Venice is a resplendent city of a thousand islands in the middle of a lagoon, which has an elegant and eventful history. Her geographical location and the political and commercial shrewdness of her former rulers, together with the spirit of her citizens once made her the mistress of the seas and master of a great empire. This journal is intended to provide helpful, descriptive and enjoyable routes to explore, as well as providing many interesting historical and architectural facts throughout its passage. As an artist the author has painted a journalistic picture of Venice by visiting the 'Serenissima' each month over the course of a year to enjoy the islands and understand the Venetians themselves, who have battled through centuries of evolution, toil and achievement. Throughout each interesting tour John has recorded many scenes in pen and ink water colour sketches, which he feels will bring the beauty and history of the Venetian islands to both the armchair reader as well as those who explore the Serenissima.

Charles Dickens spent most of his adult life in London whilst residing in locations which extended to every boundary of the Metropolis. Like Dickens, the author is passionate about London and in doing so has explored architectural and historical links together with sights and scenes, which the accomplished Victorian writer would have encountered in his quest to record the social depravation of London. With these thoughts in mind this book endeavors to track the many walks Dickens would have made, using an 1863 street map, in his quest to capture a library of characters for his literary works. In each of the ten walks the author has envisaged Dickens being an imaginary walking companion and hypothesized his comments regarding change. How would he react to a changing society which has evolved over the past 150 years and what opinions and arguments would this great Victorian novelist have when comparing his own creative era with that of the 21st century? To highlight certain places of interest on each walk, the author has included his own pen and ink illustrated sketches to provide a topographical and artistic account of each district in a manner that he feels Dickens would have approved of.

'From Battersea to the Tower' provides the reader with an interesting and artistic picture of the history, beauty and occasion that is associated with an area of the Thames Path on both the North and South banks of the river. This book is a perfect accompaniment for both the walker and armchair reader, and focuses on the passage between Battersea Bridge and Tower Bridge, identifying numerous buildings of historical significance as well as the bridges themselves that cross the Thames. Each chapter includes a brief, but detailed history, of the relevant boroughs and districts which border the path, identifying the origins of many street names together with plenty of ghostly tales from the past.

Charles Dickens spent most of his adult life in London whilst residing in locations which extended to every boundary of the Metropolis. Like Dickens, the author is passionate about London and in doing so has explored architectural and historical links together with sights and scenes, which the accomplished Victorian writer would have encountered in his quest to record the social depravation of London. With these thoughts in mind this book endeavors to track the many walks Dickens would have made, using an 1863 street map, in his quest to capture a library of characters for his literary works. In each of the ten walks the author has envisaged Dickens being an imaginary walking companion and hypothesized his comments regarding change. How would he react to a changing society which has evolved over the past 150 years and what opinions and arguments would this great Victorian novelist have when comparing his own creative era with that of the 21st century? To highlight certain places of interest on each walk, the author has included his own pen and ink illustrated sketches to provide a topographical and artistic account of each district in a manner that he feels Dickens would have approved of.

'From Battersea to the Tower' provides the reader with an interesting and artistic picture of the history, beauty and occasion that is associated with an area of the Thames Path on both the North and South banks of the river. This book is a perfect accompaniment for both the walker and armchair reader, and focuses on the passage between Battersea Bridge and Tower Bridge, identifying numerous buildings of historical significance as well as the bridges themselves that cross the Thames. Each chapter includes a brief, but detailed history, of the relevant boroughs and districts which border the path, identifying the origins of many street names together with plenty of ghostly tales from the past.

Venice is a resplendent city of a thousand islands in the middle of a lagoon, which has an elegant and eventful history. Her geographical location and the political and commercial shrewdness of her former rulers, together with the spirit of her citizens once made her the mistress of the seas and master of a great empire. This journal is intended to provide helpful, descriptive and enjoyable routes to explore, as well as providing many interesting historical and architectural facts throughout its passage. As an artist the author has painted a journalistic picture of Venice by visiting the 'Serenissima' each month over the course of a year to enjoy the islands and understand the Venetians themselves, who have battled through centuries of evolution, toil and achievement. Throughout each interesting tour John has recorded many scenes in pen and ink water colour sketches, which he feels will bring the beauty and history of the Venetian islands to both the armchair reader as well as those who explore the Serenissima.