Books by Francis Russell

A new and 50% enlarged, entertaining, but fundamentally serious selection of the most rewarding places to visit in Italy. Towns, villages, museums and individual monuments are described. A guide book in its own right, but above all a thoughtful, opinionated and supremely well-informed guide, supplement and corrective to conventional guides.

On September 9, 1919, an American nightmare came true. The entire Boston police force deserted their posts, leaving the city virtually defenseless. Women were raped on street corners, stores were looted, and pedestrians were beaten and robbed while crowds not only looked on but cheered. The police strike and the mayhem that followed made an inconspicuous governor, Calvin Coolidge, known throughout America, turning him into a national hero and, eventually, a president. It also created a monster: for two days, more than 700,000 residents of Boston's urban core were without police protection, and the mob ruled the streets.