Against Venice

“In his trenchantly written polemic, Debray scorns the tone of elegaic mawkishness in accounts of Venice by the likes of Proust and Morand. His excoriating little pamphlet is a corrective to our self-consciously poetic vapourings about Venice.” - Ian Thomson, Sunday Times

“He can write brilliantly. Debray’s mischievous polemic denounces not only the modern tourist but the so-called sophisticate for swooning over a Venice that is little more than a narcissistic reflection of the viewer’s own pretensions. Debray is funny, hugely intelligent, immensely quotable and possibly quite insincere.” – Nicholas Lezard, Guardian

“Debray’s diatribe is witty and elegant … he fires off his fusillades with great panache, and I relish his unbuttoned aplomb.” – Richard Cork, Modern Painters