Customer Reviews

Francesco's Venice: The Dramatic History of the World's Most Beautiful City

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

BBC continues to produce superb documentaries and gratefully shares the content with the reading public by publishing the series in book format. Anyone who was fortunate enough to catch the program 'Francesco's Venice' will surely want to add this informative, beautifully illustrated, intensely interesting volume of conversations with Francesco da Mosto who, with the invaluable aid of photographer John Parker, visits not only the famous landmarks of this great floating world, but also shares tidbits of information that have not been available to readers before with the insight of a native son who still dwells there.

da Mosto intertwines Venice's history with anecdotes and 'secrets' that illuminate the mysteries that surround this most beautiful of all cities. His ability to relate not only the socioeconomic, military, religious, and patrician history, but to make each of his myriad topics rich in elegant language and a quiet humor results in a history book that reads like a novel.

The exquisite photography of John Parker provides views of St Marks, the Square, the gondolas, the canals, the maze of walkways and bridges all come alive. These are not the 'standard views' seen in travel books: these photographs find a solid place in da Mosto's description of art and architecture peculiar to Venice.

There may be many fine books on Serenissima, but this one rapidly ascends to the top of the list - for Venetians, for those who have fallen under Venice's spell as travelers, and for the armchair dreamers who will discover the spirit of the city as they approach the book as a history source. Highly recommended. Grady Harp, January 06

I did not get a chance to see the BBC TV series for which this book is the companion piece, but I wish I had, since it is a coffee table book filled with lovely and often breathtaking photographs and a text that is compelling for two reasons that make it a standout.

The first is that it is a fascinating history of the city of Venice from the point of view of a native-not simply a native but one whose family has been part of Venice for much of its existence. This personal engagement with the ancient stones of Venice and its people means that de Mosto can flesh out the big picture with intimate anecdotes that make the dates and people of Venice's past come to life. We can readily identify with a photo of a palazzo on it own merits, but how much more so when we learn that it is where our travel guide himself lives. The same is true of the familiar monuments of the city, when we hear of a da Mosto past connection with them. As the author says in the introduction, "One of my first memories is of looking at the vast da Mosto family tree with its intriguing sea of names. As stories were related to me throughout childhood I grew to realize that our past, as that of one of the oldest families of Venice, is inextricably intertwined with the city's."

The second is that the book is arranged according to themes based on the four ancient elements: Water, Earth, Air, Fire--plus one, Ether. Centering on these themes, we learn about the creation of the city itself, as it rose from a swampy collection of more than a thousand small islands. The sidebar pages are especially enjoyable as they tell the story behind the history. Da Mosto tells us of the importance of Venetian culture, commerce and exploration--not to mention the whole concept of a republican form of government that lasted 1000 years. We are told of Venice's incredible ability to continually rise as a phoenix from the ashes. And throughout the book we are reminded again and again of that ethereal quality of Venice that remains.

If you find this review helpful you might want to read some of my other reviews, including those on subjects ranging from biography to architecture, as well as religion and fiction.

This is the accompanying book to the TV series, but so much more too!

Firstly, the book is replete with stunning photography by John Parker. These in themselves are enough to merit applause, but Francesco's text is a good read and full of personal insight. He clearly is no lightweight historian, but has delved deeply into his own and his city's past.

The book is in five chapters (one more than the TV series) with titles that explain much of the subject they contain: 1. "Water - From the Waters to the City"; 2. "Earth - The Boundaries of Land Enlarge"; 3. "Air - La Serenissima Evaporates"; 4. "Fire - Venice Burns Its Past"; and 5. "Ether - Life under Uncertainty".

There is a healthy dose of scepticism of traditions in relation to the early history of the city adopted by the author, and his own tentative assertions ring true. He is good on this period, whereas other histories skip over it lightly. He focuses on the physical origins of the city and its political beginnings. It was then not a matter of display or grandeur or empire, but trade, commerce and industry, especially where salt and fish were concerned. It was also a healthy sign that Francesco sheds doubt on the blindness of Doge Enrico Dandolo, the scourge of the Fourth Crusade to Constantinople.

He is also good on the Arsenale, which presently lacks any detailed history in English. It is still very much out-of-bounds to tourists, but it would have been nice, though, to have had plans of its development. And I have yet to see in print those marvellous birds' eye view drawings of the naval base before and after Napoleon's conquest. Francesco is also good on the subject of trade, such as the mechanics involved in sailing convoys, as well as their destinations (but, alas, no map, not even any line drawings of how a galley, a galleass or a navi would have looked like).

There is more emphasis on how Francesco's own family history has become intertwined with that of the city: this is, after all, Francesco's history of his birthplace! We learn of its involvement in the Tiepolo plot of 1310 and in that of Doge Marin Falier, the only doge to be sentenced to death, in 1355. Francesco provides personal reminiscences too about the first time he received his first communion in Saint Mark's Cathedral, about his first experience of a Titian painting, about witnessing the fire at the La Fenice opera house, and about his own home, which was the setting for part of Anthony Minghella's film "The Talented Mr Ripley." There is much more.

Many of these recollections appear in the numerous additional textboxes that populate the whole book. These allow the reader to focus in more detail on particular aspects, whether it's the doge's hat, robes and regalia, or the antics of Baron Corvo. Those boxes devoted to the language of Venice proved very useful to me. I always wondered why the Venetians often failed to pronounce the suffixes used elsewhere in Italy; Francesco explains that it is partly down to laziness.

There are, as one would expect, many links to the TV series. He repeats in the book his castigation of the bridge to the mainland as a folly; its name - Ponte della Liberta - he insists is ironical. But there are differences with the TV series too. For example, the painter Turner appears nowhere in its pages, but John Singer Sargent appears in his place.

Francesco's coverage of twentieth century Venice is a pleasure to read, as this is often an overlooked episode in its history, for understandable reasons. And yet, it has a richness of drama all of its own, especially in his family reminiscences of war and peace.

So why only four stars? On the negative side, Francesco mentions books in his introduction, but there is no bibliography to guide the reader further into the details of the subjects raised. And where are the maps? Maps of the lagoon would have been useful for placing the city in its geographical setting and for providing bearings in relation to many places named in the early chapters, such as Torcello, Aquileia, Grado, Ravenna and Chioggia.

This review is of the softback print. Unfortunately, there are errors arising from the reduction in size and pages from the original hardback, for example, the "see above" on page 107 is meaningless, as are the picture credits (although these can be worked out with a little patience). The index is good, but there is no entry, for instance, for either "Messeteria" or "Modone".

How does this book compare with the standard introduction to the history of Venice in English by John Julius Norwich? Although Francesco spends some time to accounts about the city's wars in the east and its political relations with the Italian mainland, there is by far a greater amount of information and history given to the development - architectural, social and economic - of the city itself. For example, space is given by Francesco to the paving of streets and the standard of cleanliness, to clothes and how nobles greeted each other - it would have been nice to have one of Longhi's pictures to accompany these social points; you will look almost wholly in vain for such details in Norwich's history. The downside is that there are only two paragraphs devoted to the role of Paolo Sarpi whereas the more political and wider geographical sweep of Norwich's book devotes a chapter or more to the workings out of the papal crisis of the early seventeenth century.

So, `you pays your money and you takes your choice', but if you are seeking an introduction to the city of Venice as opposed to an introduction to the politics and external relations of the city, then Francesco's must be the better buy. However so great Norwich's history is, it does spend more than half its time on the coasts of the eastern Mediterranean and the plains of Lombardy, rather than in the city itself (see my amazon.co.uk review).

I just got back from Venice, at 2AM today in fact, and I am extremely glad that I read this book before the trip. It is very well written and covers a breadth of information about Venice, ranging from history, politics, art, architecture and more. It is beautifully illustrated and contains a number of inset discussions about venetian society and other topics that just add more and more to the book. Altogether, it was a fascinating and easy read, and one that dramatically enhanced my trip. I am thinking of reading it again, or renting the videos, to further the experience. In my opinion, a must read for any traveller to Venice.

Really enjoyed this book. Beautiful photos and easily readable text. A lot of good information ,history included, presented in such a way that you actually do want to read it and not just look at the pictures.

It was a great idea for the BBC to have a programme on Venice which is narrated by an insider i.e. a local. Too often we get programmes which are narrated by toffs (dont get me wrong but I absolutely love art and history) whose language rapidly ascends into celestial heights and losing touch with reality. The Venetian had both the ability to ascend to the heights, waxing lyrically about the city he loved but also pointing our the huge problems of living in a city crowded by the influx of tourists. We got the whole history of Venice up to modern times but also there was a moving coverage of the plague and the island where the bones of the nobles are washed up on the shore. In a strange way, the magic of venice was evn more apparent when the narration is rooted in reality. Personally, I would have liked to see the inside of more Churches and more art and more ambling through the back streets but even so I found it excellent, I should say I gave the 3rd CVC on Venice and sex a miss as I really was not particularly keen on being subject to something tawdry and salacious.

Well done, BBC!

I teach a 30 hour course on Venice called "All Things Venetian". I loved reading this beautifully illustrated and highly interesting book. Francesco da Mosto interweaves his ancestors into the history and culture of this fascinating city. Fabulous reading for those who have been there and a "must read" for those who want to visit "the world's most beautiful city"!

John Parker's photographs in "Francesco's Venice" are lovely. However, the historical text written by Francesco Da Mosto, although complete and covering a vast time period, is opinionated, rather cumbersome and replete with self congratulatory statements concerning his family's Venetian heritage. I found the latter annoyingly childish; like a 6 year-old giving a class report wanting to make sure his classmates knew just how important his daddy was. This self importance as a true Venetian with a rich family history may have been the impetus for writing the book but adds nothing to it. In the final analysis, aside from the photographs I was not particularly pleased with my purchase.

For those who would like to know a little more about Venice this is the book, very well written and researched, you will find yourself not willing to put the book down, I expected more of the pictures but even though they marvel the eye. Highly recommended for Venetian Lovers

I enjoyed Venice and Italy while on My Grand Tour of Europe for my 50th Birthday.....and discovered this wonderful author and TV Travel while cruising through the Travel Channel when I returned home. So fantastic & brings back all of my travel memories. I was the first of my family to discover Italy & now they all want to go!!!!

This author has such a wonderful sense of humor & I have been fortunate to watch all of his BBC travel series & just discovered his cookbook....wonder what he is up to next? As my world was forever totally changed by Hurricane Katrina which smashed into my life destroying all of our many acres of trees & homes in 100 degree weather with no electricity for 6 weeks!!!!then 3 days later the levee's in New Orleans broke--I understand Francesco's passion for his home. While touring Venice & it's outlying lagoons - I felt like I was visiting my favorite city with it's bayou's.....lessons to be learned on hundreds of years of survival with water levels. It is only a matter of time until those huge cruise ships I saw sailing right up to Venice will destroy it all! Go the old fashioned way-via the train or the small boat so your children can enjoy this world.

This book addresses all of the above & with such grace & dignity-I adore this author & highly recommend all of his books/DVD's.