Rick Steves Europe 101 History and Art for the Traveler
This book should exist required reading for all Americans who travel to Europe. (Or for Europeans who are travelling, for that affair). It somehow manages to give you a complete rundown of the history of Western Civilization in a mere 333 pages. Not to mention that it'south a very fun book to read. There's no way that either History or Fine art could be boring, with Rick Steves explaining them to you. He does a good job of somehow summing up 5,000 years of history and manages to be just a bit irreverent throughout. But he also presents all the essential details of history, starting with Ancient Greece and standing through Modernistic History. Even without any European trips planned, this is a dandy armchair volume--for anyone who is interested in learning a bit more about European History or Art. I especially enjoyed the footling 'tangent' in the book of the book entitled "Whose Story Is History". Before ending this tour of Western Civilization, Steves points out that it'due south too possible to see history from the betoken of view of those who are crushed or oppressed by the march of progress.
If you're traveling to Europe and, similar me, were not well schooled in its History and Fine art... ...then this book is but what the doctor (of philosophy) ordered! This is not some stuffy Art History tome. Information technology presents a lite, entertaining, and easily digested helping of background to heighten your European Experience. This was the perfect accompaniment to my get-go backpacking trip to Europe. It helped me appreciate what I was seeing by orders of magnitude. HIGHLY recommended.
This will accept me awhile to plow through, but I really like it. It is worth reading with highlighter in hand. What a keen book roofing art and history from the offset of time until now-- who needs a liberal arts educational activity when you accept this? :) It is not bad to finally read the textbook I wish I had dorsum in high school and college. It will definitely direct my time to come trips to Europe!
Amazing book written intelligently, non only for art lovers, but also for those who love travel for greater understanding of homo history. Equally usual, Rick Steves does an excellent job of smart writing, just written, and too the bespeak with words we tin can easily cover. Nifty way of bringing fine art and history to life. Fifty-fifty though my favorite is art of the 19th century, I particularly enjoyed Chapter 11 on The 20th century. We have traveled throughout Europe on several occasions and my daughter was on site celebrating with the other young people when the Berlin wall came downward. This chapter also helps Americans to sympathize European'due south values better.
great guide to understanding all that great art one happens upon on your visits throughout Europe
Very fun way to learn about European art and European history in general. Bully for anyone about to take a trip to Europe
Getting ready for my first trip to Europe. This was a nifty option for travels to Europe.
Enjoying this quick and informative run through European history and art.
Awesome. I'thou an art history major and this book is a swell smashing refresher, providing context of the works before seeing them.
The correct balance of entertainment, deeper meaning, simplification and silliness for an extensive subject.
I was surprised how skilful this was! For 500 pages and 5k years of history, information technology was so conversational and fun to read. I've loved refreshing my memory of history and art alee of an upcoming trip to Europe. A must read for anyone traveling!
It does what it says on the box - it tells you everything you lot need to know to appreciate Europe's sights, and nothing you don't. Information technology's also a fun, fairly easy, read, with Steve's signature style, just with a much more than complete agreement of art and history than is establish in Steves' guide books.
I really wish I'd read this earlier my first trip to Europe, but I was still able to appreciate it afterward having been to Europe a few times, it deepened my understanding of sights I beloved, and left me with a listing of sights to visit or revisit on future trips.
I read the 1996 edition (which I picked up for next to nothing at a second hand store), the photos in it are extremely poor quality black and white, they're pretty much unusable, and so I constantly had to reach for my phone to find better quality images online - if you hate having to do that, go a later edition
Art is a narrative of history; Rick Steves has championed the narration of history through fine art in this very readable tome. As a not-westerner and not-Christian, I was somewhat familiar with Christian themes and Graeco-Roman figures (both real and mythological) only information technology was all a big jumble; Rick created order within that topsy-turvy chronology. The book is very readable, and makes yous quirk your lips quite a few times. Although read post-travel, (subsequently my travels to Italy, Spain, Turkey and Greece) the accounts were engaging, and they made me relive my memories. The just notable Muslim mention is the Alhambra in Granada, Spain, which is a fourteenth century palace. Given that Spain downplays, and even excises Muslim history from it's official narrative, I suppose Steve'south opinion is understandable. Otherwise the European Dark ages, which he classifies every bit Advertizement 500-thousand, are the glory days of Spain, which brought advanced surgery, advanced astronomy, agricultural revolution, end of serfdom, musical instruments such as the lute, three course meals, modern hospitals, Standard arabic numerals, Algebra, Chemical science, schools, libraries, translations of Aristotle & Co., coffee, town planning and the wonder of wonders, the Arabian Nights to Europe. All this happened from 761-1050 Ad. Overall, this is a five-star book! I vicariously enjoyed Parisian travel through it, and as well relived beautiful memories of Mediterranean Europe through it. Information technology was humbling to think that I had been to such monumental sights.
I've always been a science and math type of girl. I have an interest in art and history, but no patience for them. As such, this volume was perfect for me. It gives a cursory (500 folio) history of Europe and its art from prehistoric times to today with lots of color photos and sidebars. I was very appreciative of the bit at the end which explained Christian themes and symbols and Greek and Roman mythology, which in just a few pages increased my understanding of the vast majority of European fine art. I happened to read this volume while traveling through Europe on a Rick Steves' tour so every day I would run across something and recollect "I just read most that!" or read something and call up, "I but saw that!" which was pretty neat. Unfortunately, I was even so ill of art and history by the fourth dimension I finished reading this. The last affiliate in this book is "Europe Today." Information technology gave an interesting clarification of the Eu, but I was a little annoyed because I felt it got a trivial to soapboxy at times. I enjoyed the way the unabridged book was sprinkled with humor, but sometimes it felt only a picayune chip too irreverent. Overall, I'm very glad I read this.
What a fun style to learn European history! Rick and Gene write fluidly about 3000 years of European history, making this an entertaining read. Druids, medieval knights, renaissance men and scientists cavorting in the Age of Enlightenment come alive in these pages. Art, music and architecture is traced through the eras, giving the states an insight into art evolution, and a framework to appreciate all that Europe offers its gawky travelers. Factually correct and narrated in cursory, history majors might gawk at its summaries (he gives us a fair alert of the brievity at the start), but this is definitely what a layman needs to start on the journey to appreciating European history. So sure I'll return to it!
Europe 101 is a largely informative volume even for the experienced traveler. Organized chronologically and mostly focused on fine art and architecture with an eye towards history, the book does a fairly adept chore of explaining the cultural roots of the continent. Nevertheless, there are a couple of nits that tin exist off-putting. The volume's sense of humor can exist somewhat hard to discern at points from historical fact, and often seems forced in nature. Additionally there'due south a heavy emphasis on the different periods and styles of art, just the summary at the dorsum, which seems to be intended as a quick reference, is largely lacking. (In the interest of full disclosure, at the time of writing this review I'm employed by Rick Steves' Europe)
A great book for those that honey to travel to Europe and the offset things they search out are the art galleries. An enjoyable read, the volume starts with prehistoric Europe (40,000 - 8000BC) to the present. Each chapter discusses a new historical period. What happened, why information technology happened and the fine art information technology produced. This is not a long book. Each era is just skimmed and then y'all don't feel overwhelmed but you do come up away with a niggling more than knowledge about Europe and a better understanding of the fine art and compages you will see there . The authors go along things light and fun. Definitely a must read if you are planning a trip, and if non, and then merely read it for fun.
This was a quick read and an piece of cake overview of European history. The authors connect developments in art to events and people in politics and religion, which is helpful. I need to take a trip, and I thought this might help me decide on a destination. I'm nevertheless undecided. Rick Steves is a reliable source for information, but sometimes his mental attitude gets on my fretfulness. He will ofttimes avoid the obvious and easy fashion just because there is a difficult and complicated style, with the only do good being that information technology is difficult and complicated. Possibly that makes ameliorate stories to tell people afterward?
A (very) concise, breezy history of Europe, designed to familiarize the European traveler with the background of what they'll be seeing. Or to assistance someone thinking virtually a European trip determine what to focus on, or avoid missing. As long as you lot go along in heed that this is intended as the broadest of overviews, and that other more detailed works should be used to fill in gaps and provide more depth, you'll find this to be a very useful book. Personally, this book suggested at least 4-5 trips, each of which I'd like to be my side by side trip.
If you are looking for a concise yet informative give-and-take of European history and art, this is the volume. Trust Rick Steves to be able to produce a quick read that does a fairly good job of providing a broad overview and some details, laced with Rick's characteristic humor. Good for use prior to taking a trip to Europe, as information technology was intended. Better coverage of the continent than of outlying areas such equally Ireland, which brand sense, as the primary action was happening on the continent for much of history.
This is a great book, a swell resource on European art and history. Rick Steves has done a bully job keeping information technology interesting and funny all along. To those who find reading history boring, this book will certainly exist a nice surprise for you. Though it is advised to finish the book cover to cover before starting on your trip through museums and historic ruins & castles of Europe, if forced to do otherwise please brand sure yous read at least last 3 chapters Art Appreciation, Music Appreciation & 30-2 Millennia in Six Pages (total 40 pages) at least.
I simply wish I was planning a European vacation. This was a gift from my female parent-in-law after her return from teaching in London, and I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to both brush up on my Western Civ (it has been a lot of years since college), and retrieve places I had visited in the past. Steves & Openshaw do exactly what they fix out to do - this history of Europe was highly readable, and its scope was perfect for what yous'd want to know before travelling to empathize what you're seeing. I'd definitely recommend this to people that are planning a trip to Europe.
Not a guide book just cheat notes to european histroy/ art/ civilization. Later on one reading y'all tin can babble on near compages and fine art movements like a skivvy wearing art pupil as you lot wander yet another town looking for a decent java because Starbucks is merde. It certainly provides some groundwork on the guidebooks/ tourists offices' reccomendations and enhances the experience of another gallery that you lot "must" look at earlier getting back on the turps.
Read
Edited January fifteen, 2013A practiced introduction to the history and the great art one sees in Europe. I feel specially blest to have already seen a lot of what is referenced in this book and look forward to seeing more great fine art in Italia this Spring. At times the descriptions are quite humorous (regarding Pisa - "...is information technology merely me, or does that look kleptomaniacal?" The photos are actually cute, and every bit I closed the volume I felt I had learned a lot.
I tin't terminate this. If you know anything about European history, information technology volition be besides bones. I capeesh Rick Steve's conversational style on his television receiver bear witness, but al the lilliputian puns and jokes really make it the fashion in the book. I did finally learn the difference between doric, ionic, and Corinthians columns thigh, which was good. I ended up feeling like I was in a remedial history class without the fine art role.
I only regret non finishing this book earlier my recent 3-week trip to Europe. I had gotten through about a one-half, upwardly to the Middle Ages, and the superb commentary really elevated my European travel experience. I was able to put famous buildings and places in terms of their historical and cultural significance instead of only snapping photos everywhere. A fantastic travel companion and primer to European history!
Fun and interesting read, with pretty pictures. I doubtable the side by side edition volition require an update on the "Europe now" chapter, nevertheless, afterward Brexit and the uncertain future of the EU. Besides, there's a few random strange phrases scattered throughout the book which but brand you scratch your head. No, it's not that I didn't get the jokes. I think the editor must have taken a break hither and in that location. Otherwise, a punchy and lively accept on European history and art for the traveler.
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Source: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/693801
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