Keith HannCritiques

I actually received this book as an Early Reviewers book back in 2013, but actually lost it in the process of moving before I could write the review. Just found it again, so, finally here is the review!

A great little book, especially for someone like me who has just discovered opera after a lifetime of running from it. Easy to read, easy to find things, great to dip into to find interesting tidbits. I have actually taken it to the opera and looked up things while watching using my keylight, which I'm sure is very infra dig, but the handy size of the book makes it ideal for this. Terrific little book, highly recommended for opera virgins everywhere.½

A great deal of fun. I know enough about opera and classical music to get most of the jokes, I believe, and not enough to not have learned something as I read this. Witty, informative, and accurate--as far as I know. I probably wouldn't go to it for serious reference, but I'm glad I got the book for early review! (Though my review is in fact quite late. Oops, sorry.)

As fan of the opera I didn´t learn anything new. And as German it was a bit too focused on the UK. But nearly every side of this book brought a smile on my face! I have never read such a witty book about opera!

What a great little introduction to opera! Full of interesting trivia which make opera both more fun and accessible, it's a very different way of looking at opera and hopefully making it more appealing to new generations. I enjoyed the various snapshots of composers, famous operas and singers, how to get started in the opera world and other less thought about aspects such as decor and productions.

This definitely has a British flavour - perhaps a bit too much to make it very appealing to a North American audience - and it misses the mark by not speaking of the live Met opera broadcasts - the biggest international opera event, which puts opera in theatres in even the smallest cities around the globe. I also winced at seeing lesser known British talents get more attention than better known North American ones. Finally, I would have liked to see an index in the back instead of notes pages to be able to refer to the nuggets I had gleaned throughout the book.

Ultimately, an educational and light read which got me into the mood for more opera and a book that I will be sharing with people like me: who enjoy opera without knowing much about it.

Having been a lover of opera for close to 60 years because of its transcending power and less interested in impressing people with my knowledge of this art form at a post-performance get together, the Buffer’s Guide to Opera had minimal appeal to this writer. This book may offer a “tactical advantage” to the bluffer; one has to hope, however, that no one wants a more detailed accounting of your knowledge, as this book provides only cursory information, which may all that is needed, especially at the pub.

The book was at times interesting, occasionally amusing, and then “cute” regarding the “Real Meaning” of operatic terms found in the Curtain Call Glossary, which may be reflective of British humor. As an American, I was somewhat uncomfortable reviewing this book because its target population seems to be the UK, to whom it might have greater appeal.

Small enough to fit in a women’s purse or a man’s jacket breast pocket, it may provide the necessary line of defense if more into the facts and less the experience, which for this reviewer is not comparable to any other musical experience.

This is a great little guide to Opera for the uninitiated (me included!)! It is pocket sized and has been riding around with me in my purse for the last few weeks, the perfect item to slip out and read a few pages at a time while I wait for a bus or whatnot.

The book is a witty and irreverent everyman's guide to a classic and timeless art form. The joke-a-page writing really keeps you interested, even if Opera isn't your passion it will make you want to keep reading. Maybe it will help breathe some life into the opera by inducting a new breed of audience, and certainly it will bring some appreciation of the art form to those who would otherwise brush it off as being too high-brow to bother with!

It takes you on a brief tour through the invention and development of the art form, and also highlights modern practices and performances - where and how to see good Opera on a variety of different budgets, and how to know what to look for.

Then we get into a catalogue of the most popular productions and the well-known and less well-known composers, each with dates and a short entry describing productivity, high points and lows, etc. So if you are thinking of going to see a production, you can just look up the title and composer and get a little background beforehand, or if you hear a name and need a quick refresher on who/what, just look it up here. A list of legendary performers is also included, many still alive today.

The best part I found was an overview of the major themes and plots, and list of possible demises. The themes of course are universal, and the basic elements never really change, so its great to get a meta-understanding of the format, and these will apply to a lot of different theatre or other narrative forms.

This is a great little book overall, not too serious, just a quick little treat for those curious about Opera. Would be a good stocking stuffer gift, gag or otherwise!

Just a disclaimer, I received this book for free in an advanced review copy giveaway. I'm glad I did!

Wow. What an informative little book. While it is small in size, (the print version), it is chock full of information about Opera. It gives bios of composers and their a list of their operas, along with a short synopsis. It also has a bio section of prominent opera singers. While that would be wonderful, it also has sections about what to wear and such. And it is all told with a lighthearted humorous style that makes it easier to read. It is not a dull, dry book, but it is very informative.

This book is the first "Bluffers Guide to..." book that I have encountered. I don't often read how to books but I took an interest in this one because of the cover and subject matter, namely getting to know some of the basic principles of opera and how to "bluff" talking about it in a sophisticated and informed way. I have a friend who writes scores in the Sydney Opera House so next time I go take up her offer of watching a show, Ill definitely use some of the knowledge I have aquired from this book in my discussion before and after the opera. She recommended "Pirates of Penzance" as the only opera I would most likely like. I'm not normally into opera all that much but this book got me intrigued to read and discover more about it.

The book has quite a few British terms, so it would be harder for Australian readers in that sense to connect with some parts of the book, but on the whole, the trivia, humour and general overview of opera provide an effective brief survey of the world of opera at a 105 page glance. If one wanted to get a deeper understanding of opera then I would recommend the "New Grove Dictionary of Opera" (ISBN: 0195221869) for a more comprehensive look, but overall, "The Bluffers Guide to Opera" is a witty overview of some of the main background points, parts, terms, a bit of history and plotlines of some operas from the last one hundred or so years.

And thanks Ellen for the book. Ill be sure to pass it onto my friends who want to start gaining a greater understanding of opera and how to speak about it.

God bless,

-Joshua P

I really enjoyed this book....honest!

I realized that this book was not going to cover everything that there is in the history of opera, but it would give me just enough information to bluff my way through a conversation about opera if needed. On that front, the book totally succeeds. I appreciated some of the trivia contained in the book about various operas and composers, which really can make it seem like the reader is an expert. I found myself writing down quite a few works to listen to and discover as I read.

I was also very pleasantly surprised at how funny the book is. The author has a wonderful sense of humor.

My only complaints about the book are that as a Yank, I found it is very British. The author uses slang terms with which I am unfamiliar, and the opera houses and companies discussed focus a good bit on those in England. No mention of the Met! And although I knew the book was really going to offer just a quick survey, I do wish it was longer; it is barely over 100 pages, and I would have appreciated at least another 50 or so.

This is the first of these guides I have come across, and great fun it is too. The title is self explanatory, but to leave it at that would be to do this little book a disservice, for it also a succinct survey of the history of opera along with a brief coverage of the most significant facts pertaining to opera today. All this is done with more than a touch of humour and wit along with the occasional critique.
As an music lover (including opera) of very many years, I found this most interesting, for as much as I like opera, my love is simply for the music, I have never taken much note of what it is all about; after reading this admittedly tongue-in-cheek offering I am rather better informed.