Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate A Cappella Glory    by Mickey Rapkin Order:  USA  Can Gotham, 2008 (2008) Hardcover Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Leslie McKee Collegiate a cappella groups are a big business - more than the average reader may imagine. One such is described by its members as a geeky frat and there are more than 1,200 groups throughout the United States. A cappella is from the Italian for like the chapel. It is the oldest known form of music and began with the Gregorian chant. In the past twenty years, it has been made popular by musicians such as Bobby McFerrin, Paul Simon and Boys II Men. Rapkin has a personal history in the field of a cappella music. While researching this book, he traveled with the three groups featured to get the inside scoop. Pitch Perfect casts the spotlight on three groups: 1) Divisi (an all female group from the University of Oregon), 2) Beelzebubs (an all male group from Tufts University) and 3) Hullabaloos (an all male group from the University of Virginia). The reader will learn a great deal about each group, including their dress, musical style, the group's history, and details on individual members. A cappella is a highly competitive field and has included numerous celebrities, such as Anne Hathaway, Diane Sawyer, Art Garfunkel, John Legend and Osama Bin Laden (who sang songs about jihads!), just to name a few. If the reader is interested in learning (and hearing) more, www.pitchperfect-thebook.com is a perfect complement. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more NonFiction books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews