If your interest is piqued by ancient cities with mazes of streets and canals, of hidden plots and secrets, then you must like reading about Venice.
The City of Falling Angels by John Berendt begins on January 29. 1996 the day the Fenice Opera is destroyed by fire. Berendt’s citizen interviews reveal the intricacies of customs, society, politics, the city’s decades of decay and preservation. Among them are Archimede Seguro, an aging glassblower who makes 100 vases depicting the fire as viewed from his window only feet away. Berendt learns much about Ezra Pound and Olga Rudge, his paramour, whose art collection disappeared in mystery from the home she still inhabited. The inside story of the Palazzo Barbaro (where scenes from Brideshead Revisited were filmed) and so much more brings Venice off the page in a chatty and informative way.
Travel back to the time following the 1527 sacking of Rome, as the wealthy courtesan Fiametta and her dwarf business partner, Bucino, flee to Venice, via In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant. Fiametta was born in Venice and knows it well. Through the pair’s adventures we see the city at its height, become involved in their intricate moves and ploys to regain the style of living they abandoned to save their lives. Venice serves as both background and character, enriching the novel’s plot.
Venice is a favorite setting for novelists and travel writers alike: what are some of your favorite Venice books?
~ Barbara
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