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Art in Focus: Florence --Art experts have selected the hundred most outstanding art and architectural treasures in Florence, and each is described here and accompanied by a photograph. All sights are keyed into a colorful map on the inside front cover and seven suggested sightseeing itineraries make it easy to maximize your time and customize your viewing. A must for this art lover's paradise. $12.95
Blue Guide Northern Italy --This newly revised edition covers the eight regions of northern Italy: Lombardy, the Veneto, Piedmont, Liguria, Val d'Aosta, Trentino, Friuli Venezia-Giulia, and Emilia-Romana. Filled with the trademark Blue Guide emphasis on history, architecture and art history, regional chapters discuss the sights in cities, towns and countryside, with new sections on the natural beauty of particular areas. $25.95
Cadogan Italy: Three Cities --You no longer need to lug around a guide to all of Italy if you are simply planning to visit Italy's three most popular stops: Rome, Venice and Florence. Cadogan has had the good sense to create a single volume covering only those great cities, with everything you need to enjoy them fully. Authors Dana Facaros and Michael Pauls guide you to all the sights, lodgings and food options, and offer well-written introductions to the history, culture and cuisine. $14.95
Cadogan Tuscany --Dana Facaros and Michael Pauls show you all the sights of Tuscany (just Tuscany--Umbria is no longer included) in this new guide. Have a picnic in an olive grove, decipher allegories in the Siena Cathedral or wander Chianti's wine roads; this book will show you how to enjoy all the region has to offer. 30 detailed maps, hotel listings from one-star bargains to grand villas and tips on where to find regional delicacies round out the best guide to this area. $19.95
See the Table of Contents and Introduction
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Cadogan Lombardy, Milan and the Italian Lakes $14.95
The Companion Guide Florence --Filled with detailed historical, literary, art and architectural background, and unusually informative sightseeing information written by resident experts. Now available once again, after being out of print for a number of years. $24.95
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The Companion Guide Venice $24.95
Eating in Italy --Faith Willinger has just updated her wonderful guide to restaurants and food markets in Northern Italy (north of Rome). She has personally reviewed every eatery included here, from elegant four star restaurants to simple family trattorias, and provides contact information, hours of operation and directions for each. A terrific resource for the gourmet (or gourmand) in Italy. $20.00
Eyewitness Travel Guide to Florence & Tuscany --Arranged by neighborhood, this guide is one of the most useful we've ever seen. Filled with colorful graphics, well-written text and lots of maps, it covers all the sights in detail, as well as historical background, and includes an excellent section in the back with reviews of hundreds of hotels, restaurants, nightspots and shops. $22.95
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Eyewitness Travel Guide to Venice & the Veneto $22.95
Florence, Venice and Milan Access --A great guide for the visitor who likes to walk, this practical book provides sights, hotels, restaurants, shops and nightspots all arranged by neighborhood and keyed into colorful maps. Floorplans and diagrams of museums and other major sights, and the inclusion of many less well-known spots make this guide unique. $18.50
Florencewalks --Wander through out-of-the-way streets and alleys, encounter hidden courtyards, artists' homes, and some of the most extraordinary art and architecture in existence. Step away from the major sites and into the neighborhood restaurants and caf_s patronized only by locals-and you. $14.95
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Venicewalks $12.95
NEW Food Lover’s Companion to Tuscany--Carla Capalbo has given us an insider’s guide to one of the most popular--and delectable--destinations in Italy. From family-run wineries to where to find the best fresh ricotta, the Food Lover’s Companion is filled with local restaurant favorites and undiscovered markets. It is also packed with practicalities such as contact information, directions, whether or not English is spoken, and descriptions of specialties of the house. For anyone who wants to get off the tourist track and sample the glories of Tuscan food, this is a tantalizing guide. $14.95
Insight Compact Guide to the Italian Riviera --For some strange reason, this is the only guide to this increasingly popular vacation spot. Packed with sightseeing information on coastal resorts and quaint inland villages, a small selection of hotel and restaurant recommendations, color photographs and maps, this pocket-sized guide makes a handy resource. $7.95
Knopf City Guide Milan --This is a new departure for Knopf: slimmer and lighter to carry, it guides you to the top hotels, restaurants, shops, nightlife and sights in Milan. It is still filled with color photographs, illustrations and maps, but the emphasis here is on the practical side of travel. $14.95
Knopf Guide to Venice --Filled with hundreds of color illustrations, art reproductions, photographs and maps, this guide provides an in-depth look at the art, architecture, literature and history of the world's greatest cities. Explore Venice by foot or by boat, following detailed tours through the Grand Canal, Piazza San Marco, the Lagoon and more. Fascinating articles describe everything from life in the Venetian Ghetto in the 16th century to gondola-building, and a section at the back provides extensive hotel and restaurant listings and travel tips. $25.00
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Knopf Guide to Florence $25.00
Northern Italy: A Taste of Trattorias --Christina Baglivi guides you away from the high-priced restaurants of Northern Italy and towards the small, authentic family-run eateries known as trattorias. Over 70 delightful restaurants are described in full, from Rome north, making it easy to eat your way through Italy without spending a fortune in lira. $12.95
Palladio Guide --Caroline Constant guides you to every building designed by the revolutionary 16th century architect Andrea Palladio, and provides descriptions, design explanations, plans and photographs of each, as well as complete visitor information. If you plan on visiting Venice and the Veneto, make sure you have this compact guide in hand. $19.95
Passport Regional Guides to Italy: Umbria, the Marches and San Marino --Martha Pichey guides you to the beauty of the countryside and the art, architecture and archeological sights of this culturally rich area. Great emphasis is placed on the history, food and wine of the region, and the guide concludes with select hotel and restaurant recommendations. Color photographs and detailed maps complement the text. $16.95
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Florence and Tuscany $16.95
Sunny Side of the Alps: Year-round Delights in the Dolomites and South Tirol --Paul Hofmann explores the Alpine regions of Northern Italy and Western Austria in this new guide for people who want to experience the Alps without the tourist crowds. Hofmann has been vacationing in the region for over 50 years, and he shares his favorite sights, getaways and eateries with us. He also shares his in-depth knowledge of the area's history and culture, bringing past events and especially the people to life as only he can. $12.95
Touring Club Italiano Guides to Italy --TCI, the first name in Italian maps, has finally translated some of their wonderful guidebooks into English. Each book contains detailed sightseeing and historical information arranged by region, with over 200 color photographs, dozens of maps and clearly marked walking and driving tours. Fantastico !
Florence $16.95
Venice $16.95
Touring in Wine Country: Tuscany --Maureen Ashley first provides you with a crash course in Italian wine-making, then guides you to the wine producers, vineyards and great wine cellars of the Tuscany region. Detailed wine routes (with good maps), insights into local history, and recommendations of nearby hotels, restaurants and sights make this guide indispensable. This new series is edited by wine expert Hugh Johnson. $21.95
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Touring in Wine Country: Northwest Italy $21.95
Undiscovered Museums of Florence --Eloise Danto covers the Duomo, Uffizi and other familiar sights, but she also reveals the less famous wonders of the city, such as the church where Michelangelo was an apprentice and the tombs of many politicians, writers and artists. Danto includes operating hours, admission prices, ratings and addresses. $8.95
Venice For Pleasure --This is a newly revised edition of J.G. Links' classic walking guide to the sights of Venice. Filled with lovely color illustrations that evoke the beauty of the city and its art, the book leads you to all the hidden nooks and crannies you might never find on your own, including a new selection of "children's pleasures". The author's personal comments and observations make you feel like you are being guided by an old friend. $19.95
Berlitz Italian Phrasebook $7.95
Berlitz Italian Cassette Pack (one 90-minute tape and the above phrasebook) $17.95
Collins Gem Italian Dictionary --If you want to buy a vestito or find the spiaggia, use this small but clearly legible dictionary. Take it everywhere in your pocket or purse, and don't worry about rain or spilled espresso-the cover is waterproof. $6.50
Living Italian --To refresh your memory or to learn a new language, use the two audio tapes, conversation manual, and 15,000-word dictionary included in this excellent program. Speak with confidence after only six weeks and make your Italian experience truly special. $20.00
Marling Menu-Master: Italy --Know what you're eating, from antipasto to zuppa inglese. $8.95
City of Florence --R.W.B. Lewis, who has made Florence his part-time home for fifty years, shares his love and intimate knowledge of the city in this beautifully written memoir. Immersing us in Florence's history, literature, art, architecture and famous personages, Lewis uncovers the lure and magic of Florence and invites us to enjoy it as fully as he has. $14.95
NEW The Devil in Music--Amateur sleuth Julian Kestrel takes on 1820’s Italy in Kate Ross’ Agatha-winning historical mystery. The murder of one opera star and the disappearance of another in Milan sparks the interest of Kestrel, who happens to be travelling in Italy. As he encounters suspect after suspect, he is drawn into the world of opera, with its operatic-sized egos and tempestuous love affairs, and the world of politics where he could become the next victim. Ross spins a page-turning web, and, with the aid of a chart to help you keep all the characters straight, keeps you guessing ‘til the end. $6.99
Under the Tuscan Sun --If you are not yet in love with all things Italian, you will be once you have read this lovely memoir by Frances Mayes, a noted poet and food writer. It consists of the recollections of five summers in Cortona, a small village in Tuscany, where Mayes and her husband own a farmhouse. From her own expanding garden to colorful local markets to excursions into the hill towns, Mayes paints a vivid picture of her life in Italy and makes the reader feel like an cherished house guest. $14.95
NEW Venice and Food--Sally Spencer has produced a beautifully illustrated examination of the intimate connection between the city of Venice and its cuisine. It is filled with information on the rich history and culture of Venice and the culinary specialties of the area, with Spencer’s full-color illustrations throughout. For those of us who would like a little Venetian magic in our own kitchens, Spencer includes recipes of traditional delicacies such as Gnocchi de Suca, Fondi de Articiochi, and Baicolo cookies. Venice and Food makes a wonderful gift for italophiles, gourmets (or gourmands) or oneself…
Cloth, $35.00
Within Tuscany --Although H.V. Morton's books on Italy are long out of print, Matthew Spender helps to fill the void with this lovely travelogue. He writes with the same combination of wit and learning, encompassing history, anecdote and personal observation, and is a "reasonable" Englishman who confronts Italian confusion with wry humor. $12.00
World of Venice --In one of the classic travel memoirs of all time, Jan Morris captures the essence of the magical city of Venice. This informative, atmospheric book also works as her personal tour of Venice and is a delight to read, whether you are planning a trip to the city or not. $8.95