Frances Mayes, whose enchanting #1 New York Times bestseller Under the Tuscan Sun made the world fall in love with Tuscany, invites us back for a delightful new season of friendship, festivity, and food, there and throughout Italy.

This newly designed collection of adventures in Italy takes the reader to a land of magical extremes - of ancient verities and modern vitality. Sculptors, olive harvesters, art historians, and cooks people these tales, and their stories are as evocative as opera. The book simmers with romance, culture - and the best food on earth. Authors include Tim Parks, Patricia Hampl, Mary Taylor Simeti, Luigi Barzini, Gary Paul Nabhan, and many others. "Travel writing at its glorious best." - Chicago Tribune

Leonardo Sciascia was an outstanding and controversial presence in twentieth-century Italian literary and intellectual life. Writing about his native Sicily and its culture of secrecy and suspicion, Sciascia matched sympathy with skepticism, unflinching intelligence with a streetfighter''s intransigent poise. Sciascia was particularly admired for his short stories, and The Wine-Dark Sea offers what he considered his best work in the genre: thirteen spare and trenchant miniatures that range in subject from village idiots to mafia dons, marital spats to American dreams. Here, in unforgettable form, Sciascia examines the contradictions-sometimes comic, sometimes deadly, and sometimes both-of Sicily''s turbulent history and day-to-day life.

Imagine that you are standing on a vantage point at the edge of a Tuscan hill village: you are gazing over one of the richest and most varied landscapes in Europe. Here are vineyards producing some of the world''s finest wines, and a panorama of wild mountain grandeur. Your view will almost certainly take in other villages clustering around the upper reaches of some hill, or the russet roofs of a fortified town deep in a valley. These elegant yet intimate places are captured in Hugh Palmer''s stunning photographs, making this a calendar for more than just the present.

All the vividness of this ever-popular and entrancing part of Italy is here, from the north, around Florence and Lucca, to the villages of the south. Ancient churches, themselves art treasure-houses, contrast with mighty castles, monuments to the pomp and pageantry of times gone by. Then there are the streets of picturesque and elegant houses, punctuated with tiny squares, perhaps the scene of a bustling market or the site of a fine Renaissance fountain.

Already acknowledged as some of the finest photography of this enchanted region, the new selection of illustrations in this calendar will provide month-by month inspiration for the appreciation of the fine things in life.

In this brief, intense, gem-like book, equal parts extended autobiographical essay and prose poem, Brodsky turns his eye to the seductive and enigmatic city of Venice. A mosaic of 48 short chapters--each recalling a specific episode from one of his many visits there (Brodsky spent his winters in Venice for nearly 20 years)--"Watermark" associatively and brilliantly evokes one city''s architectural and atmospheric character. In doing so, the book also reveals a subject--and an author--readers have never before seen.

Second in the highly-acclaimed City Secrets series, City Secrets Florence, Venice, and the Towns of Italy is a unique and sophisticated guidebook that compiles the recommendations of some of the world''s most eminent authors, artists, architects, and others.

Whether writing about a painting, a restaurant, or a village''s hidden byways, these experts'' observations, taken together, amount to an exhilarating insider''s look at both the well-known and the overlooked. The impassioned descriptions and informed perspectives in the pages of City Secrets Florence, Venice, and the Towns of Italy form an inspired tour of this most inspiring of countries.

Tuscany's great quartet of cities, among the most beautiful and fascinating in all Europe, are explored in 13 well-thought-out walks. This fully updated edition has in-depth sections on history, and art -- from the influence of Savonarola to why Pisa's tower leans, to tranquil Lucca's brave past. There's practical information every step of the way.

Venice is magical. Located in northeastern Italy, the ancient port instantly conjures images of some of the greatest western art ever produced as well as of a breathtaking city of canals. The region officially became home to the first Venetians when the Roman Emperor Augustus declared it "Venetia" in recognition of its unique culture. The fragile, graceful port has inspired many artists & has been home to generations who effortlessly live & breathe its cultural splendor. Float along the canals of this timeless place & glimpse what life is like in Venice.

Resident artists, journalists, and musicians share their indispensable insights into Italy's most famous region in this brand-new guide filled with the best music, films, and festivals in Florence. Offering complete coverage of the beautiful towns, villages, museums, and churches throughout the area, this guide supplies readers with up-to-the-minute information about the region's cultural activities and specialist activities, ranging from wine-tasting to hiking to hang gliding.

Italy is a land famous for its architecture, beautiful cathedrals and unforgettable museums. Whether you want to take in these sights or are more interested in the food and wine of the area, Rome will get you to your destination. As part of the American Map/Hammond International Maps Series, Rome covers major buildings, parks, public transportation facilities and major tourist attractions and offers a useful index. This map is perfect for anyone who is navigating the city on foot or by car.