Reviews

From the early biography by Pierre Key to the best seller by his wife, Dorothy, from voluminous bibliography to the celebrated recordings, Caruso's life has been well documented. Two years ago, Michael Scott wrote an exhaustive biography ( The Great Caruso , LJ 9/15/88) that appeared to set the standard. Now we have a highly personal account by the great singer's own son in collaboration with recording authority Farkas. Many Caruso legends are corrected by this work. For instance, every other Caruso biography and the article in the New Grove say he was 18th of 21 children; he was, in fact, third of seven. This reviewer, working from galleys, had no opportunity to examine such ancillary materials as plates, chronologies, discographies, or bibliography, which, if they equal their promise, will be impressive and significant additions to this Caruso document.-- William Shank, CUNY Graduate Sch. Lib.