The Secret Life of the American Musical: How Broadway Shows Are Built (by Jack Viertel)

After reading Showstoppers, I had a thirst to read more about Broadway so I picked up this one. And whaddaya know, Jack Viertel seems to enjoy many Broadway shows post-Rodgers and Hart, which made for a more read more in line with my own tastes.

I also loved the structure of this -- breaking down the classic structure of musicals: the introduction song, the love song, the villain song, etc. etc.  Viertel uses lots of examples from a variety of musicals to make his point, so each chapter talks about specific songs and how they function in the context of the musical, (And he gives "Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat" and Stubby Kaye their due.)  (Also he cites Lil' Abner as a guilty pleasure. Oh man, me too.)

At the end he does a long list of various musicals (both mentioned and not) and discusses which cast recordings are his favorite. If you're a musicals fan, this is a must-read.