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Venice Revealed: An Intimate Portrait (Italia Series) by: Paolo Barbaro |
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Binding: Hardcover Dewey Decimal Number: 945.31 EAN: 9781586420307 ISBN: 1586420305 Label: Steerforth Press Manufacturer: Steerforth Press Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 272 Publication Date: February 04, 2008 Publisher: Steerforth Press Studio: Steerforth Press Sales Rank: 810458 Related Items:
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Editorial Review: Publishers Weekly: This lyrical, intimate guide offers a Venice that tourists rarely see... Rarely has ecological writing approached such poetry. 'The Guardian': A native's view of the city; a poet's view, too... Lovely Jan Morris, 'The Spectator', October 12th 2002: a memorable book to tell us what it's like to be a 21st-century Venetian... A lovely book Product Description: The city of Venice is a kind of miracle; surrounded by sea, cut by more canals than streets and made up of a hundred and twenty seperate islands connected by bridges, built on sand and mud and reinforced by millions of ancient, petrified tree trunks; it defies nature and belief. No city in the world has been more often painted or written about than Venice. For centuries it has drawn visitors to its cafes, churches and street life. The clarity of its light and the shimmer of its waters expose the individual character of the city and the culture of its people. But Venice is dying, literally sinking into the sea, a victim of global warming, increased pollution and the weight of its tourists. Paolo Barbaro grew up in Venice and returned after many years working abroad to be re-captivated by the magic and power of this unique city. More than a guidebook, 'Venice Revealed' is a brilliant evocation of an imperilled city that has lost none of its power to dazzle and disorient, bewilder and seduce, but nonetheless a city that may be losing its foothold in our world. About the Author: Paolo Barbaro is a native of Venice who returned to the city after an absence of twenty years and was again enchanted by the city. He is an award-winning author. Customer Reviews
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 Rating: - Worth persevering with !I started reading this just after a trip to Venice. I found the first chapter or so a struggle, my feeling is the translation from the Italian is a little odd and a number of times I had to re read sentences to work out what was being said. However, I persisted and once i got used to the style I found the book evoked so many memories of the feel of Venice. It is not about the tourist sights, it tells you about the heart and soul of the city and as such I would recommend it to anyone who wants to dig below the gondolas and the glassware and get a little closer to what Venice is really about. Rating: - Poetic and beautifulThis is a fabulous book, written by a man who knows and understands Venice, its beauty, its faults, its fragile future. It gives depth to a stranger's understanding of a beautiful and intriguing place. it is superbly written and a must for anyone who has fallen in love with the city. Rating: - Strangely wonderfulThis is a strangely wonderful book that offers a genuinely unique perspective on a subject that has almost disappeared under the weight of mediocre comment. It is passionate and intelligent. Poetic and accessible. The underlying narrative is fateful and sad but not just the usual, smug, fragile-city-dying stuff. It is a simple tale of man's conflicting capacity to create and neglect things of indescribable beauty. It's been a long time since someone has written something this worthwhile about Venice. |
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