The best opera books

Who picked these books? Meet our 43 experts.

43 authors created a book list connected to opera, and here are their favorite opera books.
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The Explorers

By C.M. Kornbluth,

Book cover of The Explorers

Theodore Irvin Silar Author Of Five Moral Tales

From the list on short story novel collections.

Who am I?

I have a Ph.D. in English from Lehigh University, where I studied and published articles on Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, one of the greatest short fiction collections. I have written and published a number of short stories myself. I even won a contest for one of them. The tale told around the campfire is probably the oldest literary form there is, much older than the novel. The best short fiction, I believe, can “pack everything that a novel can hold into a story,” as Jorge Luis Borges said, and this is the kind of short fiction I believe I have found.

Theodore's book list on short story novel collections

Discover why each book is one of Theodore's favorite books.

Why did Theodore love this book?

I first read The Explorers when I was a child. I delighted in it then and still do. Its style got to me first. A real literary style. Some of the stories are hard-boiled, Raymond Chandler in space. Some poetic. But so much better than most clunky SF. And also, so unconventional This is not Azimov. Rather than space opera, we get a scientist drunk, bemoaning his “contributions” to space flight. Instead of wondrous inventions, we get cheesy computer art. Brainless generals celebrate nuclear war. Well-written, unusual, simultaneously funny and sad, The Explorers is a masterpiece of 50s SF.

The Explorers

By C.M. Kornbluth,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Explorers as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Ballantine Books, 1963. Mass market paperback, stated 2nd printing (with cover exactly as shown here, cover code #F708, and 50 cent cover price). Collects 9 stories: Gomez (1954); The Mindworm (1950); The Rocket of 1955 (1939); The Altar at Midnight (1952); Thirteen O'Clock (1941); The Goodly Creatures (1952); Friend to Man (1951); With These Hands (1951); That Share of Glory (1952). Foreword by longtime collaborator Frederik Pohl.


Fat Tuesday

By Susan Vaught,

Book cover of Fat Tuesday

Kay Acker Author Of Leaving's Not the Only Way to Go

From the list on sapphic about finding happiness in hard times.

Who am I?

I believe deeply that, as messy and painful as life is, there is always joy, and usually humor, to be found. The book I wrote, Leaving’s Not the Only Way to Go, pulls from some of the painful experiences I’ve had, and I often find myself following my description of the book, about two women who meet in a grief group, with “but it’s not a downer!” It’s true, because Leaving is also inspired by all the joy and connections I’ve made for myself, even in the midst of loss. I learned how to balance the two sides of life through books like the ones on this list. 

Kay's book list on sapphic about finding happiness in hard times

Discover why each book is one of Kay's favorite books.

Why did Kay love this book?

Fat Tuesday is the book that taught me what a lesbian was and what a joyful possibility that could be for me.

It’s about a high school senior named Rusty who decides, despite all the desperate circumstances of her life, to travel to New Orleans for Mardi Gras with her sick mother and dysfunctional friends.

Rusty and company are obsessed with soap operas as an escape from their current reality, and as their road trip proceeds, their reality becomes more and more like a soap opera plot, with all the drama, dramatic twists, and exaggerated exuberance that soap operas are known for! 

Fat Tuesday

By Susan Vaught,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Fat Tuesday as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

What does Rusty Quinn do when her mom loses touch with reality, her best friend's dad explodes over a kiss, her other best friend gets committed to a psych ward, and the sanest person she knows is an egotistical Finnish exchange student who swears in a language nobody understands? She could write a soap opera, of course - or go to Mardi Gras. In fact, she could do both!

Funny how destiny comes down to single choices, focused moments, and split-second decisions. Can running away to Mardi Gras really change four lives forever?


Book cover of Female Singers on the French Stage, 1830-1848

Hilary Poriss Author Of Gioachino Rossini's The Barber of Seville

From the list on nineteenth-century divas.

Who am I?

I fell in love with opera history as an undergraduate exchange student in Vienna and went on to pursue my passion in graduate school. Rather than writing about opera composers and their music, I chose the unusual path of studying famous singers from the nineteenth century, especially the prima donnas who exerted extraordinary authority over composers, theater directors, and spectators. In my books and articles, I focus on the power of divas to thrill audiences and to shape the musical culture of which they are an integral part. The books I am recommending explore the lives and careers of some of the most fascinating prima donnas of the nineteenth century.

Hilary's book list on nineteenth-century divas

Discover why each book is one of Hilary's favorite books.

Why did Hilary love this book?

Through a dazzling collection of sources that include letters, contracts, memoirs, biographies, newspaper reviews, and fictional stories about the figure of the cantatrice, Kimberly White’s French Singers on the French Stage is a brilliant account of the various stages of singers’ lives in nineteenth-century France, beginning with their births and following them up to and past their retirements. In between, she describes their training at the Paris Conservatoire, debuts, marriages, benefits, and scores of other important issues that they grappled with throughout their careers. I do not know of any other work in the field of prima donna or opera studies that is at once as thorough and as lucidly written—it is a page-turner from beginning to end.

Female Singers on the French Stage, 1830-1848

By Kimberly White,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Female Singers on the French Stage, 1830-1848 as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The study of singers' art has emerged as a prominent area of inquiry within musicology in recent years. Female Singers on the French Stage, 1830-1848 shifts the focus from the artwork onstage to the labour that went on behind the scenes. Through extensive analysis of primary source documents, Kimberly White explores the profession of singing, operatic culture, and the representation of female performers on the French stage between 1830 and 1848, and reveals new perspectives on the social, economic, and cultural status of these women. The book attempts to reconstruct and clarify contemporary practices of the singer at work, including…


Eye of the Colossus

By Nicole Grotepas,

Book cover of Eye of the Colossus

J.L. Stowers Author Of Vengeance Lost

From the list on space opera written by women.

Who am I?

I’ve held a burgeoning interest in the stars since I was a young girl. Daydreams of adventure and exploration guided me to the genre. Once I found it, I consumed everything I could find, both on-screen and in the pages of books. There’s something to be said about the vulnerability of being in the vastness of space, oftentimes with strangers who grow to be family. I guess, in a way, it reminds me of that moment when we set out into the world, away from our families, to learn and explore more about our surroundings and the characters we meet along the way (only on a much grander scale). 

J.L.'s book list on space opera written by women

Discover why each book is one of J.L.'s favorite books.

Why did J.L. love this book?

Nicole has done something really great with this series. She’s created memorable, detailed characters to build a cast you really care about. I really love seeing how other authors have humans interact with aliens and vice versa. This series was a great blend of everything you need for an epic adventure.

Eye of the Colossus

By Nicole Grotepas,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Eye of the Colossus as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

1900 pages of space opera adventure for fans of Firefly, Killjoys, and the Mandalorian... Holly Drake just got out of prison... but that doesn't mean she’s free.

The City of Jade Spires is no paradise, though everything about it says otherwise: the glimmering jade towers, the glow of a gas giant, and the 6 Moons balanced between four supposedly equal races.

Serving an unfair sentence like Holly’s clears up such a gross misconception pretty quick. When she walks free due to the intervention of a mysterious source, she soon realizes they want her to do something: Steal a priceless jewel…


Space Opera

By Catherynne M. Valente,

Book cover of Space Opera

Jen Finelli Author Of Neodymium Exodus

From the list on sweeping space operas with metaphysical themes.

Who am I?

From dancing on a crane in a meteor shower, to earning a history degree at the top program in my country; bathing under a waterfall to cradling the dying as a physician—I’ve always straddled the line between adventure and hunger for the truth beyond. Some books are the same way: they pull you in with fun and plot, and colors, and they leave you with bigger thoughts and questions about the Universe at large. All genres have this capacity for surprise and depth, but space opera’s best—here’s a list of reads with that special metaphysical power.

Jen's book list on sweeping space operas with metaphysical themes

Discover why each book is one of Jen's favorite books.

Why did Jen love this book?

I picked up this book because the back cover made it sound like this funny romp where a rock competition decides the fate of the Earth—and who doesn’t want that? But this isn’t just a more uplifting version of that one Rick and Morty episode about “Gettin’ Schwifty.” With vivid worlds and deeply flawed characters, Space Opera is like a psychedelic trip with that brilliant, probably-drunk friend whose gorgeous mind you could listen to for days. (Stop looking at me like that! I’m not in love with her syntax, you are!) Don’t get me wrong: there are so many behaviors in Space Opera that I recommend against as a sexual health physician—they’d increase your risk of disease and mental illness—and I’ve got moral positions that don’t jive with Valente’s vision, either. But there’s a scene where Valente touches on immigration and deportation that made me weep and left an indent…

Space Opera

By Catherynne M. Valente,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Space Opera as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

FINALIST FOR HUGO AWARD FOR BEST NOVEL 2019
FINALIST FOR LOCUS AWARD FOR BEST SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL 2019

IN SPACE EVERYONE CAN HEAR YOU SING

A century ago, intelligent space-faring life was nearly destroyed during the Sentience Wars. To bring the shattered worlds together in the spirit of peace, unity and understanding, the Metagalactic Grand Prix was created. Part concert, part contest, all extravaganza, species far and wide gather to compete in feats of song, dance and/or whatever facsimile of these can be performed by various creatures who may or may not possess, in the traditional sense, feet, mouths, larynxes…


Magic Flutes

By Eva Ibbotson,

Book cover of Magic Flutes

Lark Westerly Author Of Being Tamzin 1

From the list on double identities and other selves.

Who am I?

I’ve always delighted in stories where characters find they are not quite who they thought. I love double identities, triple identities, dual roles, and mysterious extra names…so long as they are written so I can believe in them. My own family tree is full of people using names or personas that weren’t quite what one might expect, and I follow the tradition in that although there is just one of me, physically speaking, I wear a great many hats. I have also loved hidden identity TV and film, such as Nowhere Man, and the first iteration of Total Recall. Many of my own books deal with identity, and it was difficult to pick just one!

Lark's book list on double identities and other selves

Discover why each book is one of Lark's favorite books.

Why did Lark love this book?

Princess Theresa-Maria has wonderful breeding but no money and little future in the crumbling Austrian castle where she lives with ancient relations. Rebranding herself as Tessa, our heroine becomes a wardrobe mistress, working for nothing for an opera company almost as destitute as she is. Tessa is much happier until she falls in love with a wealthy man…a poor-boy-made-good, who hires the company to delight his fiancée. With much melodrama, an unlikely pot of yogurt, a drastic haircut, a metaphorical silk purse, and a button, this story wends its opulent way to a happy ending. The hero’s foster mother, Martha, crawling about the castle as a self-ordered penance for telling fibs is a particularly odd moment, but whether she is being Theresa-Maria or plain Tessa, our heroine is a wistful, starry-eyed delight. 

Magic Flutes

By Eva Ibbotson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Magic Flutes as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Spring, 1922

Tessa is a beautiful, tiny, dark-eyed princess - who's given up her duties to follow her heart, working for nothing backstage at the Viennese opera. No one there knows who she really is, or that a fairytale castle is missing its princess, and Tessa is determined to keep it that way.

But secret lives can be complicated. When a wealthy, handsome Englishman discovers this bewitching urchin backstage,Tessa's two lives collide - and in escaping her inheritance, she finds her destiny. . .


Clocker

By AM Scott,

Book cover of Clocker

J.L. Stowers Author Of Vengeance Lost

From the list on space opera written by women.

Who am I?

I’ve held a burgeoning interest in the stars since I was a young girl. Daydreams of adventure and exploration guided me to the genre. Once I found it, I consumed everything I could find, both on-screen and in the pages of books. There’s something to be said about the vulnerability of being in the vastness of space, oftentimes with strangers who grow to be family. I guess, in a way, it reminds me of that moment when we set out into the world, away from our families, to learn and explore more about our surroundings and the characters we meet along the way (only on a much grander scale). 

J.L.'s book list on space opera written by women

Discover why each book is one of J.L.'s favorite books.

Why did J.L. love this book?

AM Scott is fantastic at character development, and she explains technology in a way that anyone can understand. These books are hard to put down and I really enjoyed getting to know the main character. This is an ongoing series and I look forward to seeing what she does next. 

Clocker

By AM Scott,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Clocker as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The complete seven-book classic space opera series is ready for binge-reading! This set includes Books 1.0 through 3.0, plus the prequel novella Book 0.5, Lightwave: Nexus Station!

Saree’s got a secret. A truly unique talent.

Trillions rely on her rare gift. If they knew, they’d betray her in a heartbeat for the huge reward.

Despite Saree’s best efforts, rumors fly. Desperate, she jumps on Lightwave Fold Transport just ahead of a bounty hunter.

But Lightwave might not be safer.

Lightwave’s crew were mercenaries. Mercenaries who destroyed her childhood home. Saree barely escaped last time. Will they recognize her?

Worse, will…


Book cover of Close Proximity - Crisis in the Silstrand Alliance

J.L. Stowers Author Of Vengeance Lost

From the list on space opera written by women.

Who am I?

I’ve held a burgeoning interest in the stars since I was a young girl. Daydreams of adventure and exploration guided me to the genre. Once I found it, I consumed everything I could find, both on-screen and in the pages of books. There’s something to be said about the vulnerability of being in the vastness of space, oftentimes with strangers who grow to be family. I guess, in a way, it reminds me of that moment when we set out into the world, away from our families, to learn and explore more about our surroundings and the characters we meet along the way (only on a much grander scale). 

J.L.'s book list on space opera written by women

Discover why each book is one of J.L.'s favorite books.

Why did J.L. love this book?

I don’t typically read military sci-fi or hard science fiction, but these two incredible authors have pulled me in. This series is part of a bigger universe called Aeon 14 and all of it is a joy to read. The authors work together to weave a story full of well-developed characters, flawless character interactions, along with conflict and resolution. 

Close Proximity - Crisis in the Silstrand Alliance

By Chris J. Pike, M. D. Cooper,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Close Proximity - Crisis in the Silstrand Alliance as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Silstrand Alliance lies at the intersection of vast empires.
And they're losing ground...
Kylie Rhoads, one-time officer in the Silstrand Space Force, is now a junker. Captain of the Dauntless, she plies the black at the edge of the Gedri System, looking for derelict hulls to pull in and sell for salvage. So that she can bring Maverick his cut of the take...

But the Silstrand Alliance hasn't forgotten Kylie, and Maverick has something they desperately need.

Kylie finds herself caught up with old friends, enemies, and a rather terrifying new technology that will make or break whatever future…


Bel Canto

By Ann Patchett,

Book cover of Bel Canto

Heidi Matonis Author Of Hatching Love

From the list on optimists and animal lovers.

Who am I?

I am an optimist. I jump out of bed in the morning ready to read and write. With my dog and cat by my side and a cup of coffee in hand, I lose myself in whatever I am working on. I am deeply curious about a gamut of subjects and constantly challenge myself to learn more. I am persistent and not afraid of hard work. Nature and animals are my bottomless well of inspiration and joy. I very much believe life is a journey and I try to enjoy each step.

Heidi's book list on optimists and animal lovers

Discover why each book is one of Heidi's favorite books.

Why did Heidi love this book?

If you read one book in your life, read Bel Canto. 

Ann Patchett’s writing is always sublime but her characters in this book are unforgettable. She stages a hostage situation in an undisclosed South American country. Over time, the young terrorists and the group of international strangers find a way to live and even thrive together. 

The novel revolves around the one female hostage, a beautiful opera singer. Her singing charms the most hardened terrorists and most skeptical politicians.

Bel Canto

By Ann Patchett,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Bel Canto as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Winner of The Women's Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.

The poignant - and at times very funny - novel from the author of The Dutch House and Commonwealth.

Somewhere in South America, at the home of the country's vice president, a lavish birthday party is being held in honour of the powerful businessman Mr. Hosokawa. Roxane Coss, opera's most revered soprano, has mesmerised the international guests with her singing.

It is a perfect evening - until a band of gun-wielding terrorists takes the entire party hostage. But what begins as a panicked, life-threatening scenario slowly evolves…


Tune in Tomorrow

By Randee Dawn,

Book cover of Tune in Tomorrow: The Curious, Calamitous, Cockamamie Story of Starr Weatherby and the Greatest Mythic Reality Show Ever

Alex Shvartsman Author Of The Middling Affliction: The Conradverse Chronicles, Book 1

From the list on funny and snarky fantasy set in New York City.

Who am I?

I've lived in Brooklyn for over 30 years now. I've always had a weakness for fun, snarky urban fantasy where the city is always a supporting character—and sometimes a major one. One day I decided to write a short story in the style of Simon R. Green's Nightside books, only instead of London, it'd feature New York City. And thus, the Conradverse was born. I tend to combine action, humor, real Brooklyn and NYC locations and history, and copious pop culture references when writing in this setting, and I seek out other books that do a great job at handling some or all of these elements.

Alex's book list on funny and snarky fantasy set in New York City

Discover why each book is one of Alex's favorite books.

Why did Alex love this book?

A struggling actress catches her big break when she's hired onto a reality TV/soap opera show produced by and watched by mythical creatures. They're fascinated with humans and more than willing to accept the soapiest of soap opera plots as reality. Dawn is an entertainment journalist and she mixes humor with insider details that make the set seem authentic. Well, as authentic as a set populated with fawn producers, cameradryads, and security dragons can get.

Although much of the story happens on set, the New York City bits by this Brooklyn-based author feel both authentic and fun to me.

Tune in Tomorrow

By Randee Dawn,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Tune in Tomorrow as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

She's just a small town girl, with big mythic dreams.

Starr Weatherby came to New York to become... well, a star. But after ten years and no luck, she's offered a big role - on a show no one has ever heard of. And there's a reason for that. It's a 'reality' show beyond the Veil, human drama, performed for the entertainment of the Fae.

But as Starr shifts from astounded newcomer to rising fan favorite, she learns about the show's dark underbelly - and mysterious disappearance of her predecessor. She'll do whatever it takes to keep her dream job…


Bantam of the Opera

By Mary Daheim,

Book cover of Bantam of the Opera

Susie Black Author Of Death by Pins and Needles

From the list on humorous mysteries with protagonists and sidekicks.

Who am I?

To be a successful humorous cozy mystery author, character development is the key. Prior to writing cozy mysteries, like the protagonist in my Holly Swimsuit Mystery Series, I enjoyed a career as a ladies’ apparel sales exec. Fortunately for my writing gig, salespeople are also students of human nature. I've been fascinated by what makes people tick all my life and have taken all I have learned and applied it to my writing. The relationship between the protagonist and her sidekick is one that makes the characters in my stories imperfect, but believable, accents their individuality, and lets their personalities come alive so that readers can’t help but invest in them.

Susie's book list on humorous mysteries with protagonists and sidekicks

Discover why each book is one of Susie's favorite books.

Why did Susie love this book?

My parents would certainly confirm I have always asked a lot of questions, and I am naturally the curious sort (some narrow-minded people say I am nosy…go figure…LOL). So, Seattle bed-and-breakfast hostess Judith McMonigle Flynn, who can’t mind her own beeswax to save her soul and let the police do their job, is a gal after my heart. In this book, Judith isn't exactly bellowing "Bravo!" over the news that obnoxious opera star Mario Pacetti and his entourage are coming to stay at the Hillside Manor. So when the would-be Pavarotti inadvertently drinks poison and falls down dead on his tosca, accusing eyes turn to Judith and her amateur sleuthing partner, irrepressible graphic artist cousin Renie. It's curtains unless the cousins can unmask the real culprit—before a killer's final, fatal encore.

I love the collision of wills between the bed and breakfast hostess and her cousin that bring a snap,…

Bantam of the Opera

By Mary Daheim,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Bantam of the Opera as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Bed-and-breakfast hostess Judith McMonigle Flynn isn't exactly bellowing "Bravo!" over the news that obnoxious opera star Mario Pacetti and his entourage are coming to stay at the Hillside Manor. The world-class tenor is a renowned pain-in-the-neck—a bloated buffoon who could easily eat her out of house and home. So when the puffed-up, would-be Pavarotti inadvertently drinks poison and falls down dead on his tosca, accusing eyes turn to Judith and her amateur sleuthing partner, cousin Renie. Now it's curtains unless the cousins can unmask the real culprit—before a killer's final, fatal encore.


Opera on Record

By Alan Blyth,

Book cover of Opera on Record

Nick Limansky Author Of Early 20th Century Opera Singers: Their Voices and Recordings from 1900-1949

From the list on historical opera singers.

Who am I?

Having been a professional singer for about five decades and having grown up with, and studied the early recordings of operatic singers for just as long, I feel that I am in an unusual position when it comes to analysing their art. The ability to describe a singer’s voice on paper is a unique challenge but one that I enjoy solving – especially since each voice is a law unto itself. When done correctly, analysis like this should make the reader want to go and find the recording so that they can listen for themselves.

Nick's book list on historical opera singers

Discover why each book is one of Nick's favorite books.

Why did Nick love this book?

This series of 3 books traces the recordings of various operas from the infancy of recording through modern-day recording and is another fascinting read. Making this even more interesting is the fact that each opera is taken on by a different writer so you always get a fresh view on the works being discussed.

Opera on Record

By Alan Blyth,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Opera on Record as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Good Book! Ships direct from Amazon, buy with 100% confidence!


The Murder of Figaro

By Susan Larson,

Book cover of The Murder of Figaro

Gerald Elias Author Of Cloudy with a Chance of Murder: A Daniel Jacobus Mystery

From the list on mysteries in the world of classical music.

Who am I?

I’ve spent a lifetime as a professional classical musician and a mystery reader. Starting with Hardy Boys adventures at the same time I started playing the violin, my intertwined love affairs with music and the mystery genre continue to this day. As a long-time member of major American symphony orchestras, I’ve heard and experienced so many stories about the dark corners of the classical music world that they could fill a library. It gives me endless pleasure to read other mystery authors’ take on this fascinating, semi-cloistered world and to share some of my own tales with the lay public in my Daniel Jacobus mystery series.

Gerald's book list on mysteries in the world of classical music

Discover why each book is one of Gerald's favorite books.

Why did Gerald love this book?

If Canone Inverso is your main course, The Murder of Figaro is the perfect dessert. It is light, frothy, and witty as a Mozart comic opera. As it should be, since the main characters are Mozart and his wife Constanze. Together, the frolicking pair must speedily solve the backstage murder of the government censor; otherwise, Mozart’s new opera, The Marriage of Figaro, will never see the light of day. Larson herself was an accomplished opera singer and has thorough insight into the opera world: the music, the business, and the backstage backstabbing. Written as a delightful opera buffa, this book is an absolutely fun read.

The Murder of Figaro

By Susan Larson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Murder of Figaro as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

It's 1786, and "The Marriage of Figaro," a new comic opera by Amadé Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte, has just begun its first onstage rehearsal when a corpse makes an appearance in the wings: it's the Imperial Censor, whom everybody wanted to kill at one time or other. Mozart and his clever wife Constanze are commanded to solve this deadly mystery. If they fail, "Figaro" will never play in Vienna!

The book is structured like an opera libretto, in four acts. There is even an overture, followed by two more overtures, just for fun. The plot follows that of "The…


Book cover of Saturday Afternoons at the Old Met: The Metropolitan Opera Broadcasts, 1931-1950

Nick Limansky Author Of Early 20th Century Opera Singers: Their Voices and Recordings from 1900-1949

From the list on historical opera singers.

Who am I?

Having been a professional singer for about five decades and having grown up with, and studied the early recordings of operatic singers for just as long, I feel that I am in an unusual position when it comes to analysing their art. The ability to describe a singer’s voice on paper is a unique challenge but one that I enjoy solving – especially since each voice is a law unto itself. When done correctly, analysis like this should make the reader want to go and find the recording so that they can listen for themselves.

Nick's book list on historical opera singers

Discover why each book is one of Nick's favorite books.

Why did Nick love this book?

One of the greatest series of books ever written about the early years of live broadcasting from the Metropolitan Opera. Jackson’s detailed analysis of the existing broadcasts is informative and fascinating. Even better they can be read by themselves, or even better, when listening to the actual broadcast. The amount of information in this series (3) is unbelievably vast and fascinating. All three are recommended.

Saturday Afternoons at the Old Met

By Paul Jackson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Saturday Afternoons at the Old Met as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

(Amadeus). In this first of three volumes, Paul Jackson begins a rich and detailed history of the early years of the Metropolitan Opera broadcasts, bringing to life more than 200 recorded broadcasts.


The Grand Tradition

By J.B. Steane,

Book cover of The Grand Tradition: Seventy Years of Singing on Record

Nick Limansky Author Of Early 20th Century Opera Singers: Their Voices and Recordings from 1900-1949

From the list on historical opera singers.

Who am I?

Having been a professional singer for about five decades and having grown up with, and studied the early recordings of operatic singers for just as long, I feel that I am in an unusual position when it comes to analysing their art. The ability to describe a singer’s voice on paper is a unique challenge but one that I enjoy solving – especially since each voice is a law unto itself. When done correctly, analysis like this should make the reader want to go and find the recording so that they can listen for themselves.

Nick's book list on historical opera singers

Discover why each book is one of Nick's favorite books.

Why did Nick love this book?

J.B. Steane’s massive book, over 600 pages, is one of the most comprehensive books on historical singers ever written. My copy is riddled with text underlining and notes in the margins. His evaluations of singers are always honest, but fair. I have read this book at least 3 times and have re-read sections many more times. It invaluable.

The Grand Tradition

By J.B. Steane,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Grand Tradition as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Before the gramophone could do justice to an orchestra, it was able to reproduce the human voice with comparative fidelity. Steane examines the great mass of singing on record and follows the fortunes of modern singers as well as old, in song, opera, and choral singing. This corrected second edition includes a preface and bibliography.


Dim Stars

By Brian P Rubin,

Book cover of Dim Stars: A Novel of Outer-Space Shenanigans

Chris Gerrib Author Of One of Our Spaceships is Missing

From the list on approachable new space operas.

Who am I?

I’ve been reading and enjoying science fiction since, as a kid, I rode my bicycle to the local library to read everything they had. That’s given me a broad exposure to the field from the Golden Age classics to new stuff hot off the presses. I’ve had four science fiction novels published, and in all of them I’ve used personal experiences to create as realistic a world as possible. I’ve also focused on ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary circumstances – that combination makes for better stories. I’ll leave the superheroes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe – they’ve got the budget to Blow Stuff Up Real Good!

Chris' book list on approachable new space operas

Discover why each book is one of Chris' favorite books.

Why did Chris love this book?

We’ve all read and seen stories where the old hero comes out of retirement to save the day one last time. 

But what if the “hero” really wasn’t a hero, but rather the product of somebody’s marketing department?  That’s the premise of this book.

Captain Dash Drake is famous, but fame has not brought fortune. When the evil invaders he “defeated” the last time come back, he’s ready to give up. His latest trainee, girl genius Kenzie Washington, thinks her hero will save the day. Watching the two of them misunderstand each other was amusing. Also standalone. 

(You should detect a pattern on my list – I’m not fond of never-ending series.)

Dim Stars

By Brian P Rubin,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Dim Stars as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Kenzie Washington, fourteen-year-old girl genius, signs up for a two-week tour as a cadet on the spaceship of her idol, Captain Dash Drake. Too bad Dash, who once saved the galaxy from the evil Forgers, is a broke loser and much less than meets the eye. But when an intergalactic evil appears and launches an attack, Dash, Kenzie, and the ship’s crew escape, making them the next target. On the run and low on gas, Dash and Kenzie encounter cannibal space-pirates, catastrophic equipment failure, and a cyborg who’s kind of a jerk. Kenzie is determined to discover the bad guys’…


Beholder's Eye

By Julie E. Czerneda,

Book cover of Beholder's Eye

Jaleta Clegg Author Of Nexus Point

From the list on classic space operas written by women.

Who am I?

I’ve been reading science fiction and fantasy, and specifically space opera, since I was seven and first discovered The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet. I read my way through every book in the school library and public library that dealt with aliens, space travel, starships, and especially adventure.

Jaleta's book list on classic space operas written by women

Discover why each book is one of Jaleta's favorite books.

Why did Jaleta love this book?

Esen is a shapechanger, a young one. While exploring a world considered ‘safe’ by her matriarch, she is captured by the natives. Her only hope of rescue is to betray her species' strict rules and reveal her true nature to her fellow prisoner, a human.

I adore Esen as a character. She is very relatable. I also love the breadth and scope of species and habitats and worlds in this series. Julie Czerneda is one of my favorite authors. Her storytelling skills shine. Esen is definitely not human, but Czerneda creates such a warm character you can’t help but love her. Beholder’s Eye is part coming-of-age but mostly a darn good science fiction adventure.

Beholder's Eye

By Julie E. Czerneda,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Beholder's Eye as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

United in their natural form they are one, sharing all their memories, experiences, and lives. Apart they are six, the only existing members of their ancient race, a species with the ability to assume any form once they understand its essence.

Their continued survival in a universe filled with races ready to destroy anyone perceived as different is based on the Rules. And first among those Rules is: Never reveal your true nature to another being. But when the youngest among them, Esen-alit-Quar, receives her first independent assignment to a world considered safe to explore, she stumbles into a trap…


The Ship Who Sang

By Anne McCaffrey,

Book cover of The Ship Who Sang

Jaleta Clegg Author Of Nexus Point

From the list on classic space operas written by women.

Who am I?

I’ve been reading science fiction and fantasy, and specifically space opera, since I was seven and first discovered The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet. I read my way through every book in the school library and public library that dealt with aliens, space travel, starships, and especially adventure.

Jaleta's book list on classic space operas written by women

Discover why each book is one of Jaleta's favorite books.

Why did Jaleta love this book?

Helva is a ‘brain’, a person with a defective body who becomes meshed with a starship as its controller. Each brain-ship is partnered with a ‘brawn’, a human who acts as the liaison for the ship as well as its partner and protector. Helva loves singing and brings heart to her role as a scoutship brain.

Anne McCaffrey brings her signature romance to this book with a complex relationship that grows between Helva and her brawn as they explore the universe. McCaffrey is deft at creating characters that are vulnerable but still strong in their own way. Though Helva has no physical strength, she has a heart that loves to sing. Even though she is basically a starship, she holds on to her humanity.

The Ship Who Sang

By Anne McCaffrey,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Ship Who Sang as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The brain was perfect, the tiny, crippled body useless. So technology rescued the brain and put it in an environment that conditioned it to live in a different kind of body - a spaceship.

Here the human mind, more subtle, infinitely more complex than any computer ever devised, could be
linked to the massive and delicate strengths, the total recall, and the incredible speeds of space. But
the brain behind the ship was entirely feminine - a complex, loving, strong, weak, gentle savage -a personality, all-woman, called Helva...


The Queen of the Night

By Alexander Chee,

Book cover of The Queen of the Night

Caitlin Horrocks Author Of The Vexations

From the list on featuring classical music.

Who am I?

I learned to read music at about the same time I learned to read words. I grew up taking piano lessons, studying almost entirely classical pieces that came weighted with history: everything I ever played had been played better by someone else. I still enjoyed my attempts, but realized that the relationship I had with those notes was not the one I wanted to have with words, which I felt drawn to assemble into my own arrangements, my own stories. So, as a weirdo who’s been thinking about interpretation and creation since childhood, I love books that delve into the challenges and emotional complexities of making music.

Caitlin's book list on featuring classical music

Discover why each book is one of Caitlin's favorite books.

Why did Caitlin love this book?

To portray the title character in Bizet’s Carmen is only one of the many transformations American orphan Lilliet Berne’s life requires, both on and offstage, as she ascends to opera stardom in late 19th century Paris. In this immersive novel, the clothes are as richly described as the music, and the music is described with not only sincere emotion but attention to realities and absurdities: Bizet’s early death leads to greatly improved ticket sales, for example. In Chee’s haunting first novel Edinburgh, he made choral music shimmer with both beauty and horror. The Queen of the Night is very different in setting, time, and sweeping sense of adventure, but shares Chee’s ability to movingly explore acts of survival and reinvention.

The Queen of the Night

By Alexander Chee,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Queen of the Night as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Recommended by The Observer . . .

'One doesn't so much read it, as one is bewitched by it. Epic, gorgeous, haunting' HANYA YANAGIHARA, author of A Little Life

When it begins, it begins as an opera should begin: in a palace, at a ball, in an encounter with a stranger, who you discover has your fate in his hands . . .

She is Lilliet Berne. And she is the soprano.

1882. One warm autumn evening in Paris, Lilliet is finally offered an original role, though it comes at a price. The part is based on her deepest secret.…


Foreigner

By C. J. Cherryh,

Book cover of Foreigner

Michael R. Johnston Author Of The Widening Gyre

From the list on multi-cultural space operas.

Who am I?

I’ve loved stories of space, and especially space operas, since I was a child watching Star Trek reruns with my dad. I love the ways very different cultures can work together toward a common goal, but also the many ways those cultures can butt into each other and cause friction. While you can certainly tell stories about that kind of thing on Earth, science fiction lets you tell it writ large, without smacking any particular human group over the head with their differences. I love the way you can tell a story about humans today by focusing on struggles between alien cultures that aren’t a part of our everyday experience. 

Michael's book list on multi-cultural space operas

Discover why each book is one of Michael's favorite books.

Why did Michael love this book?

In my own life, I’ve tried several times to learn other languages, including Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, and Scottish Gaelic. It’s hard to adjust to a new language and the cultural knowledge behind it. Cherryh’s hero, Bren Cameron, is a translator and mediator between humanity and the Atevi, the race of aliens who inhabit the world Cameron’s ancestors were marooned on (I’m simplifying here; go with me!). He has to not only translate the language, but the very concepts, of two species with very different points of view. And he has to do all this while surviving multiple attempts on his life, living alone surrounded by aliens, and cut off from his own people—but then, who are his own people? It’s a great story about a man who is human, but also admires the aliens who surround him, and has to constantly be on guard for the myriad of cultural assumptions…

Foreigner

By C. J. Cherryh,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Foreigner as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Two hundred years ago, there was war. The humans lost and were exiled to the island of Mospheira, trading titbits of advanced technology for continued peace and a secluded refuge. Only one single human - the paidhi - is allowed off the island and into the dangerous society of their conquerors.