Venice

by Anka Muhlstein, Louis Begley

Every year for the thirty they have been married, Louis Begley and Anka Muhlstein have escaped to Venice to write. In Venice for Lovers, Begley and Muhlstein fashion their own personal homages to Venice, one with a novella, the other with a personal essay. In her contribution to the book, Muhlstein charmingly describes how she and her husband dine at the same restaurant every night for years on end, and how becoming friends with restaurateurs has been an unsurpassed means of getting to know the city and its inhabitants, far from the tourists in San Marco Square. They meet Venetians like Ernesto, who tells them of the great flood that nearly destroyed the beautiful city; and Nerone, an authoritarian chef who serves the freshest seafood and throws yesterday’s catch to the cats. And they spend blissful hours at Da Fiore, named by the International Herald Tribune as one of the ten best restaurants in the world but which, unfazed, retains its rustic simplicity. In his short novella, Begley writes a story of falling in love with—and in—Venice. His twenty-year-old protagonist, enamored with an older, far worldlier woman, is lured by her to the City of Water, only to be unceremoniously dumped after a brief rendezvous. But he discovers a lasting love for Venice itself—not an uncommon romance, as Begley’s brilliant essay on the city’s place within world literature demonstrates. By turns humorous, nostalgic, and spellbinding, Venice for Lovers is a memorable collaboration by two fine stylists—a very private view of a place that will forever inspire dreams of love and passion.

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel, Italy

216 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Anka Muhlstein was born in Paris in 1935. She has published biographies of Queen Victoria, James de Rothschild, Cavelier de La Salle, and Astolphe de Custine, a study on Catherine de Médicis, Marie de Médicis, and Anne of Austria, and a double biography, Elizabeth I and Mary Stuart. She is currently writing a volume on Proust as a reader. She has won two prizes from the Académie Française, and the Goncourt Prize for Biography. She and her husband, Louis Begley, have written a book on Venice, Venice for Lovers. They live in New York.

Reviews

[Leona · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are three sections in this short book. The first section was more about restaurants and the owners the authors met while in Venice.
Second section was about his sex life in college which I did not finish. Very tacky.
I skimmed the last section.
This could have been and interesting book. It was not an novel.

[Carolyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a collaboration between a husband and wife, both authors, who have been visiting Venice for decades and love it. So far so good.

They split it up and gave us three sections: memoirs of Venetian restaurateurs they befriended; an erotic fictional short story; and an essay exploring how three major authors used Venice as a meaningful setting and how he, the author, also uses Venice in his novel. Okay.

The first one, the restaurants in Venice, was fine.

The erotic fiction was terrible.

And from his description of Henry James, Proust, and Thomas Mann’s stories, they sound terrible too: all of them very much sad people having affairs. My inner literature major is pretty sure there must be some redeeming quality, seeing as they’re major authors and all, but that didn’t really shine through. I’m going back to my YA fiction full of clever and brave heroines saving the world, thanks.

This book did not make we want to visit Venice, which is about the worst crime travel writing can commit.

[Patty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Earlier this year, when reviewing Anything That Moves, I mentioned that I had been reading a lot of books about food this year. Well, thank goodness that one of these essays was about food because otherwise this audiobook would have been a complete waste.

I have had this on my "to-listen" list for years and I can't imagine what I thought I was going to get. However, I am mostly disappointed.

The first essay was on eating in Venice. I would have left today, if I could be guaranteed to eat as Anka Muhlstein eats when she is visiting that wonderful city. Muhlstein's essay was well written and interesting.

The other two pieces were by Louis Begley. I have not read any of his novels, and this did not move him up my TBR pile. The second piece on this audiobook was a novella that made me uncomfortable because I find sex hard to hear than to read. The last part was about how novelists have used Venice as a character in their books. Once again, my lack of interest is probably my fault. I had not read the books Begley was talking about.

[Ron · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the back cover: "Every year for all thirty they have been married, Louis Begley and Anka Muhlstein have escaped to Venice to write." This collabration by the lawyer/novelist Begley and his wife, a noted historian, combines a novella by him and a personal narrative by her. An absolutely wonderful read, whether you have been to Venice or only dreamed about it!

[Elaine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the first part of the book which tells of the couple's experiences in Venice (especially with food). I like food, so I found that interesting. The second part was just weird and inappropriately sexual but not romantic in any way. The third part about Thomas Mann and Henry James and their books was just boring. I read it all but would not read it again.

[Becca · Rating 2 out of 5]

I only picked up this book because I'm going to Venice next month. I like the first part written by the wife. The next two parts written by the husband were boring and pointless. That is all.

[Shauna · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a collection of 3 stories, the first, a somewhat typical and moderately passionate account of eating, restaurateurs and the Venice culinary scene. It is interesting but lacks the true passion of a Bordain or Tucci, or even Rick Steeves! The second story I found delightful, touching and humorous - a coming of age story for a young man bewitched with the promise of sex with his imagined goddess, only for reality to hit very differently. The third is sort of literary essay highlighting Proust and others who have used Venice as a character in their literature. It felt dry and academic but didn’t really peek my interest in any of the novels or authors mentioned. Overall, a disjointed and dry little book that felt reaching.

[Buse · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read a book some time ago

“Lovers in Venice” was it’s name

The couple, on the cover, was sitting in a boat

when the wind had calmed, and the sun sank low

Smiles were prepared, the picture was taken

The title, bold in red, stood out wide

In front of the houses on the riverside

Something has captured my attention

To always speak of him was her intention

Of all they thought and felt

and how love never left-

despite years, they stood as lovers

yet her name was not in his mouth

food, wine and the venue he spoke about

“Two acquaintances in Venice”

That’s what I would call it

Why such a title, given the circumstances

The man broke the rhythm, she kept dancing

[Patrick Barry · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a book written by the author and his wife. It was two non-fiction piece surrounding a novella. The first nonfiction piece written by Begley's wife details eating in Venice and avoiding crowds. The second nonfiction piece about Venice's effect on the writings of James, Proust and Mann reads like a doctoral thesis. The novella concerns a one sided love affair whose climax is an anti-climatic climax. I will give this author another try with his About Schmidt novel and the Franklin Library novel, The Man Who Was Late.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anka Muhlstein’s essay at the beginning of the book was interesting and enjoyable. Her husband Louis Begley’s short novella was less so, and his final musings I found quite dull.

However, if you personally are a writer or a great admirer of writers, you may enjoy the final part since he explores the technique of various authors on how they put the city of Venice as a character/backdrop to their work.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to go to Venice. Soon. Perhaps in September. So, I was immediately interested in this book. Anka Muhlstein wrote the first section, a celebration of her life with her husband, the writer, Louis Begley, as they lived for long stretches in Venice while writing, walking and dining in this city. The descriptions of their four favorite restaurants were charming...but I soon got tired of every street name and building. It became tedious reading, though it might be fun to read while actually in Venice itself. The middle section was my favorite, a short story by Begley, set in Venice. The narrative was as important as the setting...I enjoyed the characters and their unfolding, then re-folded relationship...and the directive: You must always enter Venice by gondola. And according to my friends, Mary Lynn and Paul, you must wander the back streets, and listen for the musician practicing the cello in a second floor apartment. The last section is Begley, waxing intellectual about writers who use Venice as their setting--James, Proust, Mann. Some interesting observations, but it distanced me from the place. I do think it is the kind of book that I might bring with me. Here, the writing about restaurants and famous novels set in Venice distanced me rather than taking me into the city.

[Sonya L Moore · Rating 3 out of 5]

From Amazon: "Venice for Lovers is a memorable collaboration by two fine stylists who have fashioned their own personal homages to Venice, one with a novella, the other with a personal essay. Every year for all the thirty they have been married, Begley and Muhlstein have escaped to Venice to write. In her contribution to the book, Muhlstein charmingly describes how she and her husband dine at the same restaurant every night for years on end, and how becoming friends with restaurateurs has been an unsurpassed means of getting to know the city and its inhabitants, far from the tourists in San Marco Square. In his short novella, Begley writes a story of falling in love with—and in—Venice. His twenty-year-old protagonist, enamored with an older, far worldlier woman of twenty-seven, is lured by her to the City of Water, only to be unceremoniously dumped and left to fend for himself after a brief rendezvous. But he discovers a lasting love for Venice itself—not an uncommon romance, as Begley’s brilliant literary essay on the city’s place within world literature demonstrates: Henry James, Marcel Proust, and Thomas Mann were all illustrious predecessors."

[Ginger · Rating 2 out of 5]

This short volume is made of of three parts -- the first by Anka Muhlstein I enjoyed, the second two by Louis Begley, not as much.

I enjoyed Muhlstein's exploration of their homecoming to Venice through restaurants.

I could have lived without Begley's detailed descriptions of his wife's - ahem - nether regions, but I suppose that's very Italian of him. For that reason, I don't particularly recommend it, but I do feel as if I have been to warm Venice on this snowy day in Virginia.

Begley, in his last essay, says that of all the cities of the world, Venice is the easiest to visit without going there. He proceeds to outline the setting choice of Venice in literature -- Henry James, Thomas Mann, and Marcel Proust as examples. He was so detailed, I feel I no longer need to read On the Wings of the Dove, Death in Venice, or In Search of Lost Time. The description I enjoyed best was the one on his own work, Mistler's Exit. But again, he gave me such a description of the plot, I no longer feel I particularly have to read it.

[Linda Harkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Consisting of three essays--two by Begley and one by Muhlstein (his wife)--this little volume that I picked up last week in the UVA bookstore is not what I expected. I would describe it as part memoir and part literary critique. Muhlstein introduces the reader to Venice via food and favorite restaurants. Begley describes how he first entered Venice. It comes as no surprise that it was by gondola rather than the vaporetto and that a woman seven years his senior lured him there. This middle essay is probably the best of the triptych. I would need to read Mann, Proust, and James to really understand the final essay. Perhaps I was expecting more descriptions of art, architecture, and the canals. My granddaughter has visited Venice. I, too, would like to go to Italy.

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was a little too sophisticated for my tastes, I guess. It mentioned all sorts of places I never heard of, with words in Italian. It mentioned books I never heard of. The stories we're difficult to follow.

Really, the only compelling story was the one about the authors going to the same restaurants every week for a year. Unfortunately, this story could have been expanded and made much more interesting then it was made out to be.

I learned how little I know about Venetian/Italian literature.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first essay ONLY on restaurants (Anka's). And that's why this gets 3 stars.

A mini travelogue with a background on the restaurant owners. I felt I needed wine and a few tasty appetizers to go with the reading. Wishing I had someone knowledgeable to select and serve would have wonderful.

The next two essays were Louis. The second one, I did not care for the mild sex exploits, it added nothing at all to the story. As for the third, I found I was drifting and could not commit to read it through.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three genres in one short book allows a reader to explore angles of this well-known city through different lenses. I didn't hate any of the three, though many will. The good news is, there's probably another one that serves a better fit for that reader.
I appreciated the diversity and platform for voyeurism, but I can't say any of them made me feel Venice. Maybe that's the issue: that Venice must be experienced for oneself and cannot be conveyed in print.

[Helen · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first part was great. Talks about the culinary experience in Venice. The other 2 (a short story, comparing how different authors use Venice in their novels) was just ok

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree with the other comments on this book--the first 2 parts were really good. They should have quit while they were ahead--maybe they had a minimum number of words to hand in to their publisher.

[Christi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not what I expected. I love Louis Begley. The sex seemed sordid. I did love the descriptions of Venice,the food and the fact that he and his wife return to Venice every year.

[Helen Starmer-allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read but It was a small amount of effort to read. It wasn't a book I couldn't put down.

[Marta Pawlowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Venice

[S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first half much better than the second.