Numerous writers have made declarations of love to cities, but Against Venice is a declaration of dislike. It is a counterblast to intellectuals who regard Venice as the city where existentialism should be experienced at parties in the palazzi of friends. Debray criticizes this world in a refreshingly irreverent way, luring the traveler back to this seductive city.
Philippe Beaussant is a novelist and musicologist. He has written several works of fiction besides Rendezvous in Venice, and is the author of numerous books on the history and art of the baroque era. He was awarded the Brive French Language Prize in 2001 and the Literary Prize of the Prince Pierre of Monaco Foundation in 2004.