seeing in nearby towns and villages. If you are on a pre-planned tour, it is probably not what you need. However, if you are travelling on your own by car, it is "un bisogno," a must have...

5 comments about Fast Company: A Memoir of Life, Love, and Motorcycles in Italy.

1. Different..... a great read. My daughter lived in Bologna for a few years, and I visited the city which made the book more interesting to me. It really helps to have spent time in the culture on this one. After you get over the funny "attempt" to cover up the Ducati name..very wierd...it's just a wild ride through a culture on many different levels.
   Don't read this book to get page after page of mototcycle details. This is a story about people and culture that produce the bikes from the viewpoint of an outsider..who in the end becomes a part of it all. I enjoyed the writing style and content more because it's a true story.



2. Within captivating literary style, Gross's portrayals illuminate an Italian world as it is now, and this is clearly not the world of "Room with a view". Surely the Italian journals and "Corriere della Sera" are well versed with the struggles of Italian boutique businesses trying to meet the challenge of growth to an international level, but to follow the chain of events of Ducati from within and during a major transitional effort is a special gift. To become acquainted with personal and detailed snapshots of corporate design processes and the trials of prima donna designers is equally rewarding, and sheds a fair light on recent Ducati products. From the beach exploits and dreams of characters depicted, one senses the struggles of modern young Italians. Add to this the author's struggle to rationalize infatuation with a young and arrogant love, and one finds another level or dimension of the Italy of today. This love may have equally been heterosexual, it's characteristics in modern day Italy would have been the same. The vignette descriptions ranging from learning to ride a motorcycle, different bikes, and tours reach out to the motorcyclist in all of us, as these motivate us to reach beyond ourselves whether or not a leg is thrown over a bike. This is a book for everyone where one truly gains a view into the beauty, challenge, and flavor of Italy today. On other levels, having been an Italian ex-pat for three years, ridden motorcycles for 30 years, and a Ducatista for 15 years, this book has touched on many levels and reminds of the need to return.



3. The book was a good read on several levels. As a motorcycle
   enthusiast and as a designer.. the stories from Ducati.. the inner
   workings.. design process.. people were fascinating. Having worked
   with all sorts of clients and designers I related easily to the events.
   Bologna was presented in vivid descriptions, with its culture,
   people, society coming to life. I kept having flashbacks to my 2
   years in Milano as well as subsequent visits. I toured most of Italy
   but sadly I only stopped at the train station in Bologna. Hopefully
   on a future trip I can go to Bologna and visit Ducati.
   I thought the sections at the seaside were hilarious.... the descriptions
   were like Fellini on Jolt cola I was more exhausted with those stories than
   the moto giro ones.
   The sections on the MotoGiro were also very compelling for one that rides a
   motorcycle....the good, the bad, the ugly, the danger, the exhilaration were all there.
   Personal life was interesting, full of irony, but in the end none of my business.
   Throughout the book I especially enjoyed kind of a deadpan
   description of the theater of the absurd that is Italy..left me with
   lot's to think about.



4. It is almost as much fun to wonder how David Gross, in a "inside Italian motorcycles" book learns so much, so fast. But he is smart, and he falls in love with Italy in more ways than one. Arriving in Bologna, Italy as "creative director" of the newly financially juggled - hell, can I say that it was "Ducati" now? - motorcycle company, the author adjusts quickly, first seizing upon advertising strategies that center on visualizing Italian grit, and helping to inject a world personality into what the cognoscenti know is the world's most sexy motorcycle.
   We're reminded of the woman - a non-motorcyclist - who once gazed on a 1973 Ducati "Super Sport" 750 cc. twin (upon which the modern dukes evolved), and exclaimed, "This is the most beautiful motorcycle I've ever seen!"
   And so it is. The imagistic makeover is spliced by Gross'es personal introduction to what we had always heard - that Italy is wild, vain - and unlike the United States - more than mildly corrupt.
   `Fast Company' gives hilarious portraits of "crazy genius" motorcycle designers, their temper tantrums, roaming union gangs, and hair-raising motorcycle rides on the cobblestones.
   This is a fast-paced, well-written book, tracking the birth of the single-cylindered dukes (great vintage road racers today!). It deftly changes names and dances away from potential lawsuits in a chase for grace and meaning.
   In the end, you'll not quite understand the Italian mystery, but for sure, you'll get stylish prose from David Gross, say, the antithesis of a Harley book, which will never get beyond its own narcissism. "Fast Company" is for fans of the finest - a literary rocket for the mountain road.



5. "Fast Company," the first book by David M. Gross, is an amazingly rich and detailed account of an American businessman's life in Bologna Italy. Unlike many recent accounts of Italy dripping with overtly idealized romanticism, David instead takes on a much more challenging task. Without the crutches of good vs. evil dichotomies, moralizing, descriptions of fantastical feats or extremes in characterization; David has composed an insightful book that allows his readers to truly observe Italy and its people from a beautifully lyrical yet thoroughly grounded perspective. This feat is only possible due to the author's own depth of experience as both a business man, lover, and passionate motorcyclist.
   
   This account skillfully manages to mix the seemingly disparate worlds of love, business, sport, and culture into an account that as often frustrates as it gives cause for laughter or deep reflection. We learn the difference between language and communication with David as he recalls his often times hilarious encounters with the many eclectic employees of a faltering yet proud motorcycle company. He describes in invigorating detail his love for a young Italian that, like exotic motorbikes, is equally beautiful and dangerous. In sometimes overwhelming detail, he succeeds in describing what becoming and being a motorcyclist means, whether taking a leisurely ride or primally pushing the limits.
   
   The only short coming of this great book is that David's own character often seems to be overshadowed by the many other characters that surround him. He is not overt in giving his opinion, and is quite obviously non-confrontational in demeanor. David is often times a listener, and observer; these very aspects of his character are the keys to what make him his friend's and coworker's confidant and allow the insight so inherent in his writing. His own character may not be overtly painted, but if a reader is observant (a lesson that David artfully teaches) one does become familiar with the author through his experiences.
   
   My recommendation is that you read David's story; yes, you will become intimately acquainted with "life, love, and motorcycles in Italy" but even more so, you will come just a little closer to knowing how you might respond if asked the question, "are you ready to fly without a parachute?"

No comments about Fodor's Naples, Capri & the Amalfi Coast, 4th Edition (Fodor's Gold Guides).

No comments about Time Out Italy: Perfect Places to Stay, Eat, and Explore (Perfect Places).