Venice Revealed: An Intimate Portrait [Hardcover]

Paolo Barbaro (Author), Tami Calliope (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Italia Series | Publication Date: September 18, 2001

THE CITY OF VENICE is a kind of miracle - surrounded by the sea, cut by as many canals as streets, built on fill reinforced with pilings made of huge tree trunks, it defies nature and belief. No city has been more often painted or written about; for centuries it has drawn visitors for its food and cafés, its masked balls and street life, its public squares and buildings, the beauty of its sunsets, the softness of the air, the clarity of its light.

But Venice is dying - literally sinking into the sea - and its beauty has drawn so many tourists that ordinary citizens can no longer afford to live there. Paolo Barbaro grew up in Venice and after a full working life as a civil engineer in cities scattered across the world he went home. There he fell in love all over again with a city that seemed to be slipping away. He describes the illumination of that rediscovery in this extraordinary book - a brilliant evocation and description of a city which has lost none of its power to charm, dazzle, and take one's breath away.

But the passion in Barbaro's plea for the salvation of his native city has a deeper source than nostalgia. If humankind cannot stir itself to save Venice, he asks, what hope is there for other endangered cities, places, and animals?

“Not since Rilke have we read pages about Venice with the power of these.” -- Vittorio Branca

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

erhaps no other city in the world has inspired writers, artists and architects like Venice, the Jewel of the Adriatic, la Serenissima. In Barbaro, Venetians have a native bard worthy of their city. Of his several books on Venice, this is the first to be translated into English. Hardly the barbarian his name implies, Barbaro is an urbane, sophisticated engineer who spent decades working abroad before returning home. This lyrical, intimate guide offers a Venice that tourists rarely see: working-class districts, industrial zones, hidden gardens and minuscule alleyways. Barbaro says that in no other city are the elements so ubiquitous. The moon, the fog, the wind (different words describe various types of fog and wind) and above all the water, "ever-present and ever-changing," affect the city's moods. More than just a lush portrait, this is a cri de coeur, a lament and a desperate plea to the world to save the city. Already Venice has become the victim of its own beauty, the economy destroyed by tourism. Nature is doing the rest. "Acqua alta" ("high water") occurred rarely in Barbaro's childhood; today, with the dredging of the lagoon and canals for large oil vessels and the draining of the local aquifers, the water surges up frequently and Venice is literally sinking. Barbaro's topography of "the most beautiful labyrinth created by man in the world" is laced with nostalgia but also a keen realism. Rarely has ecological writing approached such poetry. If the world acts in time to save a true human wonder, at least partial credit should go to Barbaro.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

The unique ambiance of Venice has attracted tourists, artists, and armchair travelers for hundreds of years. Where else will you find a city surrounded by water, built on pilings, and crisscrossed by canals and bridges? Barbaro was raised in Venice and lived there into his twenties, but only after many years of living around the world in his capacity as a civil engineer did he return to his beloved native city. In this, his 16th book and the first translated into English, Barbaro has produced a lyrical narrative describing both the downside of living in Venice (damp, cold buildings in the winter, an ever-decreasing population) and the city's unique charm (beautiful piazzas, hidden gardens, and stunning architecture). He attempts to convey why he has chosen to live there with his family, despite the inconveniences inherent in a city that is sinking into the sea. Unfortunately, his emotions do not translate well, and we are left with a very personal narrative that does not sufficiently reveal the enchantment and magic that Barbaro clearly feels. Further, the book contains no maps, and the only photographs are the tiny black-and-whites that head up each of the eight sections. Recommended only for specialized Italian or travel collections. Olga B. Wise, Compaq Computer Corp., Austin, TX
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Steerforth Italia; 1 edition (September 18, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1586420305
• ISBN-13: 978-1586420307
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,039,602 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A FANTASTIC READ, May 3, 2002

By 

A Customer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Venice Revealed: An Intimate Portrait (Hardcover)

HAVING BEEN TO VENICE TWICE, MR. BARBARO'S BOOK IS EXTREMELY WELL WRIITEN. THE WAY HE WRITES IS SO THAT YOU CAN FEEL THE COLD, SMELL THE SMELLS, AND ACTUALLY FEEL LIKE YOU ARE THERE WITH HIM. BEING A VENETOPHILE I WISH MORE AUTHOR'S WOULD WRITE THIS GOOD ABOUT THE WORLD'S MOST BELOVED CITY, VENICE...
A MUST READ FOR ANYONE WHO HAS AN INTEREST OR LOVES VENICE.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A Rambling and Essentially Dull Look at Venice, August 27, 2004

By 

L. Young "palmtree2000" (West Orange, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Venice Revealed: An Intimate Portrait (Hardcover)

Having visited Venice many times, and being a lover of the City I was most disappointed after reading this book. Born and raised in Venice, the author returns to live there once again, after being absent for many years. The book contains his desultory ruminations on Venice as he wanders it's labyrinth streets. This is not Venice from the perspective of culture or history. It is a native's view of La Serenissima and how time and tourism has changed it. I found the writing amorphous and not terribly interesting. It's difficult to make this City of paradoxes dull, but the author has succeeded in doing so.