Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4524 in Books
• Published on: 2006-06-08
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 216 pages

Synopsis
This book presents a journey through Italian culture, past and present. Following his enormously successful TV series and book, "Venice", Francesco da Mosto extends his exploration, this time taking in the whole country. He celebrates the art and beauty of Italy - its cathedrals, churches, palaces, opera houses, paintings, sculpture and music. It is a story of the Italy we all know and love, enhanced by the secret side of the country that only an insider can tell us. Francesco reveals the full glories of Renaissance Italy and the country's astonishing cultural diversity, which was only recently unified under one flag. The accompanying book, following the same format and style of its predecessor, and illustrated with John Parker's stunning photographs, provides a detailed description of Francesco's cultural and artistic journey through Italy. Born into an old and distinguished family, with a Venetian father and a Sicilian mother, what better guide could there be than one who knows and loves this magnificent country?

Customer Reviews

a thoroughly enjoyable addition to travel books
Being a tour escort, I am always looking for travel books with a difference. This book by Da Mosto has proved excellent : it may not be very detailed in the description of places but it provides the reader with a lot of useful information from an insider - and what an insider! I only found a little wordy and too personal the sections dedicated to his childhood, but as to the rest, it is beautifully written, with details on unusual facts which you will not find elsewhere and stunning pictures. I loved it.

Cooffee table stunner
Thankfully i managed to record all four episodes of Francescos very entertaining Top to Toe series on Italy onto disc.

His ladish exploits in that gorgeous Alfa Spider made the series a more lite hearted affair to his magnificent Venice,and his influnce in being one of the oldest Venitian families opened doors into fabulous palaces and villas that are barred to all members of the public.
Naturally he could not spend too long in the north of the country but witnessing Lucca, Puccinis birthplace and Bolognia the oldest university in the world made what he did choose trully excelleny.Veronia was where Shakespeare based Romeo and Juiliet but Shakey never visited the place.

The highlite of the series for me was when he travelled further south to the deeply religious areas where devotion was taken to extreams.

The poverty of Naples and his mothers birthplace Palermo in Sicilli was a real journey into the real Italy that few tourists get to see.
This book brings all that and more into a highly illustrated story of Italy at its very best.
His Top to Toe series is too young to have been released onto dvd but this book is a taster of the treat yet to come.

Charmed by the Silver Fox
Francesco da Mosto, an engaging Venetian aristocrat, expands on his earlier fond tribute to his home city, to create a even fonder tribute to his home country. He is a great guide to the cultural pleasures and history of Italy, and his enthusiasm is infectious; the photos in the book are wonderful, too, and all in all, this would make a great gift for anyone who has ever been transported by (or to) Italy.