Venice A New History [Paperback]

A spellbinding new portrait of one of the world’s most beloved cities, from the author ofIstanbul

La Serenissima. Its breathtaking architecture, art, and opera ensure that Venice remains a perennially popular destination for tourists and armchair travelers alike. Yet most of the available books about this magical city are either facile travel guides or fusty academic tomes. InVenice, renowned historian Thomas F. Madden draws on new research to explore the city’s many astonishing achievements and to set 1,500 years of Venetian history and the endless Venetian-led Crusades in the context of the ever-shifting Eurasian world. Filled with compelling insights and famous figures,Veniceis a monumental work of popular history that’s as opulent and entertaining as the great city itself. Breezy, cheerful, evenhanded, Madden debunks myths about Venetian decadence, and brushes aside ugly whispers about greedy, unscrupulous merchants.  When a colorful character pops up (Marco Polo, Casanova), he makes the most of it in his brisk, no-nonsense prose. —New York Times

“Madden paints a vivid portrait of “a city without land, an empire without borders.” His engaging work enters a sparse historiography that includes Roger Crowley’sCity of Fortune(2012) and John Julius Norwich’s enduringA History of Venice(1982) and separates itself by offering a readable overview backed by solid research.  Readers will come away from Madden’sVenicewith newfound respect for one of the great jewels of Western civilization.”—Booklist (starred review)

“A lively and lucid survey of Venice's colorful history.”—The Seattle Times

“A savory, tantalizing, but not-so-serene history ofLa Serenessima.”—Publishers Weekly

“Madden proves the perfectlƒ)