The Most Beautiful Villages of Burgundy (Hardcover)

by James Bentley (Author), Hugh Palmer (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review
The stunning color photographs of the architecture and countryside of this premier wine-growing region in France capture its historical heritage. -- Modern Maturity, Digby Diehl, March/April 1999

You'll want to say adieu immediately, and head that way. -- Philadelphia Inquirer, Carlin Romano, 6 December 1998

Product Description
Synonymous with fine wine, elegant cuisine, and good living, Burgundy is also a land of great architecture and appealing villages. Many of these ancient communities stand beside the leisurely rivers that wend their way through the duchy--the beginnings of the Seine, the delightful Yonne, the Arroux, which flows to the Loire, and the Ouche, which eventually adds its waters to the Saone. And beside these rivers flow another eight hundred miles of languid canals, bordered by woodlands, pasture, and some of the greatest vineyards in the world. The four departements of Burgundy offer a delightful diversity in their villages. Many of those of the Yonne, a country of meadows and river valleys, are waterside communities, while others like Ancy-le-Franc and Vezelay cluster around architecturally splendid houses or gems of Romanesque churches. The villages of the Cte d'Or read like a register of the world's finest wines: Montrachet, Meursault, Pommard. There are other delights, too: Flavigny-sur-Ozerain, a beautifully preserved village of Gothic and Renaissance houses, or Semur-en-Auxois, a medieval fortified town. In the Nievre lies the natural park of the Morvan, with a wealth of hill-villages set among luxuriant woodland. Saone-et-Loire, the southernmost departement of Burgundy, includes the Maconnais wine country, in which are gathered a notable group of well-preserved medieval villages, famous for their Romanesque churches. The influence of religious architecture can be seen everywhere in the duchy, the work of Benedictine and Cistercian monks who spread the Romanesque style. But the villages of Burgundy are much richer than the twin presences of vineyard and church would suggest. The variety, celebrated here by James Bentley and Hugh Palmer, is nowhere better suggested than in the journey from north to south, from villages of black-slate roofs to those where red and ochre tiles announce the Midi. Burgundy's fascinating history and present-day devotion to the fine arts and crafts of living well are justly celebrated, and its villages make this land one of the most enchanting in the western world.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Thames & Hudson (September 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0500018626
• ISBN-13: 978-0500018620
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 10.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #139,780 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MAGICAL PLACE WHERE FANTASY MEETS REALITY, March 27, 2000

By A Customer

France is a magical place and Burgundy is one of its most magical regions. The premier wine-growing region of France, Burgundy is also the center of fine cuisine, Romanesque architecture and lazy canals bordered by meadows of wildflowers. This book, with its more than 260 color illustrations, shows Burgundy at its finest. A region dominated by water, the book begins in the north and travels through all of Burgundy's four departments. From the Yonne, a land of peaceful river valleys and almost 1000 canals, we travel southward with the author to visit little Romanesque churches and learn how the Benedictine and Cistercian monks spread the Romanesque style. We finally arrive in the southernmost department of Soane-et-Loire and the city of Macon, the border to the Midi and the South, where we sample some of the finest wines in the world, such as Montrachet and Pommard. Burgundy is one of the most beautiful places on earth--unspoiled, unhurried and faithful to its past. Whether you plan to actually visit the area or are just dreaming of a visit, this is the perfect book to accompny you and your dreams and perhaps even make make them come true.

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I Agree, April 5, 2000

By	Pierre Renoir (Edmonton, Canada) - See all my reviews

I have to agree with the two previous reviewers, Burgundy is a very special part of France, and a very special part of the world. It is worth seeing just for the vineyards alone, but there is so much more to Burgundy than just wine. If you're lucky enough to go there, take this book along. It will be an invaluable guide to the restaurants and hotels in the area as well as to the festivals, concerts, etc. And if you must stay at home, then this book is the next best thing to actually being there. The photos are gorgeous and the text informative. Five stars is not enough!

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful Book About a Beautiful Place, March 28, 2000

By A Customer

My sister and I recently toured Burgundy and even though we were born and bred in France, we saw the region anew. The photos in this book are lovely and for once, do a place justice. If you plan to travel to Burgundy, and may I suggest that you do, you certainly can't go wrong with this book as a traveling companion and tour guide.