Italy Books

Dr. Derbes has a rare gift of insight into this troubled time period, and her flowing, warm writing style makes the images and ideas equally accessible to her readers. A wonderful book for anyone interested in Medieval times or iconography.

reading this book was wonderful, but taking the italian renaissance class with our dear professor, Anne, was even better!!

having seen the frescoes at arezzo less than 12 months ago, i was intrigued to find out whether the images in this book matched my recent memories: they did, and more, because the close-ups were a further revelation, since i could not get so close to the frescoes when on the spot. i am grateful to skira for giving me this wonderful bonus. the book has been a continuous presence on the lectern in my living room ever since amazon delivered it a few weeks ago.

You have to be really into Italian art and Early Renaissance to get the feeling of this wonderful book. The way it's lavishly printed makes you happy almost as much as you would see the originals. I would recommend this to an art lovers as a second choice after the site tours.

One of the most talented designers of our times. The book is a good celebration of his work. Must have!

Piero Lissoni could be one of the most prolific, yet understated, designers in Italy - his works abound there, but scarcely receive media attention. Yet his impact on international design is evident everywhere, making PIERO LISSONI an essential acquisition for any library strong in architectural design and modern architecture history - especially European architecture. Lissoni is both a designer and a graphic artist: his title is packed with color photos of the extent of his works, making it a key acquisition for any serious college-level art and architecture collection.

What a fabulous book. The recipes are scumptious, the stories are spell binding, and the artwork is beautiful. The design and layout of the book is nothing short of brilliance. A nice gift as well, so buy a couple of them.

This book has the most charming stories about past and future events surrounding wine country and the people who make it their lives. It is visually stimulating because it is packed with beautiful etchings drawn and printed by the author. And, the recipes are terrific if you like authentic and delicious Italian cooking, as well as other wholesome cuisine. The recipes for sauces, desserts (especially the biscotti) and main courses are wonderful. I am enjoying the idea of creating the full menus included in the book - and cooking with fresh, healthy ingredients. I ordered it direct from the author and bought copies for my friends. Great book to leave in your living room for visitor to see. Enjoy this one - it's not your average cookbook!

Powers of Fate is the love story between Mario and Antonella. But it is so much more than just a love story...it's a slice of history...a story of destiny...two lives from two different worlds, eventually coming together. It provides a personal view of World War II from both a soldier's and a victim's point of view. Powers of Fate is a wonderful story of courage, survival, personal growth and the strong bonds of love and devotion of family. Reading this book is an invitation sit by the fire and look through a close friend's family album or read their diary. It's about the power of love and about all the women who left their homelands, families, and everything their lives were made of, for the sake of it.
Cecilia A. Schneider, Santa Barbara, CA

Powers of Fate is the love story between Mario and Antonella. But it is so much more than just a love story...it's a slice of history...a story of destiny...two lives from two different worlds, eventually coming together. It provides a personal view of World War II from both a soldier's and a victim's point of view. Powers of Fate is a wonderful story of courage, survival, personal growth and the strong bonds of love and devotion of family. Reading this book is an invitation sit by the fire and look through a close friend's family album or read their diary. It's about the power of love and about all the women who left their homelands, families, and everything their lives were made of, for the sake of it.
Cecilia A. Schneider, Santa Barbara, CA

What makes a Saint? How does one become a super-celebrity in the fractured world of Early Modern Italy? How does one bring peace and reconciliation to cities where death is only on casual remark away, as feuding families nurture long-standing grudges? Professor Polecritti's book is a fabulous introduction not only to the fascinating character of St Bernardino, but to the wider social world of Renaissance Italy: the preachers, the feuding nobles, their vanities and their values.What may initially seem a high price is returned tenfold in the value one will derive from this entertaining account, written in Prof Polecritti's extremely accessible prose. For the serious scholar or the beginning student of the Renaissance, Italy, or the history of Catholicism, this book is an extremely worthwhile addition to any casual bookshelf or scholarly library, as the quality of the book itself, with its attractive yet austere cover and high-quality printing, is only exceeded by the quality of the writing and scholarship contained within.

The topic of the book- Bernardino, his personality and peacemakings- is of immense interest by itself. However, what makes this study even more interesting and enjoyable to read is Polecritti's literary style, her talent to use minute details to draw a very colorful, vivid picture of the Renaissance society, the way of life, stories, humor and feelings. Bernardino and the masses are alive in the book, wagging their fingers in annoyance, laughing, jeering, scolding, listening, which makes delightful reading. It is a serious historical study of Bernardino and peacemaking in Italian Renaissance but also a very descriptive reflection of the times. Anyone with a sense of and feeling for history would enjoy reading this book.

I ran across this book in a political science course that I took this year and I have to say that it was a revelation. I had no idea of just how complex a phenomenon was fascism, not to mention of its cultural dimensions. This anthology gives you the full information set and is very elegantly translated, despite the sometimes windy prose of the materials included. I'd recommend it to anyone who really wants to understand the radical right in depth.

Most anthologies on this subject have been made up of a superficial smattering of articles. Here one gets the real thing: a full-scale corpus of writings from fascism's beginnings to its catastrophic end. The translations are excellent, the selection of texts diversified but coherent.

I like Griffin's anthology as well, but this one gives you far greater depth. I doubt anything will ever take its place, at least in English.

A really wonderful biography on a complex man. Kudos to the author. I'm impressed.

A highly enjoyable book. Thomson paints an extremely detailed picture but does not attempt to create a mythic figure out of Levi. He is presented in 3 dimensions with all his strengths and weaknesses. Extremely rich look at the assimilated Jewish community of Turin suddenly being cast as the enemy of the Fascist state. Highly recommended.

A very well written book, introducing its material in an argumentative order. Taken from various regions of the roman world, archeological examples are considered in order to prove -or disprove- theoretical arguments. The arguments themselves are ordered by complexity, making the reading easier.
The point of view is clearly architecural for the analysis, while the material data are checked for archeological or static pertinence.
If the bibliography is wide ranging, it suffers from its division following the chapter order: if it is easy to follow during a first rading, it is more difficult to come back to it after closing the book.
Manar HAMMAD

I had always wondered how the Romans calculated the ratio of width to height when designing their columns. This book treats the matter in detail with excellent diagrams and details far beyond just columns. Mouldings, orders, temples, markers, baths, etc., are all covered lucidly and with enough depth to interest both the architectural professional as well as the dilettant.

Covering vaguely the 1300s-1600s, this exhaustive work concerns itself with how society's public spectacles and ceremonies changed over time and why. I can't say enough about how amazing Trexler's accomplishments are. Though the writing itself scatters occasionally, the information here is invaluable. Religion, sex, and politics were massively intertwined with public display through marriage, childrearing, political meetings and lawmaking, and even in the seemingly innocent displays like snowball fights between noble-born teenagers! Legislation especially touched upon facets of life like what someone could wear and who someone could have sex with. Homosexuality itself is covered in detail--how society's seeming hypocrisy between attitudes and practice can be reconciled. The very spiritual nature of Florentines, both regarding Christian and "magical" behaviors and mindsets. Jousts, church dedications, ambassadorial visits, voting days, saints' feast days, engagements, and more all combined to create a rich, thriving public world for Florentines. To learn more about how Florentines created their public world, get this book. I can't say enough about it.

Chapters cover how Florentines viewed the human body, time and space, and the transitions from one stage of life to another; rituals involving friendship and family members; public displays regarding celebrations; and especially religious and spiritual ceremonies and displays.

One thing which researchers will especially like about this book is its extensive primary source citation. Footnoted and boasting a good bibliography and index, this book will be a valuable part of your research library.

This is an excellent book: thorough in coverage and so well written that one need not be an academic scholar to enjoy and learn from it. Trexler's research labor is not evident in the writing but in the wealth of information that brings this most significant period of time and place to life. It is, moreover, a fine example of new history, meaning of real people going about daily life rather than kings, wars, and social upheavals.