Milton Cross Complete Stories of the Great Operas (1952) Doubleday HC VG+

A classic mid-twentieth-century reference guide to the plots and historical context of major operas in the European repertoire. Written in clear narrative form, the book summarizes dozens of celebrated works - including Aida, La Bohème, Carmen, Don Giovanni, The Barber of Seville, Lucia di Lammermoor, Madama Butterfly, Parsifal, and many others - making them accessible to students, opera-goers, and radio audiences. The volume includes line drawings by Dolores Ramos along with detailed contents listings and an extensive index of composers, characters, and musical numbers. Published by Doubleday & Company, Inc., Garden City, New York, this copy bears the copyright statement 'MCMXLVII, MCMLII' (1947, 1952), indicating the revised 1952 printing of the original 1947 edition. The book is bound in the publisher's red cloth with decorative gilt stamping on the spine and publisher imprint at the base. Condition: Very Good+. Binding is tight and square with strong hinges. Pages are clean and bright with only light age toning typical of mid-century paper. No writing, markings, tears, or rips observed. Red cloth boards remain solid with moderate surface wear and minor fraying at the head and tail of the spine; corners lightly rubbed. Dust jacket not present. Milton J. Cross (1897-1975) was an American radio announcer and narrator best known for his long association with the Metropolitan Opera Saturday radio broadcasts, which he hosted for more than four decades. His books explaining opera plots became widely popular among American audiences and helped introduce generations of listeners to the major works of the operatic repertoire.…