Full AspenCat Catalog

"With this expanded and updated third edition, theatre-lovers can possess, in one volume, a comprehensive survey of American musical theatre, from (probably) the first musical performed on American soil - the 1735 South Carolina production of "Flora, or Hob in the Well" - right up to the 1999-2000 Broadway season. Spanning more than 250 years and covering a wide spectrum of musical entertainments - musical comedy, revues, opera bouffe, operetta, and...

Re-examines the origins of twenty-four popular nursery rhymes, revealing them as commentaries on historical, religious, political, and sexual events.

An exploration of poetry and feeling, presenting poems selected by the author as emblematic because they suggest something crucial about the nature of poetry itself, and offering his insights on how the poems should be read.

A history of American rock music from its beginnings in the 1950s featuring profiles on early artists including Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley, Bill Haley and B.B. King, and the rock groups of the 1970s and 1980s.

Includes index. An account of the span of American literature from its beginnings in the seventeenth century to the writings of the 1980s.

Chronicles the origin and development of the American jazz movement describing the instruments, sounds, and techniques that characterize jazz music; as well as profiles of jazz legends including Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, and John Coltrane.

Traces the origins and development of folk music in America; discusses the social, economic, and regional influences on folk music; and includes a look at characteristic instruments and sounds, photographs, and brief biographies of notable folk musicians.

Examines the life of early twentieth-century Czech author Franz Kafka, presents an analysis of his writing, and features a selection of critical essays regarding Kafka's work, a chronology, and a complete bibliography.