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The practical side: First things first. Don't buy books in Europe if you can help it. The currency conversion issue aside books are usually double what you would pay in North America. No, I don't understand it either. so it's best to bring any reading material with you when you come.
When it comes to Siena guidebooks I strongly recommend that you pick up a copy of Siena: The Gothic Dream . It has excellent text, good maps and arrranged in such a way as to allow you to use it as a walking tourbook. Check it out!
Otherwise you can do most of your research online, and, like our friend Diane jot down your travel notes on pieces of paper that you can then recycle during your trip and leave the bulky reading materials at home. Of course if you want everyone to know you're an American then by all means carry Rick Steves' Florence and Tuscany 2007 in your hand at all times.
The APT (tourist ) office located at Piazza del Campo no. 56 has excellent city and province guides and best of all, they're free!
A good road atlas is a must for driving in Italy, and I recommend Atlante Stradale D'Italia published by the Touring Club Italiano. More . . .
If you want to bring books along at all then I urge you to bring something that is more inspirational that directional.
For example, try Iris Origo's War in Val D'Orcia: An Italian War Diary, 1943-1944. This is one fantastic story, all of it true. A riveting tale about a young wife, mother, pregnant and in charge of dozens of families in the heart of Tuscany, aiding escaped prisoners-of-war, Italian army deserters, fending off German troops and all trying to keep the family farm from utter ruin. An American no less. . .
Eric Newby's Love And War in the Apennines. An uplifting and wonderful story of his experience as one of those British POWs hiding in the mountains of Italy where he just happens to find the love of his life.
Another great story, fictional in this case, is Robert Harris' enthralling novel, Pompeii. A great read on the plane, or just hanging out in a piazza sipping a crisp white wine from the foothills of Mt. Vesuvius in Campania.
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