But that is just part of the story. Every day, letters, frequently addressed simply, “Juliet, Verona,” arrive in the city. They come by the truckload, in almost every language imaginable, written by romantics seeking Juliet’s counsel. Most of the missives talk of love, of course —love found and love lost, love sought and love remembered. And, amazingly, not one letter goes unanswered. Letters to Juliet tells the story of these letters and the volunteers who have been writing responses for more than seven decades —volunteers who first acted privately, and who are now sanctioned by the city of Verona as part of the Juliet Club . Featuring more than seventy-five heartfelt letters, this poetic book retraces the history behind Shakespeare’s tale and tours the monuments that have fueled the world's enchantment with Juliet and her Romeo.

    'Calcio' tells the story of Italian football from its origins in the 1890's to the present day. It takes us through a history of great players and teams, of style, passion and success, but also of violence, cynicism, catenaccio tactics and corruption. We meet the personalities that have shaped this history -- from the Italian heroes to the foreigners that failed, the model professionals to the mavericks. 'Calcio' evokes the triumphs (the 1982 World Cup victory) and the tragedies (Meroni, the 'Italian George Best', killed by his number one fan), set against a backdrop of paranoia and intrigue, in a country where the referee is seen as corrupt until proven otherwise. Calcio is no longer a game. It is sometimes difficult to define it as a sport. It is certainly big business and a fanatical civic religion. There is no moral code here. Winners are always right, losers always wrong. This history of Italian football reveals all about the richest and toughest league in the world.

    He was raised in Corgeno in northern Italy, close to the Swiss border and Milan. Almost everything his family ate and drank was produced locally. He was told by the head chef at his first real Italian restaurant job that he would never make it as a chef. His grandmother, who shared her great love of food with him, said Giorgio would have to go back and show him. And so he did. After getting suspended from cooking school because of kissing a girl on the school's steps, he went on to become a greatly admired chef.Made in Italy is a 624-page, vibrantly illustrated book full of Locatelli's recipes, insight and historical detail about Italian food. He combines food narrative with hands-on expertise of a top chef. He peppers the book with evocative stories and funny and often outspoken observations on the state of food today. This is the contemporary Italian food bible, from the acknowledged master of modern Italian cooking.

    A. Scotti traces the defining event of a glorious epoch: the building of St. Peter's Basilica. Begun by the ferociously ambitious Pope Julius II in 1506, the endeavor would span two tumultuous centuries, challenge the greatest Renaissance masters--Michelangelo, Raphael, and Bramante--and enrage Martin Luther. By the time it was completed, Shakespeare had written all of his plays, the Mayflower had reached Plymouth--and Rome had risen with its astounding basilica to become Europe's holy metropolis. A dazzling portrait of human achievement and excess, Basilica is a triumph of historical writing.

    At the heart of the novel is Giovanna, whose family is targeted by the notorious Black Hand--the precursor to the Mafia. Elizabeth Street brings to light a period in history when Italian immigrant neighborhoods lived in fear of Black Hand extortion and violence--a reality that defies the romanticized depiction of the Mafia. Here, the author reveals the merciless terror of the Black Hand-and the impact their crimes had on her family. Giovanna is based on Fabiano's great-grandmother, and the book's heroes and villains - such as Lieutenant Petrosino, the crusading cop and "Lupo the Wolf," a cold-blooded criminal - are drawn from real life in this thrilling tale. While set in a dynamic historical context, Elizabeth Street is, above all, the dramatic story of the heroine, Giovanna, and how she triumphed over tragedy.

    In pursuit of a means to keep her estate together, she stumbles upon a new drink made by infusing almonds into alcohol. At the same time, she encounters the talented Bernardino, the protege of Leonardo da Vinci.

    The aroma of a simmering ragú, the bouquet of a local wine, the remembrance of a past meal: Italians discuss these details as naturally as we talk about politics or sports, and often with the same flared tempers. In Why Italians Love to Talk About Food, Elena Kostioukovitch explores the phenomenon that first struck her as a newcomer to Italy: the Italian "culinary code," or way of talking about food. Along the way, she captures the fierce local pride that gives Italian cuisine its remarkable diversity. To come to know Italian food is to discover the differences of taste, language, and attitude that separate a Sicilian from a Piedmontese or a Venetian from a Sardinian. Try tasting Piedmontese bagna cauda, then a Lombard cassoela, then lamb ala Romana: each is part of a unique culinary tradition.In this learned, charming, and entertaining narrative, Kostioukovitch takes us on a journey through one of the world's richest and most adored food cultures. Organized according to region and colorfully designed with illustrations, maps, menus, and glossaries, Why Italians Love to Talk About Food will allow any reader to become as versed in the ways of Italian cooking as the most seasoned of chefs. Food lovers, history buffs, and gourmands alike will savor this exceptional celebration of Italy's culinary gifts.

    So when Rino and his cronies come up with a plan to reverse their fortunes, Cristiano wonders if maybe their lives are poised for deliverance after all. But the plan goes horribly awry; on a night of apocalyptic weather, each person will act in a way that has irreversible consequences for themselves and others, and Cristiano will find his life changed forever, and not in the way he hoped." As God Commands is a story of life at the crossroads of hope and despair.

    The life of an epoch swirled around him - but though his contemporaries appreciated and admired him, they failed to understand him.Few have even attempted to tackle Tiepolo's series of thirty-three bizarre and haunting etchings, the Capricci and the Scherzi, but Roberto Calasso rises to the challenge, interpreting these etchings as chapters in a dark narrative that contains the secret of Tiepolo's art. Blooming ephebes, female satyrs, Oriental sages, owls, snakes: we will find them all, including Punchinello and Death, within the pages of this book, along with Venus, Time, Moses, numerous angels, Cleopatra and Beatrice of Burgundy - a motley, gypsyish company always on the go.Calasso makes clear that Tiepolo was more than a dazzling intermezzo in the history of painting. Rather, he represented a particular way of meeting the challenge of form: endowed with a fluid, seemingly effortless style, Tiepolo was the last incarnation of that peculiar Italian virtue sprezzatura, the art of not seeming artful.

    From the present tense of regular verbs to direct object pronouns, this comprehensive guide and workbook covers all aspects of Italian grammar that you need to master.Focusing on the practical aspects of Italian as it's really spoken, each unit of "Practice Makes Perfect: Complete Italian Grammar" features clear explanations, numerous realistic examples, and lots of engaging exercises."Practice Makes Perfect: Complete Italian Grammar" makes mastering grammar easy with: Clear, down-to-earth, easy-to-follow explanations that make even the most complex principles easy to understand Example sentences that illustrate and clarify each grammatical point Dozens of exercises in formats suited to every learning style Practical and high-frequency vocabulary used throughout A detailed answer key for quick, easy progress checksWith help from this book, you can effortlessly use: Possessive adjectives - Relative pronouns - Gerunds - Expressions of time - The passive and the impersonal "Si" * The subjunctive mood * Question words

    Stille uses the incredible and appallingly entertaining story of Silvio Berlusconi's rise to power to paint a portrait of Italy today that's invaluable for anyone who wants to understand that country or put the United States' problems in perspective.

    Delia, an opera singer robbed of her voice by illness; George, an idealistic scientist who cannot face what his skills have created; Marjorie, desperately poor and unable to dislodge her writer’s block; and Lucius, ostensibly in control but whose personal life is in chaos. All are summoned to the Villa Dante, home of the late Beatrice Malaspina. But who was she?While they wait to find out, the villa begins to work its seductive magic. With its faded frescoes, overgrown garden and magnificent mediaeval tower, it is unlike anywhere they have been before. Slowly, four characters who have gone to great lengths to hide their troubles find that change – and even hope – is possible after all. But the mysterious Beatrice has a devastating secret to reveal that will affect them all…A beautiful evocation of Italy in the aftermath of World War Two, the personal consequences of living through such a time, and a celebration of humankind’s ability to heal and learn to love again, this most absorbing novel will win Elizabeth Edmondson a host of new fans.

    Brother Juniper is the most generous of the brothers. He is so generous that he will happily give the robe off his back to someone in need—even if that leaves him with nothing else to wear. When Father Francis asks Brother Juniper to look after the church by himself one day, the other brothers are very worried about what they’ll find when they return. But with his kind heart and simple ways, Brother Juniper reminds them all what it means to truly look after a church.This fresh take on the traditional stories of Brother Juniper is beautifully rendered in playful and expressive paintings, creating an unusual story that inspires equal amounts of laughter and goodwill.

    Drawing on a wide array of sources, including contemporary letters, inventories, and archaeological surveys, it offers a completely fresh and in-depth exploration of the fascinating domestic world of Renaissance Italy. This fascinating, innovative book is sure to become a key reference and visual resource for students of art and design, history and archaeology, and anyone with an interest in the everyday life and material culture of the Italian Renaissance.

    Using many realistic examples taken from everyday life, author Daniela Gobetti takes the mystery out of Italian pronouns and prepositions and gives you plenty of exercises to reinforce what you have learned.

    A man known for cleverness and daring, he was the most feared mercenary in Renaissance Italy. Born in England, Hawkood began his career in France during the Hundred Years' War and crossed into Italy with the famed White Company in 1361. From that time until his death in 1394, Hawkwood fought throughout the peninsula as a captain of armies in times of war and as a commander of marauding bands during times of peace. He achieved international fame, and his acquaintances included such prominent people as Geoffrey Chaucer, Catherine of Siena, Jean Froissart, and Francis Petrarch. City-states constantly tried to outbid each other for his services, for which he received money, land, and in the case of Florence, citizenship—a most unusual honor for an Englishman. When Hawkwood died, the Florentines buried him with great ceremony in their cathedral, an honor denied their greatest poet, Dante. His final resting place, however, is disputed.Historian William Caferro's ambitious account of Hawkwood is both a biography and a study of warfare and statecraft. Caferro has mined more than twenty archives in England and Italy, creating an authoritative portrait of Hawkwood as an extraordinary military leader, if not always an admirable human being. Caferro's Hawkwood possessed a talent for dissimulation and craft both on the battlefield and at the negotiating table, and, ironically, managed to gain a reputation for "honesty" while beating his Italian hosts at their own game of duplicity and manipulation.In addition to a thorough account of Hawkwood's life and career, Caferro's study offers a fundamental reassessment of the Italian military situation and of the mercenary system. Hawkwood's career is treated not in isolation but firmly within the context of Italian society, against the backdrop of unfolding crises: famine, plague, popular unrest, and religious schism. Indeed, Hawkwood's life and career offer a unique vantage point from which we can study the economic, social, and political impacts of war.

    Guy Windsor, author of the popular longsword text The Swordsmans' Companion, has triumphed in this work, which guides the beginner through the rapier, based on the world of Capo Ferro's 1610 masterpiece, Gran Simulacro.Italian rapier dominated Europe from the 17th - 19th centuries. This book demonstrates convincingly why it was so successful.

    As he visits the spectacular lakes and fashionable cities of the north and passes through the hills of Tuscany before heading south towards Rome, Naples, and Palermo, he celebrates the country's art and culture—its cathedrals, churches, palaces, opera houses, paintings, sculpture, music, and cuisine. Introducing us to many of the figures who populate the country's rich and vibrant history, his journey also takes in Italian society as it is today. Splendidly illustrated with John Parker's breathtaking color photos and enlivened with marvelous anecdotes about his family and the fascinating characters he meets along the way, Francesco's Italy is the story of both the country we all know and love and the secret Italy only an insider can reveal.

    Break-in at the Basilica written by Dianne Ahern and illustrated by Katherine Larson, is the second book in this adventure series that takes a boy, Riley, and his littlle sister, Delaney, to Italy to stay with their aunt, Sister Philomena.  At first the kids were sure this would be a miserable summer stuck in a convent with a bunch of nuns that do nothing but go to church and pray all day.  Boy, were they wrong! In this adventure, Sister Philomena, the Pope's private eye, is called upon to go to Assisi to investigate the break-in and theft of the priceless Chartula of Saint Francis,  Her Mother Superior has made it clear that the children cannot be left unattended in the convent.  Having no other alternative, Sister Philomena takes her niece and nephew with her to Assisi on the Papal Assignment. Eager to assist their aunt and find clues, the children explore the basilica, study its frescos, sneak into the tomb of Saint Francis, wander through the hill town of Assisi, and end up in the lieel church of San Damiano.  Every once in a while they spot a wolf or hear its howl or feel its presence.  Is it real or a spirit?  Good or evil?  What is it trying to tell them? Woven into this great tale of adventure are the personal stories of Saint Francis and Saint Clare and the sights and sounds of Assisi.  The book also has an appendix of Italian Words and Phrases that will help young readers become world travellers.

    The 100 delicious, simple recipes range from time-honored home-cooking traditions to restaurant classics and even startling innovations by Italy’s star chefs, and are accompanied by invaluable cooking tips and rich, evocative atmosphere. And each chapter offers travel tips galore—on the best restaurants, wine bars, gelatarie, and markets—as well as eminently useful reference sections on ingredients and menus. Biba’s Italy will at turns transport you to a canal-side caffè in Venice and a bustling outdoor market in medieval Bologna, to a chic Milanese ristorante and the lively streets in Rome and cozy enoteca in Florence. Then lure you back home to re-create these experiences in your own kitchen.

    One of the world’s leading military historians, Lloyd Clark, delivers a gripping narrative and fresh interpretation of this remarkable but overshadowed battle. About six months before D-Day, in January 1944, a united force of 36,000 soldiers launched one of the first attacks on continental Europe at Anzio, a small coastal city thirty miles south of Rome. But the advance stalled, and the Allies were unable to exploit initial German weakness that could have led to a decisive strike to liberate the undefended Italian capital. As the Germans gained strength, their force growing to 120,000 men, Anzio beach became a death trap. With winter beating down, the Allies held on, pushing more men, guns, and armor into the stalemate, though their men were still sorely outnumbered. After five months of fighting, and monumental casualties on both sides, the Allies were able to successfully crack the German line, capturing Rome on June 4, just two days before D-Day.

    Medical science advanced at an unprecedented rate, and physicians published on anatomy as never before. Simultaneously, many of the period's most prominent artists—including Leonardo and Michelangelo in Florence, Raphael in Rome, and Rubens working in Italy—turned to the study of anatomy to inform their own drawings and sculptures, some by working directly with anatomists and helping to illustrate their discoveries. The result was a rich corpus of art objects detailing the workings of the human body with an accuracy never before attained.Art and Anatomy in Renaissance Italy examines this crossroads between art and science, showing how the attempt to depict bone structure, musculature, and our inner workings—both in drawings and in three dimensions—constituted an important step forward in how the body was represented in art. While already remarkable at the time of their original publication, the anatomical drawings by 16th-century masters have even foreshadowed developments in anatomic studies in modern times.

    Mark's Basilica, wine in the Piedmont, and shopping in Milan • Best  Alpine adventures, world-class museums, and out-of-the-way villages Opinions from destination experts • Fodor’s Italy-based writers reveal their favorite local haunts • Frequently updated to provide the latest information

    For Lucy, the chance to go to Italy offers more than just gardens. Lake Como is where her father lives and the last time she saw him was when she was just a teenager. Recently married Helen and her wealthy husband have just moved into the Old Rectory. With her husband spending so much time away from home, Helen throws herself into caring for the garden that was the pride and joy of its previous owner. But Helen needs help, and friends, and so decides to take the plunge and join the local Garden Club. Conrad isn't the least bit interested in gardening. Widowed for five years, his life revolves around work and humoring Mac, his curmudgeonly elderly uncle who lives with him, and who has expressed a desire to go on the Gardens of Delight tour. But only if Conrad will accompany him. Reluctantly, Conrad agrees. "Anything for a peaceful life," he concedes. But a peaceful life is the last thing any of them are in for About The Author: Erica James is the author of Act of Faith , Airs and Graces , Gardens of Delight , and Time for a Change .

    Thousands of works of art have been collected by successive popes since the early fifteenth century, and all are housed in a complex of buildings in the papal palace and elsewhere in the Vatican. With several museums, the Library exhibition rooms, and various suites of Renaissance painting of which the most important are Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel and the Stanze, decorated by Raphael and others the visitor is admitted to some of the most beautiful rooms in existence. Perhaps most famous for classical sculpture, such as the Apollo Belvedere and the Belvedere Torso, the Vatican Museums also have rich collections of, for example, early Christian art, jewellery and vestments. This selection of 100 masterpieces from one of the richest collections in the world, gives the visitor and reader a privileged insight into the core of the Vatican's incomparable collections. Each resplendent photograph is accompanied by an explan

    Portraiture especially served the dynastic pretensions of the absolutist ruler, Duke Cosimo and his consort, Eleonora di Toledo, and was part of a Herculean programme of propaganda to establish legitimacy and prestige for the new sixteenth-century Florentine court.In this engaging and original study, Gabrielle Langdon analyses selected portraits of women by Jacopo Pontormo, Agnolo Bronzino, Alessandro Allori, and other masters. She defines their function as works of art, as dynastic declarations, and as encoded documents of court culture and propaganda, illuminating Cosimo's conscious fashioning of his court portraiture in imitation of the great courts of Europe. Langdon explores the use of portraiture as a vehicle to express Medici political policy, such as with Cosimo's Hapsburg and Papal alliances in his bid to be made Grand Duke with hegemony over rival Italian princes.Stories from archives, letters, diaries, chronicles, and secret ambassadorial briefs, open up a world of fascinating, personalities, personal triumphs, human frailty, rumour, intrigue, and appalling tragedies. Lavishly illustrated, "Medici Women: Portraits of Power, Love and Betrayal in the Court of Duke Cosimo I" is an indispensable work for anyone with a passion for Italian renaissance history, art, and court culture.

    New and insightful, this investigation of one of the most important state cults in ancient Rome is an essential addition to the bookshelves of all those interested in Roman religion, history and culture.

    In 10 distinct chapters, Monica Larner-who has divided her life between Italy and America since childhood-guides the reader through Italy's most inspiring destinations, including romantic locales, exclusive hotels, and tantalizing restaurants. Each region has its own unique amorous legends, love rituals, and aphrodisiac recipes that inspire and seduce. Beautifully illustrated with dozens of luscious color photographs that evoke the magic and fantasy of a romantic trip far away, the book includes complete information on getting married abroad, and will prove an invaluable and enjoyable resource to any true romantic.

    I put a fresh spin on budget travel, showing you how to see the best for less and how to see it in a more authentic way--the way the locals do. Instead of spending $300 a night for a chain hotel, why not stay in a light-filled apartment in Rome's historical Trastevere neighborhood from just $125 or in one of Italy's monasteries for as little as $35? Or how about enjoying a plate of hearty appetizers at Venice's Cantino do Mori, so you can splurge on Paolo Senni's tagliata di fesa di vitella at Cane & Gato in Sienna? Let me show you the "other" Italy--the one only insiders know about. Take a one-day paper marbling class in Venice or learn to cook the perfect rag? in Bologna. These are only a few of the great ways to get closer to the culture of Italy. Read on for more! Happy Travels, Pauline Frommer www.frommers.com/paulineWinner of Best Guidebook for 2006 from the North American Travel Journalists Association (Pauline Frommer's New York City)Listen to a free Italy podcast featuring Pauline Frommer and Reid Bramblett at Frommers.com

    Travel to Piedmont for Truffled Veal, and Veneto for Guinea Fowl in Pomegranate Sauce. Journey to Liguria for Minestrone alla Genovese, and Le Marche for the fragrant fish soup called Brodetto all' Anconetana. Visits to Puglia and Sardinia round out the tour, while each stop includes side trips to food festivals, historic footnotes, and lessons on Italy's rich culinary lore.

    Dreamy.”—Jimmy McDonough, author of Shakey: Neil Young’s Biography and Big Bosoms and Square Jaws: The Biography of Russ MeyerThe young, buxom “Burlesque Queen” of Portland, Oregon, has begun a distinctive photographic career by posing in a vanishing breed of unique motel room environ-ments across the country.Writes Lucy in her introduction, “Room With a View is not merely a pin-up book: it is as much about the room as it is about me. I think of myself as a fixture in that room, like a lamp or a chair. The kind of motel rooms that particularly attracted me had wood paneling, forgotten ‘60s- and ‘70s-era oil paintings, strange lighting, fantasy themes, tiled bathrooms, wacky wallpaper, and no outside view. All the photo-graphs are in some way a reaction to the established lexicon of ‘pin-up sexy.’”Room With a View contains nearly one hundred of Lucy Fur’s photographs, bound handsomely with an inlaid photograph surrounded by an elegant embossed cloth binding.

    When Hitler's SS begins to commit ghastly atrocities, terrified villagers flee to farmhouses in the hills for refuge. The villagers initially cower as the war rages around them, but they overcome petty differences, confront betrayal by one villager, fearlessly house an escaped prisoner and survive a raid by the Nazis. As the brutal war continues, a young girl finds love, two boys become heroes, and secrets are revealed. Then an unthinkable event changes their lives forever. Inspired by the experiences of author Paul Salsini's relatives, "The Cielo: A Novel of Wartime Tuscany" is a riveting story of courage, endurance, and the power of the human spirit in the cruelest of times. "Paul Salsini has the gift of thoroughly knowing and deeply understanding the people and the region in which his drama is set, and so the sky literally is the limit for this moving debut novel of a luscious country too often forgotten when we consider the ravages of the 'Good War.'" -Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of "The Deep End of the Ocean" and "Cage of Stars." "Salsini's style is plain, his choice of detail unerring, his scenes vivid, his control of the narrative superb. "The Cielo" is a memorable novel." -Donald Pfarrer, author of "Neverlight" and "The Fearless Man." "Salsini's beautiful novel of Italy during World War II, peopled with a wide range of characters, deepens our knowledge of both Tuscan hill towns and the terrible effects of war on civilians." -Martha Bergland, author of "A Farm Under a Lake" and "Idle Curiosity." www.thecielobook.com

    He now focuses on an unusual and stirring art form in this stunning album of handcrafted shrines found throughout the Italian countryside. Rothfeld turns his lens on a fascinating aspect of Italian culture, the age-old, popular art of building shrines in honor of the Virgin Mary and other saints. Created by average people as an expression of religious devotion, the shrines appear along ordinary roads in villages and cities, in the fields of farmers, and in the yards of simple cottages and homes. In "Shrines," the full-color photographs of these ubiquitous, delicately crafted structures form a spiritual journey, bringing to life an ancient religious tradition that continues to thrive today. With a charming introduction and text by Frances Mayes, this visual tour of the surprising and graceful ways the divine touches and enriches everyday lives is perfect for admirers of sacred art, history buffs, those millions of Americans who travel to Italy, and everyone who dreams of going there.

    Treating the city, its art, and its rituals as lived experiences that extended through space and time, the contributors to this volume consider well-known objects, monuments, sites, and events in the vivifying context of a variety of spaces, which are here understood as a dimension of physical, psychological, religious, and political perceptions for the city of Florence during the Renaissance. The volume provides a multi-dimensional view of Florence as it evolved into an economic powerhouse and dynamic center of artistic achievement, as well as the setting for political and religious struggles. It also demonstrates how permeable boundaries between the disciplines of history and art history have become.

    Everything unravels at the table.” –Marlena de BlasiMarlena de Blasi’s lifelong affair with cooking began at age nine on a beach along the coast of southern Italy, where she met an elderly woman roasting potatoes coated with olive oil, rosemary, and sea salt over an open fire.Now, in A Taste of Southern Italy, de Blasi brings to life the spirit as well as the cuisine of this bountiful region. With de Blasi we travel down remote country goat paths in tiny island villages and along sun-washed avenues of great cities in search of some of the most treasured recipes in the world. This is as much a storybook as it is a cookbook: a gathering of small rhapsodies, impressions, and romantic notions from a land where such delights are plentiful. In our journey through the kitchens of southern Italy we find tantalizing recipes for a host of mouthwatering dishes, includingGnocchi di Castagne con Porcini TrifolatiInsalata di Pesce Dove il Mare Non C’éPane di AltamuraFrittelle di Ricotta e Rhum alla LucanaPeperoni Arrostiti RipieniLa Vera PizzaPomodori alla BracePesce Spada sulla Brace alla PantescaRicotta FortePasta alla PecoraioLa Torta Antica EricinaUn Gelato BaroccoWith these authentic recipes at your fingertips, you can master the luscious tastes and rustic ambiance of southern Italy. These dishes are sure to become a tradition in your home, and will fill it with tantalizing aromas and love.From the Hardcover edition.

    Located between France, Switzerland, and the eastern portion of Italy, the area is home to some of the world's best produce. Secrets of the agriculturally rich Po Valley and tales of the spectacular capital of Torino are coupled with anecdotes about friends, family, and the importance of preparing and sharing good, quality food. Vivid color photographs further illustrate the splendor of the region.

    But since his birth into an Italian Jewish family in 1749, he had already been a priest, a poet, the lover of many women, a scandalous Enlightenment thinker banned from teaching in Venice, the librettist for three of Mozart's most sublime operas, a collaborator with Salieri, a friend of Casanova, and a favorite of Emperor Joseph II. He would go on to establish New York City's first opera house and be the first professor of Italian at Columbia University. An inspired innovator but a hopeless businessman, who loved with wholehearted loyalty and recklessness, Da Ponte was one of the early immigrants to live out the American dream.In Rodney Bolt's rollicking and extensively researched biography, Da Ponte's picaresque life takes readers from Old World courts and the back streets of Venice, Vienna, and London to the New World promise of New York City. Two hundred and fifty years after Mozart's birth, the life and legacy of his librettist Da Ponte are as astonishing as ever.

    The Ligurian kitchen is famous for fish, fresh produce and herbs. Tales of loveable uncles and a lyrical account of making pasta in the midst of a storm tantalise just as much as the sumptuous recipe on offer in this book. In these 100 recipes, the specialities of artisan bread bakers and those of the region's 'cucina povera' combine to create a zestful collection that exemplifies 'that extraordinary marriage of land and sea that is Ligurian cuisine'.

    Drawing on insights from subaltern and postcolonial studies, Roberto M. Dainotto deconstructs imperialism not from the so-called periphery but from within Europe itself. He proposes a genealogy of Eurocentrism that accounts for the way modern theories of Europe have marginalized the continent’s own southern region, portraying countries including Greece, Italy, Spain, and Portugal as irrational, corrupt, and clan-based in comparison to the rational, civic-minded nations of northern Europe. Dainotto argues that beginning with Montesquieu’s The Spirit of Laws (1748), Europe not only defined itself against an “Oriental” other but also against elements within its own borders: its South. He locates the roots of Eurocentrism in this disavowal; internalizing the other made it possible to understand and explain Europe without reference to anything beyond its boundaries.Dainotto synthesizes a vast array of literary, philosophical, and historical works by authors from different parts of Europe. He scrutinizes theories that came to dominate thinking about the continent, including Montesquieu’s invention of Europe’s north-south divide, Hegel’s “two Europes,” and Madame de Staël’s idea of opposing European literatures: a modern one from the North, and a pre-modern one from the South. At the same time, Dainotto brings to light counter-narratives written from Europe’s margins, such as the Spanish Jesuit Juan Andrés’s suggestion that the origins of modern European culture were eastern rather than northern and the Italian Orientalist Michele Amari’s assertion that the South was the cradle of a social democracy brought to Europe via Islam.

    

    Less wealthy than his grandfather Cosimo, the argument goes, Lorenzo was far more interested in collecting ancient objects of art than in commissioning contemporary art or architecture. His earlier reputation as a patron was said to be largely a construct of humanist exaggeration and partisan deference.Although some recent studies have taken issue with this view, no synthesis of Lorenzo as art patron and art lover has yet emerged. In Lorenzo de' Medici and the Art of Magnificence historian F. W. Kent offers a new look at Lorenzo's relationship to the arts, aesthetics, collecting, and building—especially in the context of his role as the political boss ( maestro della bottega) of republican Florence and a leading player in Renaissance Italian diplomacy. As a result of this approach, which pays careful attention to the events of his short but dramatic life, a radically new chronology of Lorenzo's activities as an art patron emerges, revealing them to have been more extensive and creative than previously thought. Kent's Lorenzo was broadly interested in the arts and supported efforts to beautify Florence and the many Medici lands and palaces. His expertise was well regarded by guildsmen and artists, who often turned to him for advice as well as for patronage. Lorenzo himself was educated in the arts by such men, and Kent explores his aesthetic education and taste, taking into account what is known of Lorenzo's patronage of music and manuscripts, and of his own creative work as a major Quattrocento poet.Richly illustrated with photographs of Medici landmarks by Ralph Lieberman, Lorenzo de' Medici and the Art of Magnificence offers a masterful portrait of Lorenzo as a man whose achievements might have rivaled his grandfather's had he not died so young.

    Architecture and Tourism in Italian Colonial Libya shows how Italian authorities in Libya made use of the contradictory forces of modernity and tradition to both legitimise their colonial enterprise and construct a vital tourist industry. Although one of the essential goals of tourists was to escape the boundaries of the metropole in favour of experiencing difference, that difference was almost always framed, contained, and even defined by Western culture. McLaren argues that the modern and the traditional were entirely constructed by colonial authorities, who balanced their need to project an image of a modern and efficient network of travel and accommodation with the necessity of preserving the characteristic qualities of the indigenous culture.

    Hide This Phrase Book includes conversation starters, ATM and bank info, hostel expressions, fun entertainment options, making friends with the locals and more. Also included is a two-way dictionary, featuring slang terminology.

    This book vividly conveys through contemporary illustrations, the realities of living in Florence and Venice during the Renaissance, and takes the reader on a room-by-room tour.

    This wide-ranging collection, with an introduction by historian Alison Brown, includes translations of his sermons and treatises on pastoral ministry, prophecy, politics, and moral reform, as well as the correspondence with Alexander VI that led to Savonarola’s silencing and excommunication. Also included are first-hand accounts of religio-civic festivities instigated by Savonarola and of his last moments. This collection demonstrates the remarkable extent of Savonarola’s contributions to the religious, political, and aesthetic debates of the late fifteenth century.

    

    Passengers however appear to have been responsible for their own sustenance, the quarters were probably far from luxurious and of course loss of life by shipwreck unlike loss of freight entailed no financial loss to the carrier. -from "Chapter XVI: Commerce" In this classic work-an expansion of an earlier 1920 edition-a respected classical scholar sketches the economic life of the Roman culture through the republican period and into the fourth century of the empire. Though later books unfairly supplanted it, this volume remains an excellent introduction to the capital, commerce, labor, and industry of the immediate forerunner of modern civilization. In clear, readable language, Frank explores: .agriculture in early Latium .the rise of the peasantry .Roman coinage .finance and politics .the "plebs urbana" .the beginnings of serfdom .and much more. American historian TENNEY FRANK (1876-1939) was professor of Latin at Bryn Mawr College and Johns Hopkins University, and also wrote Roman Imperialism (1914) and A History of Rome (1923).

    But the mighty volcano Vesuvius was stirring, and soon they were fleeing for their lives, as ash and lava swamped their city. Pompeii lay buried for hundreds of years until it was rediscovered by archaeologists, This is the story of a moment in history caught forever.

    They contain not only important military information, but fascinating political, social and personal commentaries that are critical to understanding Napoleon the man as well as Napoleon the soldier. Presented complete for the first time in English, and supported by Markham's historical and biographical notes, the bulletins cover the key period between the Battle of Austerlitz in 1805 and the collapse of Napoleon's Empire in 1814. The bulletins describe military operations, pick out distinguished officers and units, and present Napoleon's own interpretation of battles lost and won. Also included are various key reports from marshals and others, including the bulletins of the Army of Italy commanded by Massena in 1805. Most of this additional material has never been published in English until now. Imperial Glory is an invaluable contribution to literature on the Napoleonic Wars and a key book for anyone who would like to learn more about one of history's most remarkable and colorful leaders.

    Over a short span of years important matters began to turn on the cut of a sleeve. Fashion influenced consumption and provided a stimulus that drove demand for goods and turned wealthy townspeople into enthusiastic consumers. Making wise decisions about the alarmingly expensive goods that composed a fashionable wardrobe became a matter of pressing concern, especially when the market caught on and became awash in cheaper editions of luxury wares.Focusing on the luxury trade in fashionable wear and accessories in Venice, Florence, and other towns in Italy, Gilding the Market investigates a major shift in patterns of consumption at the height of medieval prosperity, which, more remarkably, continued through the subsequent era of plague, return of plague, and increased warfare. A fine sensitivity to the demands of le pompe, that is, the public display of private wealth, infected town life. The quest for luxuries affected markets by enlarging exchange activity and encouraging retail trades. As both consumers and tradesmen, local goldsmiths, long-distance traders, bankers, and money changers played important roles in creating this new age of fashion.In response to a greater public display of luxury goods, civic sumptuary laws were written to curb spending and extreme fashion, but these were aimed at women, youth, and children, leaving townsmen largely unrestricted in their consumption. With erudition, grace, and an evocative selection of illustrations, some reproduced in full color, Susan Mosher Stuard explores the arrival of fashion in European history.

    The author of nearly 400 sonnets remarkable for their subtlety, intricate narrative structure, and learned allusions, Battiferra, who was married to the prominent sculptor and architect Bartolomeo Ammannati, traversed an elite literary and artistic network, circulating her verse in a complex and intellectually fecund exchange with some of the most illustrious figures in Italian history. In this bilingual anthology, Victoria Kirkham gathers Battiferra's most essential writing, including newly discovered poems, which provide modern readers with a valuable social chronicle of sixteenth-century Italy and the courtly culture of the Counter-Reformation.