Rating: 
Summary: Best for (actually ONLY for) for the intermediate opera fan
Review: This is a cool book, and I imagine its author is a suave, charming, James Bond kind of guy. But this book is really only appropriate for people at the intermediate phase of opera-loving. The book gives in-depth, clever, witty analyses of 83 operas, covering probably 95% of what you might see at your local opera house. The problem is that Denis Forman's approach assumes that the reader is already a suave, charming, James Bond kind of opera fan, so he leaves out pretty much all of the basics. So......if you already know as much, or nearly as much, as Sir Forman (he's a real "Sir," I'm not being sarcastic) does about opera, then you don't need the book. ...if you know nothing, or next to nothing, about opera, then this book is too advanced for you, so skip it. ...if you've seen 5 or 10 operas in your life and want to see more, and/or if you've been building a little nest of cherished opera CDs and you want to take your opera knowledge to the next step, this will be a great book for you. The book has a few neat little appendices. One is a thumbnail sketch of the greatest conductors of the last 100 years, and another is the same for the greatest singers. Plus, there's a handy little guide to terminology. The first two are brilliant, the last one prioritizes wittiness over clarity. "A Night at the Opera" would be a great gift for anyone who is a casual, reasonably well-versed opera buff and might be itching to take it to the next level.
Rating: 
Summary: comprehensive, entertaining, smart!
Review: This is a terrific book that you should have if you love opera or want to find a place to start your education about it. Every factual thing you need to know, a smart jaundiced view of the less than stellar bits of every opera and even when you disagree, you find yourself saying with a bit of a blush: "well...yes...but I enjoy that aria anyway" Written by someone who knows and enjoys opera and while knowledgable it is completely accessible to the opera novice. Buy this, you won't be sorry!
Rating:
Summary: Just great--substantive AND hilarious evaluations
Review: This is just great whether you are an opera novice and experienced listener or somewhere inbetween. Sharp evaluations of every part of many, many operas. Interesting history of each. Somewhat thin but useful portions on major singers and figures in opera today. For a fun example of his style---look at the end of the description of "Suor Angelica" It is an image you won't soon forget and will laugh everytime you recall it. I do whenever I listen to the disc! Buy it, you will never be sorry you did!
Rating:
Summary: A passionate, funny guide to opera
Review: What a hoot! Reading this book is like going to your favorite opera with your funniest friend. Mr. Forman does a wonderful job of pointing out the highlights and lowlights of many an opera, and he does not withold his opinions. Even if you know an opera through and through, you'll enjoy reading about it in here, because Mr. Forman is so very funny. I laughed out loud many times reading this book. He does a terrific job as well of covering the moving, lyrical, or spine-tingling moments of an opera. Get this book!
Rating:
Summary: An Alpha Plus
Review: What can we expect form the man who was responsible for giving us tv series like "Brideshead Revisited" and "The Jewel in the Crown"? Nothing less than an Alpha plus of a book on opera. An alpha plus book it is. Bravo Sir Denis. There are not too much I can say since all the wonderful reviews especially those by Paul Creamer and "starmoth" covered almost everything. The book is like having an eccentric, worldly uncle giving you personal talks and pointers on different operas. Believe me, you wish Sir Denis was your uncle. It helps tremendously if you have a little knowledge about opera, so you can get the jokes. Even you don't have any prior knowledge, it is a great book to read and not to mention so much fun reading it with Sir Denis' witty comments (imaging Oscar Wilde writing an opera guide). Hopefully, after reading it, you will be inspired to explore the wonderful and crazy world of opera. By the way, if you like Sir Denis' writing, his autobiography "Son of Adam" may interest you too. It was made into a film "My Life So Far" with a great cast including the very talented Mr. Colin Firth. It is worth to check it out.
Rating: 
Summary: boy did i make a mistake
Review: What can we expect form the man who was responsible for giving us tv series like "The Jewel in the Crown"? Nothing less than an Alpha plus of a book on opera. An alpha plus book it is. Bravo Sir Denis.
There are not too much I can say since all the wonderful reviews especially those by Paul Creamer and "starmoth" covered almost everything. The book is like having an eccentric, worldly uncle giving you personal talks and pointers on different operas. Believe me, you wish Sir Denis was your uncle. It helps tremendously if you have a little knowledge about opera, so you can get the jokes. Even you don't have any prior knowledge, it is a great book to read and not to mention so much fun reading it with Sir Denis' witty comments (imaging Oscar Wilde writing an opera guide). Hopefully, after reading it, you will be inspired to explore the wonderful and crazy world of opera.
By the way, if you like Sir Denis' writing, his autobiography "Son of Adam" may interest you too. It was made into a film "My Life So Far" with a great cast including the very talented Mr. Colin Firth. It is worth to check it out.
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