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Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere
by: Jan Morris

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Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 910
EAN: 9780571204687
ISBN: 0571204686
Label: Faber and Faber
Manufacturer: Faber and Faber
Number Of Pages: 194
Publication Date: July 22, 2002
Publisher: Faber and Faber
Studio: Faber and Faber
Sales Rank: 142152

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Editorial Review:

Amazon.co.uk Review:
Located on a narrow, mountainous finger of Italy hard by Croatia and Slovenia, the port city of Trieste is little-visited and seldom in the news. As Jan Morris, who first came to Trieste as the English soldier James Morris in 1945, writes, "It offers no unforgettable landmark, no universally familiar melody, no unmistakable cuisine, hardly a single native name that anyone knows." Yet, as historian and travel writer Morris ably demonstrates in this homage to one of her favourite cities (others about which she has written are Hong Kong, Sydney, New York, and Venice ), Trieste has many charms. Its history is foremost among them, thanks to the city's former role as the sole port of the otherwise-landlocked Austro-Hungarian empire, which housed a small fleet there--a fleet which, from time to time, would sail off to make war against the Ottomans or the Italians. At the beginning of the 20th century, Trieste had grown to international importance as an entry point into Central Europe, so much so that it was referred to as "the third entrance of the Suez Canal". Trieste briefly took centre stage at the onset of the Cold War, when Marshall Tito claimed it for Yugoslavia; it narrowly avoided being enveloped by the Iron Curtain. Morris tells all these stories and more, bringing the city's past to life; no one should be surprised if Trieste sees more visitors thanks to her spirited study.

Yet Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere is also a work tinged with melancholy. That befits the city's faded glory, but it also has to do with the sad fact that this will be Morris's last book--or so she promises. Let's hope she changes her mind. If not, however, this serves very well as the capstone of a distinguished career. --Gregory McNamee

Customer Reviews

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- Not Nowhere
I really enjoyed this book about a city I drove through many times but only recently stopped in to enjoy its atmosphere. When I came home I eagerly read this book and was so taken by Jan's writing on the city that I want to go back at the earliest opportunity. That for me is travel writing at its best.

Rating:

- A proper piece of travel writing
God, it's so refreshing to read a proper piece of travel writing for a change. Forget the ridiculous faux-madcap adventures as our hero travels with a ridiculous companion or implement. And if I see another book about someone buying a house somewhere and recounting his (it's usually his) encounters with 'amusing' locals I'll scream. This is thoughtful, wistful, intellectual and accessible. A real cracker - and I've never been to Trieste, but I already know how I might feel if I ever do. Which is exactly what a travel book should do. Please don't let this be Jan's last book, as she promises in the Epilogue. Travel writing needs you...

Rating:

- A Beautiful Ending...
Trieste is a city I knew nothing about, but always had a vague impression of. That impression, of faded grandeur, old-Europe cosmopolitanism gone to seed, and melancholy, is largely confirmed in this, the first of Morris' books I've read. The fishing village at the top of the Adriatic was a sleepy burg until the Austro-Hungarian empire transformed it into it's only seaport and HQ for its imperial navy in the early 1700s. It rapidly became one of the leading seaports of the world, and an international center of commerce. Following the defeat and dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian empire, Trieste was handed over to Italy, which already had plenty of ports, and thus it quickly reverted to sleepy backwater. Over the last century it was occupied ... Read More:

Rating:

- interesting book about a city, melancholy and displacement
jan morris wrote an interesting book about the frontier town of trieste, capturing the city's soul, history and feelings, often greyish and melancholic, sometimes curious and always interesting. pity that the author sometimes makes little spelling mistakes of places, streets and names i wish someone knowing trieste so well shouldn't do. the book is to be recommended however only for the courage to speak about a place even the majority of italians don't know.

Rating:

- A beautifully written book
As an Englishman living in self-imposed exile in Trieste, I find that Jan Morris eloquently expresses the unique atmosphere of this unusual, beautiful and all-but forgotten city, along with the strange spell it casts on anyone possessing a sensitive and inquisitive nature. Much more than a travel guide, the book prompts the reader to reflect on many aspects of life, just as the city itself does to those that visit it. A haunting book about a haunting city.

Books : Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere