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Venice
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
14 posts | 5 read | 7 to read
An extraordinary chronicle of Venice, its people, and its grandeur Thomas Maddens 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 citys 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 Venices 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 Shakespeares 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.
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Texreader
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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#wondrouswednesday

1) tagged
2) a deeply researched history to turn long-held beliefs on their head and learning about Venice‘s 1000-year republic
3) places I‘ve been and loved, or places I plan to visit (which was the case with this book)

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Texreader
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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May was an excellent reading month, making it somewhat difficult to choose a favorite book for May. But in the end, this professor, the author of the tagged book, did an amazing job of making me fall in love with Venetians, about whom I knew nothing. #readingbracket2023

Crazeedi Sounds like an interesting book! I love everything Italian 1y
Texreader @Crazeedi It gets bogged down in a few battles but for the most part it was fascinating!! 1y
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Texreader
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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Pickpick

I have fallen in love with ancient Venice thanks to this book. It was the oldest republic in the world, for 1300 years its people opposed a strong central government. The author destroys old myths about its “all-powerful” doges who were nothing of the sort. Doges were chosen by a process so complex no one of power could possibly influence it “other than God,” and were replaced easily. Not until Napoleon—who “forced” liberty on it (another myth ⬇️

Texreader because according to the author they were the most free people through antiquity)—did one man force the Venetians to erect a statue to one man in St Mark‘s Square. Napoleon. It didn‘t last long. Venice was formed when Romans escaped to its islands fleeing Attila the Hun. Because land was scarce, there was no landed gentry, and thus no nobility, unlike everywhere else in the ancient world. And yet the people were and are noble. An excellent book!! 1y
Texreader By the way, the narrator was fantastic as well. I just don‘t have enough praise for this book. While I‘m not as enamored with Venice‘s modern history (no fault of the author‘s of course), I now cannot wait to see it in a few weeks!! 1y
currentlyreadinginCO Interesting review! We probably have a lot of similar interests based on your enthusiasm for setting the record straight regarding Venetian doges lol 1y
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Texreader @thereadingreference You have me very intrigued! Do you like nonfiction history or Venice or both? Very very cool!! 1y
currentlyreadinginCO I love nonfiction! I really enjoy reading about different places. I studied art history in undergrad and I'm just such a nerd for buildings, cities, cultures. I also went to Venice alone once and spent a couple of days just ghosting through the museums and buildings, trying to conceptualize the history. I loved it. Obviously I'm obsessed with Rome as well ... you got me dreaming of Italy! 1y
currentlyreadinginCO I am also a very boring attorney 😂, perhaps a capacity for tedium is my gift 1y
Texreader @thereadingreference Yes we do indeed have a LOT in common! Except my practice is far from boring. I‘m an employment law attorney representing employers. And they keep me hopping all…the…time!! Be sure to watch for my posts when I get to Italy. I usually bore littens to tears with my trip photos but I can‘t help myself. I have countless museums planned. 1y
currentlyreadinginCO So fun!! I work in the admin law world 😂. Have a wonderful time 💕. 1y
Texreader @thereadingreference Yikes! I took that class in law school and decided admin law was for the smart ones. 😂 I clerked for an appellate court in Austin where all the admin cases in the state are appealed. So I “dabbled” in it for the year I clerked. 20+ years later, I‘ve got the basics down but that‘s about it. But no offense, while very intellectually challenging, I do think it might be on the boring side of the law. 😂 1y
currentlyreadinginCO The fantasy lit helps with that 😂😂 1y
56 likes11 comments
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Texreader
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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Trying to get in shape before my vacation so I‘m walking the neighborhood every day (weather permitting) and listening to this awesome history of Venice.

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Texreader
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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My next audiobook!

AlaMich I listened to Edoardo Ballerini narrate Beautiful Ruins and he was delightful! 2y
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Becker
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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Pickpick

A very detailed history of Venice. Interesting despite the text book style delivery. ⚓️

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Samplergal
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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I just finished this article and I‘m so depressed. So many people don‘t believe climate change and here we are. I know it‘s not a book but important. #nfNovember

nelehelen SO important 5y
Palimpsest 😢 5y
BarbaraBB I can‘t believe many people DON‘T believe it. That seems so naive. 5y
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Megabooks @BarbaraBB exactly 😫 5y
Scochrane26 I get very frustrated & depressed, too. Especially when I read books or essays from 20-40 years ago that say the same thing as writers today. 5y
Clwojick 6 pt. 5y
70 likes6 comments
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TheLibrarian
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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So many books! 😍

Seriously, if you ever go to Venice check this place out - Libreria Acqua Alta. They also have a staircase outside made of books!! And they have cats.

Amabear This is SO on my bucket list 6y
Reviewsbylola Wowwwww! 😍😍 6y
rachelsbrittain This looks like heaven 😍 6y
94 likes5 comments
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Krysta
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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Liberia Acqua Alta in Venice.

This is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. I was in awe and so happy.

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TheLudicReader
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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Come on. You can't visit Venice without visiting Libreria Aqua Alta.

TrishB Great pic 👍🏻 6y
LeahBergen Love it! 👏🏻👏🏻 6y
22 likes2 comments
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Turtle_Taco
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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A Safe Haven of such Beauty 😻🖤❤️🖤

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Bookworm-Bobbie
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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Found a library in Venice 😆🙌. The room houses books and scripts from 1600's, mostly religious texts, laws and by-laws and written in Latin and Italian. But a book is a book 😁❤️

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BookMusings
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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Coolest staircase ever!

Behind Venice Bookshop Acqua Alta.

LeahBergen 💗 8y
TheLondonBookworm I loved that shop! 8y
61 likes2 comments
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krpotts
Venice: A New History | Thomas F. Madden
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Starting a rare dive into non-fiction for my upcoming trip to the Floating City. Let's hope these 400+ pages of history capture what I'm expecting to be a wonderful city 🇮🇹
I also want to read something fictional set in Venice, if anyone has any suggestions!!

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