Palermo: Travels in the City of Happiness: Art, Architecture, and History in Sicily's Ancient Capital

Palermo: Travels in the City of Happiness' is a captivatingly personal account of a week of urban adventures in Palermo. Written with a profound love for the history of the ancient Sicilian capital, Langdale takes us on a succession of journeys through the city’s colorful neighborhoods and varied historical periods. In these pages Palermo’s streets, piazzas and architecture become eloquent witnesses to eras past; everything from the palaces of the medieval Norman kings to the modern apartments built during the mafia’s ‘Sack of Palermo’ in the late twentieth century. The centerpieces of the book are the glorious remains of the medieval Norman kings, such as the Palermo cathedral, the Palatine chapel, the Church of the Martorana, and the cathedral and monastery of Monreale, on Palermo’s outskirts. This economical little book provides insights no cursory guidebook could ever attempt. In short, it is an incomparable introduction to Palermo and its art, architecture and history; a perfect companion for anyone interested in Sicily’s capital.