This is Venice

This is...

by Miroslav Sasek

On the heels of the runaway bestsellers This is New York and This is Paris, Universe is pleased to reissue another title from M. Sasek's beloved and nostalgic children's travel series.

Like the other Sasek classics, This is Venice is a facsimile edition of his original book from the 1960s and is still timely and current in every way. The brilliant, vibrant illustrations have been meticulously preserved, remaining true to his vision more than 40 years later and, where applicable, facts have been updated for the twenty-first century, appearing on a "This is...Today" page at the back of the book. The stylish, charming illustrations, coupled with Sasek's witty, playful narrative, makes for a perfect souvenir that will delight both children and their parents, many of whom will remember this book from their childhood.

This is Venice, first published in 1961, presents indelible impressions of romantic, watery Venice, where under a brilliant blue sky Sasek the gondolier navigates the winding canals to visit such famous and glorious landmarks as the Palazzo Grassi, Piazza San Marco, Doges Palace, and the Accademia di Belle Arti.

Genres: Picture Books, Travel, Childrens, Nonfiction, Italy, History, Geography

64 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1961

About the author

Miroslav Sasek (born Miroslav Šašek) (1916-1980) was an author and illustrator from the Czech Republic. He is best known for a series of books for children titled This Is...

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series - the art is so retro - like commercial animation from the 50's! Venice is one of those places that I wish I could get to one day; I think it would be wonderful just to stay there for a week or two and just wander around. I guess there is still a very slim chance I will get there one day - if not this book will have to do.

[Sarah (Presto agitato) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book for my children (along with This is Rome) before a trip to Italy. I thought it would be fun to get them excited, and maybe to bring along for the plane ride. Well, when the book arrived I realized it was way too large to take on the trip, but otherwise it was a success.

Venice has a particular appeal to children. It does seem rather unlikely that people would decide to build a city like this, a sort of fantastic water park (“The hotel has a water door?” “The bus is a boat?”)

This book captures that fun and whimsy in a charming way, while imparting some useful information and history.

My five-year old found this admonition particularly compelling, often looking up from licking a gelato or chasing the pigeons to give us an ominous reminder, “Sometimes. . . the sea gets out of hand.”



They also loved the Venetian compulsion with giving anything remotely like a door a street number (this tendency is less charming when you’re the parents trying to find an address).



The text and illustrations are a little dated at times (there are no more horses in sun hats, for example), but it holds up pretty well. After all, there is a lot about Venice that hasn’t changed much in a few hundred years.

[Skip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another wonderful travel book by M Sasek, with his usual mix of history, practical information, sights, and whimsy. Canals, no cars allowed, flooding, pigeons, glass blowing -- it's all here for kids. Originally published in 1961, and updated in 2005.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

just read this with a person I tutor (who is learning to read)

actually really interesting stuff about Venice that I hadn't known. Now I want to learn more.

[Anurak Chanposri · Rating 5 out of 5]

ภาพแนวเก่าๆ(ซึ่งก็เก่าจริง) มีเสน่ห์มากกกกกก รักเมื่อแรกพบเลยทีเดียว ตามเก็บให้ครบอยู่ ดูภาพเพลินจนลืมเนื้อหาของมันไปเลย

[Leslie Zampetti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sasek's travel books for children are captivating. I'd love to own the whole series.

[Omega Howell · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations are gorgeous and Thai manages to impart quite a bit of information while still being an easy read for kids.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always wondered if Venice is all canals, and water erodes things, how come the foundations of all the buildings on the canals a) don't have flooding problems b)aren't eroding. It sort of eludes to it in this book that foundations of buildings have to be fortified every once in a while. I have been Florence and very briefly Rome, but never really had a desire to go to Venice...but maybe...someday!! I love all that I learn from this book and this series!!!

[DeNae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Consider my almost 5 year old son's mind blown by the idea of boats for cars and water for roads. What a great introduction to the uniqueness and splendor of Venice, with just enough history to introduce dates and names, but not so much to make it too heavy for a young child. We look forward to reading more in this series.

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful.

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is all about Venice.

[Mehsi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Venetië, ah zo'n prachtige stad! Ik ben nog steeds helemaal blij dat ik de kans had hem te bezoeken vorig jaar voor mijn huwelijksreis. Ik wilde dus wel eens weten hoe Venetië was in 1960-ish en of er dingen zijn veranderd. Nou, veel was hetzelfde en ik genoot om weer naar Venetië te gaan en al die mooie gebouwen te zien! Zo prachtig. En Miroslav Sasek heeft de stad echt mooi neergetekend. Ik vind het wel mooi om te lezen dat vroeger de duiven speciaal werden gevoerd en dat er zelfs foto's werden verkocht van de duifjes. Dat mag nu echt helemaal niet meer (al doen toeristen het nog steeds want lezen is blijkbaar moeilijk). Ik heb dus genoten van mijn reis.
De vertaling.. tja, weer niet helemaal de beste en ik vond het wel vreemd dat er soms wel dingen werden vertaald naar Nederlands en soms weer niet. Ik heb niet echt zin om er verder over te praten, ik denk dat iedereen wel weet hoe ik over de vertaling van de serie denk.
Ik heb nu nog Parijs over, en daarna kan ik ze niet meer vinden in de bibliotheek. Jammer.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrations are some of Sasek's best that I've seen after now reading eight books in the series. They are highly detailed but still carry his distinct blocky style. If these were modern books I would say they looked like vector art.

http://pussreboots.com/blog/2021/comm...

[Hana Kijonka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Na 1. září v Benátkách. Šašek poradil, co nevynechat a čeho si všimnout. I dospělačce. Ale stokrát se ztratit a najít, je v tomhle městě stejně nějlepší, co můžete udělat. A taky se nezapomenout vyfotit do rodinného alba.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this children book to give me some idea and insight about Venice, because I have to pitch a creative proposal on this endangered city. Surely a fun book to read, tho'!

[Kinga (oazaksiazek) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Książki z tej serii to złoto! Miroslav Sasek ma tak interesujący styl i kreskę, że mnie jako dorosłego czytelnika te pozycje wręcz wciągają między kartki a co dopiero młodszego odbiorcę.

"Oto jest Wenecja" zabiera nas w podróż po kanałach, mostach i znanych miejscach w tym włoskim mieście. Wraz z Włochami przemierzamy kręte uliczki, pływamy gondolą, zaglądamy na targ czy główny plac miasta. Miło ponownie znaleźć się w Wenecji, choćby za sprawą tych kilkudziesięciu zdań zawartych w tej pozycji. Ilustracje są tak piękne i tak idealnie oddają klimat tego miejsca, że aż dech mi zapiera za każdym razem, gdy przeglądam to wydanie.

Cóż ja zrobię, że mam słabość do tego typu wydań podróżniczych dla najmłodszych i sama czerpię z nich ogromną radość? Nic nie zrobię! Mogę jedynie polecić, jeśli macie w swoim otoczeniu kogoś, kto lubi podróże, miasta, geografię lub historię.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kresbami a "příběhem" asi má nejoblíbenější ze Šaškovy série. Akorát jak u jiných těchto knih miluju hvězdičky v původním textu a vysvětlivky na poslední straně, které vás informují o aktuální situaci v daném městě oproti původnímu textu z 60. let... tak v dotisku Benátek z roku 2015 na straně 38 je hvězdička, ale vysvětlivka vzadu chybí. Asi editorská chybka, ale stejně mě to trošku trýzní. :D

[Ammie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having been to Venice twice, this book flowed better than others, because I knew what everything was. Others in the series can leave me a little lost or not quite able to visualize what Sasek is describing.

[Abby Peskin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great, simple description of how the city of Venice was made. A very accessible book to read to kids about a city in the world they may not know about.