Prague: A Cultural Guide

Here is another informative title in Beattie's growing list of travel books (Cairo, the Danube, the Alps). Arranged as a series of essays on various aspects of Prague's history, including architecture, literature, film and the performing arts, religion, and popular culture, it tells the story of the city from its founding in the ninth century through its golden era as the center of the Holy Roman Empire to the present, having survived Nazi and communist occupations and the Velvet Revolution in the 20th century alone. Throughout its history, Prague has produced writers, painters, musicians, and, more recently, filmmakers, pop musicians, and actors of international note, among them author Franz Kafka, composer Antonín Dvorák, art nouveau painter Alphonse Mucha, and director Miloš Forman. Beattie includes a bibliography of works referenced and color and black-and-white photographs but no practical travel advice, such as recommended hotels and restaurants, walking guides, or opening hours for attractions.