"The internationally bestselling author of the Guido Brunetti mysteries tells her own adventurous life story as she enters her eighties. In a series of vignettes full of affection, irony, and good humor, Donna Leon narrates a remarkable life she feels has rather more happened to her than been planned. From a childhood in the company of her New Jersey family, with frequent visits to her grandfather's farm and its beloved animals, and summers spent...

Thea Kronborg is born into poverty in a small desert town in the American Midwest. One of seven children, she is somehow set apart, a fact recognised by the discerning few, including Ray Kennedy, who longs to marry her but whose fate it is to set her free. With her rugged will and pioneer spirit, Thea carves her way from Moonstone, Colorado, to windy Chicago, from Dresden to New York and a triumphant debut at the Metropolitan Opera. She becomes a...

Opera is the fastest growing of all the performing arts, attracting audiences of all ages who are enthralled by the gorgeous music, vivid drama, and magnificent productions. If you've decided that the time has finally come to learn about opera and discover it for yourself, this is the book for you.

Opera 101 is recognized as the standard text in English for anyone who wants to become an opera lover. It is a clear, friendly, and truly

...

"A scandalous and satisfying behind-the-scenes look at the glamorous world of opera, from an insider who was herself the lead soprano at the Met for many years, and a popular performer on radio and television. The backstage drama at the Metropolitan Opera often rivals the onstage performances but generally doesn't prove fatal. Not so for prompter Rudolf Salz, who chose a most inopportune moment during the second act of Wagner's Die Walküre to die...

Mary Lisa Beverly - a soap-opera phenom who's just won her third Daytime Emmy for her role as Sunday Cavendish on Born to Be Wild. She's fun and lovable and has lots of crazy friends, most of whom hang out at her house in the Colony, the famous gated community in Malibu. Unfortunately, there is one bad thing to poleax her champagne life - someone is trying to kill her.

Presents a history and criticism of music and how to listen and appreciate it.

There are few art forms as visceral and emotional as opera--and few that are as daunting for newcomers. A Mad Love offers a spirited and indispensable tour of opera's eclectic past and present, beginning with Monteverdi's L'Orfeo in 1607, generally considered the first successful opera, through classics like Carmen and La Boheme, and spanning to Brokeback Mountain and The Death of Klinghoffer in recent years. Musician and critic Vivien Schweitzer...

"The sun is dying...and it's happening way too fast. With the clock ticking, the Nine Planets' only hope of survival rests on a fancy space station and the alien artifact it's carrying. Which is why it really sucks when some jackass doesn't want the universe saved and blows that station up-- while you're still on it. So if your only choices are flaming death or stealing a flying hunk of space junk--you pick that busted-ass spaceship. Even if it leaves...

A studio performance of one of Handel's best known operas by the English National Opera. The Opera, a tale of love and power based on Shakespeare's play, was first performed in 1724 at the Haymarket Theatre in London using castrati singers in the heroes roles. This production follows modern practice in using women in these parts, and in particular, Dame Janet Baker creates the virtuoso role of Julius Caesar.