You'd be hard-pressed to find a more comprehensive, engrossing, and just plain fun-to-read guidebook than the Eyewitness Travel Guide: Venice and the Veneto. Spilling over with all sorts of useful information for the traveler, you'll find three-dimensional drawings, floor plans, and detailed neighborhood maps, as well as timelines, charts--even the most scenic canal routes. Broken down into four sections--"Venice," the "Veneto Region" (which takes in Verona and the Dolomites), "Traveler's Needs," and "Survival Guide"--the guide paints a complete picture of the area. Readers will especially love the hundreds of color photos of everything from Venice's famous Rialto Bridge to the lavish costumes worn for Carnival. You'll also find illustrated neighborhood walks (including San Marco, Dorsoduro, and the Castello), room-by-room explanations of the Doge's Palace and the Basilica San Marco, and the best cafes (Caffe Florian), hotels (the Gritti Palace), and bars (Harry's, the birthplace of the bellini). --Jill Fergus