From the author of A Venetian Affair and Lucia comes acharming odyssey in the path of the mysterious Zen brothers, whoexplored parts of the New World a century before Columbus, andbecame both a source of scandal and a cause célèbre amonggeographers in the following centuries. This delightful journey begins with Andrea di Robilant’sserendipitous discovery of a travel narrative published in Venicein 1558 by the Renaissance statesman Nicolò Zen: the text and itsfascinating nautical map re-created the travels of two of theauthor’s ancestors, brothers who explored the North Atlantic in the1380s and 1390s. Di Robilant set out to discover why later, in thenineteenth century, the Zens’ account came under attack as one ofthe greatest frauds in geographical history. Was their map—and eventheir journey—partially or perhaps entirely faked? In Irresistible North the author follows the Zens’ route from theFaeroes to Shetland to Iceland and Greenland, greeted by characterswho help unravel t
…immersing yourself in the sumptuous excesses of thebaroque Schloss Sch?nbrunn. …devoting an entire afternoon to coff ee and Sachertorte ina Viennese coff eehouse. …feeling the sway of the blue Danube as you cruisedownriver. …hearing the Vienna Boys’ Choir hit the high notes in theRoyal Chapel. …sampling the latest wines from the owner’s vineyard at arustic Heuriger. …falling under the spell of Klimt’s paintings andHundertwasser’s magical architecture.
