Great reading that provides a sense of the city, from the Traveler online Ultimate Travel Library.
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The Stones of Florence, by Mary McCarthy (1953)
An intelligent and penetrating account of the contemporary city and its historical context by acclaimed American author Mary McCarthy.
The House of Medici: Its Rise and Fall, by Christopher Hibbert (1974)
Ambition, greed, patronage, murder, and intrigue in a gripping account of Florence’s greatest medieval dynasty.
The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini, by Benvenuto Cellini (1558–67)
A swashbuckling tale of art, love, and contemporary Renaissance life from one of Florence’s most colorful artists, as compelling as any modern tale of derring-do.
History of Italian Renaissance Art, by Frederick Hartt & David Wilkins (1969)
The best single introduction to the art, culture, and historical roots of the Renaissance.
The Decameron, by Giovanni Boccaccio
These one hundred short stories, first published in the 14th century, are set in plague-racked Florence of 1348. A wonderful social record, but also diverting narratives in their own right.
