The earliest of the four Gospels, the book portrays Jesus as an enigmatic figure, struggling with enemies, his inner and external demons, and with his devoted but disconcerted disciples. Unlike other gospels, his parables are obscure, to be explained secretly to his followers. With an introduction by Nick Cave

The Lion of Saint Mark, representing Mark the Evangelist, pictured in the form of a winged lion holding a Bible, is the symbol of the city of Venice and formerly of the Venetian Republic.

Drama. Irony. Betrayal. Miracles. A holy war with the whole world at stake. And it’s all packed into the shortest of the four Gospels. Written in an engaging, lively, oral style, Loosing the Lion tells us how, despite being misunderstood and neglected throughout most of history, the Gospel of Mark has recently been experiencing a scholarly revival. Theologians are beginning to see how it is actually an intense, wild, impossible story told at a breakneck pace with twists and turns that shock and surprise those with eyes to see and ears to hear. Readers will be captivated by the Gospel’s literary brilliance, which brings us to the threshold of an encounter with the living Jesus, who reveals his mysteries, and ultimately himself, to those who approach him and dwell in his presence. And when we do encounter him, “The proper response is repentance, joining God’s army to be liberated, and once liberated, advancing the liberation of the whole cosmos, which, ultimately, is the content of the Gospel Jesus calls us to believe in. Liberation is coming. Join the resistance.”

Garry Wills's Venice: Lion City is a tour de force -- a rich, colorful, and provocative history of the world's most fascinating city in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, when it was at the peak of its glory. This was not the city of decadence, carnival, and nostalgia familiar to us from later centuries. It was a ruthless imperial city, with a shrewd commercial base, like ancient Athens, which it resembled in its combination of art and sea empire. Venice: Lion City presents a new way of relating the history of the city through its art and, in turn, illuminates the art through the city's history. It is illustrated with more than 130 works of art, 30 in full color. Garry Wills gives us a unique view of Venice's rulers, merchants, clerics, laborers, its Jews, and its women as they created a city that is the greatest art museum in the world, a city whose allure remains undiminished after centuries. Like Simon Schama's The Embarrassment of Riches, on the Dutch culture in the Golden Age, Venice: Lion City will take its place as a classic work of history and criticism.

Reproduction of the original: The Lion of St.Mark by G.A. Henty

The first book in an adventurous trilogy The House of Ziani and the House of Soranzo had been enemies ever since their grandfathers' joint business venture had collapsed more than forty years before. Then, they had chosen not to resolve their differences in the courts. Instead, they each sought to prevail in their rivalry by investing, trading, and manipulating as each battled to dominate and ultimately ruin the other. The fathers passed this legacy on to their sons.... A sleek Venetian fleet plows through stormy November seas, bearing reinforcements to help defend the fabled city of Constantinople against an impending siege by Ottoman Turks. Rescue plans are jeopardized, however, when an age-old bitter conflict flares between two Venetian nobles onboard: The brave naval Captain Giovanni Soranzo thirsts for revenge against the proud marine officer, Antonio Ziani. These two men will survive the sacking of Constantinople and will find their lives bound together in a heroic struggle to save their beloved city. The year is 1452, and while Italy glories in the Renaissance, Venice is on the verge of an epic war of survival against the powerful Turks, who are intent on conquering Venetian lands, possessing her riches, and utterly destroying the city forever. Now these two patricians, both patriots, must temper their hostility toward each other with loyalty to their beloved republic. Fighting each other when they can, fighting together when they must, Ziani and Soranzo risk their lives to defend Venice---and their honor. Much more than a war story, this is a tale of Venice, when she was the greatest city on earth and the world's only republic. It is a tale, too, of her people, whose fortunes and very lives were dependent on her success. Admired, envied, hated, and feared, but with her vast wealth and vaunted navy, always respected, she is La Serenissima---the Serene Republic of Venice---and this is her story. Thomas Quinn combines his expertise on Venice with explosive, page-turning action to give readers an epic novel of struggle and survival.

Venetian art - Venice - Themes and motives - Narrative painting Renaissance Italy.

Henry Maguire, emeritus professor of art history at Johns Hopkins University, works on Byzantine and related cultures. He has written extensively on Venetian art and the church of San Marco.