Europe 101: History & Art

"Relax. There will be no test."

That's how Rick Steves' "Europe 101: History & Art for the Traveler" begins.

The $24.95 book, just out in its seventh edition from California-based Avalon Travel, tells you everything you forgot (or never learned) in that European history class you took back when.

It's a terrific introduction for anyone planning an itinerary heavy on landmarks, churches and art, explaining the significance of everything from Michelangelo to Munch, from Stonehenge and the Colosseum to Frank Gehry's Guggenheim Bilbao.

The book also offers lists, such as Europe's top castles - including the Salzburg Castle in Austria, the Kalmar Castle south of Stockholm, Sweden, and the Tower of London - not to be confused with what Steves calls "Palaces of the divine and absolute monarchs," such as Versailles, near Paris. Top Muslim sights in Europe cited by the book include Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain, and the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, Turkey.

A "Sightseers' Medieval Church Architecture Cheat Sheet" teaches the difference between the transept and the tympanum, among other mysteries. For those who confuse Manet and Monet, the sections on art can help. (Pointillism equals "Lots of Dots," reads one heading.)

Finally, a quick survey in the back covers "Thirty-Two Millennia in Six Pages" from prehistory through ancient Greece and Rome, the Middle Ages and Renaissance, right up to modern times.

The book is not a travel guide per se, however, so you won't find addresses, hours and admission information - just an entertainingly written overview.