Venice

A New History

By: Professor Thomas F. Madden

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini

An extraordinary chronicle of Venice, its people, and its grandeur Thomas Madden’s majestic, sprawling history of Venice is the first full portrait of the city in English in almost thirty years. Using long-buried archival material and a wealth of newly translated documents, Madden weaves a spellbinding story of a place and its people, tracing an arc from the city’s humble origins as a lagoon refuge to its apex as a vast maritime empire and Renaissance epicenter to its rebirth as a modern tourist hub. Madden explores all aspects of Venice’s breathtaking achievements: the construction of its unparalleled navy, its role as an economic powerhouse and birthplace of capitalism, its popularization of opera, the stunning architecture of its watery environs, and more. He sets these in the context of the rise and fall of the Byzantine Empire, the endless waves of Crusades to the Holy Land, and the awesome power of Turkish sultans. And perhaps most critically, Madden corrects the stereotype of Shakespeare’s money-lending Shylock that has distorted the Venetian character, uncovering instead a much more complex and fascinating story, peopled by men and women whose ingenuity and deep faith profoundly altered the course of civilization.

©2012 Thomas F. Madden (P)2012 Recorded Books

Terrific read

Riveting history. Very easy to absorb and great pace of narrative. Just enough detail to provide insight without overwhelming the listener. A great achievement to cover everything from the founding of the city to the great flood of 1966. I knew little of the events leading up to the end of the republic and the eventual incorporation into Italy in the 1860s. But the tales of naval battles, Byzantine intrigue and the pilfering of St Mark’s remains are spellbindingly well told. It touches on art, architecture and music, as well as crusades and commerce. All in all, excellent.

The Doge is dead, Long Live Venice

Wow, 17 hours and I could not stop listening! Edoardo's narration is one of the best audible adaptations ever. Professor Madden's approach to this history; equal parts education and entertainment is truly enlightening. He brings these 1000 year old characters and their motivations to life. People who love history will love this excellent read.

Excellent history book. Excellent audible narration

I really loved this book. Total immersion in Venetian history over the past week or so while “ reading” it has deepened my long felt love of the values and example and experience of the Venetian republican city state and empire immensely. Those who know me well know that I don’t like “nation states” much at all and prefer city states and regions. In my humble opinion, the city state of Venice at its height was one of the best examples of responsible, successful Western style republican governance in modern times and has much to teach the broken, deeply flawed popular Western republican democracies of today especially in the USA and Italy, as well as the constitutional monarchies of Spain and the United Kingdom. Highly recommended reading.

Great history - very interesting

After listening to many of these audible books, this is one of the very best: well researched, entertaining, fascinating, and superbly written. Bravo.

Excellent history, well narrated

I learned so much from this history of Venice. I couldn't put it down. It covers the subject with breadth and clarity, and makes one want to visit this city with such an important past.

the narrator was great

The narrator was great, perfect for this epic story. His Italian added immensely to the impact.

A great story of the history of Venice

I really enjoyed the "story" that this book tells. It's most definately a history, but the way it meanders from event to event, you have this arc of this underdog super power, rising out of the swamp where Italy meets the Adriatic as the Roman Empire around it collapses, carving out a niche trading between East and West, the strength of it's republic heralding it through various challenges, inventing modern banking, being part of the bulwark holding off various eastern empires, and then slowly and sadly dwindling away to the Disneyland that it has become. The story goes out of its way to dispel some of the myths and stereotypes associated with Venice, and does it fairly, and reminds you just how far ahead of its time Venice was.

Finally, the narrator is fabulous, listening to him adds to the overall experience. I can't say enough about the narration. And his pronunciation of the Italian words is sweet music to your ears!!

A great history and a perfect supplement before or after your visit

I visited Venice on a two-week tour of Europe. I wish that I had read this before my visit because it is a magnificent and well told story. However, my visit allowed me to picture the city as it was explained -- basically taking me back again and allowing me to appreciate Venice even more. This is my second reading of this history and it was even more enjoyable than the first time. I highly recommend this for anyone interested in learning more about what was our most favorite stop on our tour. Thank you for the great effort by everyone involved.

A MUST FOR HISTORY LOVERS

If you love history and/or are planning a trip to Venice this is a must read.
Professor Madden covers: the birth of Venice, commerce, wars, arts, music and thru it all always surviving by adapting to changing circumstances. Here is a lesson to be learned.
The narrator mr. Edoardo Ballerini,as always, is a pleasure to listen to, especially narrating this book.
My thanks to all, JK

Fabulous Book

The history told in an enjoyable way. I read his other books and they are wonderful!