Brunetti's Venice: Walks with the City's Best-Loved Detective

Brunetti's Venice is a very clever book. Part travel guide to Venice and part homage to Donna Leon's character, Guido Brunetti, Brunetti's Venice is one hundred percent entertainment. Using direct quotes from each of Leon's mysteries a reader can tour Venice through the eyes of Brunetti. Places like Murano become more vivid. Quoting from all Leon's mysteries was a bonus for me. I am afforded glimpses of passages from books not on my Challenge list. It also gave me a chance to get to know Guido Brunetti better, as Sepeda writes just as equally about Commissario Brunetti the person as she does the island city of Venice.
As a travel book, the most appreciated information was the time it should take to walk each route using the detailed map. show more I have to wonder if the information has held up. Information like when restaurants are closed, how to visit a basilica, how to avoid the seedy parts of town. When Brunetti's Venice went to press Sepeda said, "...today only three exist until the new bridge linking Piazzale Roma and the train station designed by the Spanish architect Calatrava is finished" (p 143). Well, is it finished? Are Venetians still suspicious of Sicilians?
Aside from wondering how current the information, I loved the idea of the great authors who have wandered around Venice: Charles Dickens, George Sand, Balzac, and Cocteau to name a few. Imagine Othello in Venice...
Confessional: I fell in love with Guido from the very first book. He is passionate, sensitive, and predictable. I loved that as a member of the law he lived in an illegal apartment; a structure without permits, blueprints, or statement of intent. show less

If you plan a visit to Venice and want to see the places in Leon's Brunetti books, this volume might be a useful guide. Sepeda provides a dozen walks and a tour of the canal's islands along with snippets from the books showing Brunetti's activity along the way. However, if you are an armchair traveler like myself, you are likely to be disappointed. There are no photographs. Maps are included. Donna Leon wrote the introduction. It's a good companion to the books, but the book's lack of photographs likely limited the audience to only series fans who are going to Venice or to the few die-hard fans who will purchase everything connected to Brunetti.

this is a lovely book. and u donthave to be a fan of donna leon's detective novels to like it. long ago, i went to venice, and took along a book of walks, and had a lovely time exploring the city. it featured many of the churches and what u can see in them. this one is even better because it shows the street scenery. if ever i go back again to venice, i shall bring this book along.