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You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on
bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Cuisines of the Alps
by Kay Shaw Nelson
Subtitled "Recipes, Drinks, and Lore from France, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Italy, Germany, Austria, and Slovenia," this colorful tour of the region's rustic cuisine offers more than 140 recipes, a section on regional wines and historical information.
A Long Finish, An Aurelio Zen Mystery
by Michael Dibdin
Another enjoyable "Aurelio Zen Mystery" from Michael Dibdin, this time private investigator Zen is in Rome and Alba, enjoying wonderful wine and food while uncovering a murderous plot that may jeopardize the Piemontese wine industry.
La Bella Figura, A Field Guide to the Italian Mind
by Beppe Severgnini
Italians themselves love this guide to the Italian character, which addresses their never-ending passion for beauty, disorder and high emotion. Severgnini opens the book with a snapshot of the hubbub at Malpensa Airport, then moves on to Tuscany, Rome, Naples and Sardinia.
A Traveller's History of Italy
by Valerio Lintner
A brief history of Italy through the 1990s - wide-ranging, accessible and necessarily condensed. With a useful chronology and historical gazetteer, this book marches confidently through the centuries.
Iceman: Uncovering the Life and Times of a Prehistoric Man Found in an Alpine Glacier
by Brenda Fowler
The complete story of the discovery of and controversy surrounding the frozen corpse of a prehistoric man found in the Tyrolian Alps.
Why Italians Love to Talk About Food
by Elena Kostioukovitch
This charming, informative journey through Italy's great regional cuisine, from the Alps to Sicily, includes color photos, menus and glossaries. Umberto Eco's Russian translator, Kostioukovitch explores the food of her adopted homeland as a way to understand the different tastes, dialects and attitudes of each region.
Eyewitness Guide Milan and the Lakes
by Eyewitness Guides
A superb guide to Milan and the Italian lakes featuring color photography, dozens of excellent local maps and a region-by-region synopsis of the area's attractions. Handsome, convenient and up-to-date, this is the guide to carry.
Blue Guide Northern Italy, from the Alps to the Adriatic
by Paul Blanchard
This guide by a popular tour leader provides a thorough overview of the history, art and architecture of northern Italy from Trieste across to the Valle d'Aosta, Venice, Verona, Milan, Genoa and Bologna.
Birds of Europe
by Lars Svensson
Featuring 3,500 glorious paintings by Killian Mullarney and Dan Zetterstrom, the second edition of this exquisite guide has been updated with revised text and maps.
The Italian Summer: Golf, Food, and Family at Lake Como
by Roland Merullo
Merullo shares this congenial account of a summer with his family in Italy and Switzerland, offering delicious descriptions of wonderful meals, colorful characters --and rounds of golf at some of the most beautiful courses in Europe. He is a golf fanatic.
The Path To Rome
by Hilaire Belloc
A reprint of the 1902 memoir of Belloc's pilgrimage on foot across the Alps and Apennines in order to "see all Europe which the Christian Faith has saved." With 77 of the author's original line drawings.
The Habsburgs, Embodying Empire
by Andrew Wheatcroft
With skillful scholarship and engaging style, Wheatcroft reveals the history of this family of eccentric monarchs.
The Alps, A Cultural History
by Andrew Beattie
Beattie explores the turbulent past and vibrant present of the Alps, where early pioneers of tourism, mountaineering and scientific research have all left their mark.
A Tramp Abroad
by Mark Twain, David Eggers (Introduction), Kerry Driscoll (Introduction)
Written 11 years after Innocents Abroad, this is Twain's second foray into European travel. Filled with his characteristic wit and humorous observations, it documents his journeys through Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy. Now with an introduction by Dave Eggers.
Northern Italy Map
by Touring Club Italiano
This beautifully shaded road map of Northern Italy (1:400,000) shows the region including Trieste, Venice, Bologna Milan and Turin.
Alps Map
by Freytag & Berndt
This regional map (1:500,000), centered on the Alps, includes portions of Austria, Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and France.
Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere
by Jan Morris
Morris called this her favorite book, a loving celebration of the city and its faded glory. Creased between Slovenia and the sea, the elusive sea port has an enchanting identity that imparts a "sweet melancholy" to her remembrances of past travels.
Killing Dragons, The Conquest of the Alps
by Fergus Fleming
Fleming spins lively tales of man against nature in this entertaining history of the eccentrics, adventurers and publicity-hounds who sought to conquer the Alps, including Whymper and his first ascent of the Matterhorn (where four of the seven-man team perished).