Olivia Goes to Venice    by Ian Falconer Order:  USA  Can Atheneum, 2010 (2010) Hardcover Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Bob Walch Olivia is my name and in this picture book I describe what I and my family saw when we visited Venice, Italy. When we were getting ready for the trip I tried to pack my flippers and snorkel because Venice is surrounded by water. My mom said that wouldn't be necessary, though, because we would use boats to get around. Of course, she was right. Lots of fun things happened during our stay in this beautiful, old city. There was lots of water but there were also lots of bridges that allowed me to walk from one place to another without getting my feet wet. I loved Italian food, but my favorite was something called gelato, which is like ice cream. While munching my gelato, we saw the Grand Canal and I asked my mom if we could buy a palazzo (that's an Italian house) along the waterway. She wasn't too enthusiastic about the idea. Venice also has lots of pigeons, especially at a place called Piazza San Marco. I bought some corn to feed the birds and that turned out to be a bad idea. Do you know what happens when hundreds of pigeons fly to where you are standing? It can be a rather messy experience! I then thought we should take a ride in a traditional boat called a gondola, so we did. We went right under the Rialto Bridge and another one called the Bridge of Sighs. Naturally, I sighed! At the end of our holiday I wanted to take home a souvenir from Venice, so I slipped a brick out of the foundation of the city's famous bell tower. Well, you will not believe what happened but I shan't spoil the surprise. When you read my book you'll see the people of Venice won't soon forget my visit! Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Kids books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews