Scotti, R. A

Recounts the mysterious disappearance of the Mona Lisa from the Louvre on August 21, 1911, explaining why the police suspected Pablo Picasso and Guillaume Apollinaire of the crime, how the painting was finally recovered, and why it is still one of the greatest mysteries in modern art history.

Draws from newspaper accounts, archival sources, and interviews with survivors to provide an account of the hurricane that swept up the Atlantic coast in September 1938, discussing the swiftness with which the storm hit, and the devastation it left in its wake.

Chronicles the construction of St. Peter's Basilica from its beginnings in 1506 to its completion more than two centuries later, and discusses how the Basilica's construction impacted the Catholic Church and European history.