Stand at the edge of a Tuscan hill village and gaze across one of the most extraordinarily rich and varied landscapes in Europe. There are vineyards producing the finest wine, and miles of wild mountain scenery; almost any view will take in other villages, clustering around the upper reaches of some hill, or the russet roofs of a fortified town deep in a valley.

Here are thirty-six villages and towns from all over Tuscany, chosen both for their intrinsic beauty and for the part they have played in Tuscan history and culture. The book opens with those communities clustered around the...