As a follow-up to my recent trip report (which I think I posted only to the Italy forum), I wanted to recommend two books that I enjoyed before our trip. <BR> <BR>The first is called _City Secrets_, edited by Robert Kahn. It's not a traditional guidebook, in that it doesn't have opening hours or ticket prices, so you would want to use it in conjunction with another guide. But it does have great suggestions and commentary on major and minor museums, churches, etc. - with suggestions from members of the American Academy in Rome. I found it very fun reading, and loved all the restaurants we tried from there. <BR> <BR>Also, Eleanor Clark's classic _Rome and a Villa_ makes for great reading on the plane. I read it once on the way there and once on the way back and it seemed quite different after having seen the same spots myself!

ttt

Why are these out of date threads being sent to the top? Just curious.

pique and abhorrence of being patronised

sheila--if you have some sort of personality disorder, please don't take it out on the rest of us by screwing up the forum. Get professional help.

Oh, I have many personality disorders, but that wasn't evidence of one.

There was as request, which you will find about number 30 for help on choosing guidebooks for Italy from soneone with a difficulty in making the search function work.

I tried to help. And I apologised to those not interested in the subject at the foot of that thread. And i used a smiley at the end of my last answer here.

Now, WHICH of us is the one who is out of order?

Rufus, you must be irritated because neither of the above-mentioned books is about Venice!

My parents just came back from three months in Italy and the first book my mother recommended was the book City Secrets. With all the travelers on this forum heading to Rome, this suggestion can hardly be called out of date, or irrelevant.

Now, restaurants recommendations from 2000, on the other hand...