Venice
'THE spirit of enchantment under which Venice lies, pearly and roseate like the Sleeping Beauty, change- less throughout the centuries arrested, while the con- crete forest of the modern world grows up around her': In Venice Observed (Zwemmer, 90s.) Mary McCarthy describes the uniqueness of Venice— through which the lagoons, canals, history and people flow without making any palpable differ- ence. Her 'Unsentimental and easy style, as she slips through the centuries, pleasantly evokes the colour- ful pageantry which has always played a large part in the lives of the Venetians. It is not surprising that colour is so particularly associated with Venice. How quickly the Clear pinks and yellows of a hot summer's
day can turn into a deep violet thunderous siky above stormy green waters. The rich reds and golds of Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, and the changing lights on the canals and buildings are extraordinarily beautiful.
Miss McCarthy ignores the Lido and the smart casino and beach life—perhaps she was put off by the thousands of people intcnt on their sun-tan, who make a formidable hors d'reuvre before reaching the minestrone-like sea. However, she did visit the beau- tiful island of Torcello, Burano with its 'old black shawled women sitting on chairs in the sun in front of the low houses making lace,' and the derelict Chioggia. 'The sails are beautiful with their curious mystic designs, roses and cresCents and cups, in yellow, orange, blue and water-melon pink, but the town is fly-specked and mangy. The buildings are all peeling; the communal water-taps drip; the paint- ings are rotting in the gloomy churches. The cats are so thin that they look like a single bone with fur draped loosely around it.'
Some of the photographs are very good, particu- larly the black and white. The only criticism of this otherwise beautifully produced book is the curious spacing of the text, but it is a book which should give enormous pleasure to everyone whether he
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