Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Suddenly, clearly, he could see her, the way he had been able to see her at twenty, not her physical self at twenty, because in every sense she was more beautiful to him now, but he felt that old sensation, the leaping of his heart, the reckless flush of desire. He would find her in the house, cutting fresh paper to line the shelves or lying across their bed on her stomach writing letters to their daughters who were attending university in Paris, and he was breathless. Had she always been like this, had he never known? Had he known and then somehow, carelessly, forgotten? In this country with its dirt roads and yellow rice he discovered he loved her, he was her. Perhaps this would not have been true if he had been the ambassador to Spain. Without these particular circumstances, this specific and horrible place, he might never have realized that the only true love of his life was his wife.

This passage about Ambassador Simon Thibault's discovery of his life in the crisis of his assignment to a third-world country, is really what the entire novel Bel Canto is about. In the circumstances of the crisis set in motion in the novel's early pages, each of the book's central characters finds his or her own version of Thibault's insight. For some it is love of a person, for some it is some undiscovered or undeveloped facet of himself, but for all, it is finding something at the core which makes life rich and meaningful.

The book begins at a party. It is a birthday party thrown for a wealthy Japanese manufacturer that the unnamed South American country's administration hopes to persuade to build a factory in their nation. It is at the home of the country's under-appreciated Vice President, and the magnate is finally persuaded to come only when his favorite soprano is also invited to sing at the party. The assembled guests are mostly the elite of the country, as well as a few Japanese and foreign executives whose business might follow if the factory were to be built. In addition, a local priest with a profound love of opera has managed to receive an invitation through the intervention of a friend. The country's President should be there, but at the last moment cancels to stay home and watch his favorite soap opera. As the soprano finishes her final selection, the lights go out, and the party is invaded by a band of rebels intent on kidnapping the President and taking him hostage. In time they discover their mistake, and the novel unfolds as they improvise a backup plan with a house full of new hostages.

Ann Patchett will make you crave opera tickets, even if you have never wanted them before. She will make you see the myriad beauties in a single day, as you fall in love with her well-crafted characters. You will join with the characters in their dread and their denial. And at the book's close, you may well be breathless and haunted. This book deserved the Orange Prize and the other prizes and nominations it received. For me this was a 4.5. Marvelous.

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett (Beachreader)

Title:  Bel Canto

Author:  Ann Patchett
Published:  2001, Harper Collins
Genre:  Literary Fiction
Accolades:  2002 Orange Prize, 2002 Pen/Faulkner Award, 2001 National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction shortlist

In this lyrical and beautifully written novel Ann Patchett has created a story based loosely on an actual hostage situation in Peru in 1996.  In an unnamed South American country diplomats and the wealthy are gathering in the home of the vice president to hear an international opera singer perform at the birthday party of a powerful Japaneses businessman.  During the party terrorists storm the home and take everyone hostage.  What begins as a horrendously difficult and frightening situation slowly turns bearable as days turn into weeks turn into months and terrorists and hostages find the humanity in each other in order to survive the ordeal.

I am going to come right out and say it - I have a few quibbles with this book.  I can not deny that Patchet is an amazing weaver of words and the book is rich with descriptive passages;

"She stared hard into the darkness of her eyes, the place where she knew the sins stacked up like kindling, dry and ready for a fire."  page 247, Bel Canto

Amazing. 

What I had a hard time with was suspending belief.  I don't know if its post 9-11, but I couldn't feel sympathy towards the terrorists which made it difficult to believe or even understand some of the events that occur in the book. The plot of the book is interesting, the idea that when people are trapped together even under vicious circumstances they create their own universe to help make sense of the chaos and stress that fear can induce, but there had to be someone out of all those hostages who would have at least plotted an escape - the idea wasn't even suggested (unless I missed it).

The other problem I had with the book was the epilogue. I felt it was just tacked on as an after thought.  The ending would have been more powerful if the book had stopped before the epilogue (I can't really go into detail why with out spoiling the story).

Patchett's characterization is brilliant. She captured how our culture plays an integral role in shaping who we are and it was interesting watching how the characters overcame their differences in order to survive.  I kept reading the book because there were several characters that I really liked and I wanted to know if they "made it out alive."  If you are a fan of Patchett's you will enjoy this is well-written story. 

My Rating Guide:  3 out of 5

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett (Jill)

Bel Canto
By Ann Patchett
Completed July 4, 2010

Imagine being held hostage for more than four months in a luxurious mansion in a South American country. Negotiations are at a stalemate, and the terrorists holding you are nothing more than a gang of armed teenagers led by three generals. You outnumber your captors, and they are pretty lax with their rules. Despite the odds, you never try to escape. Why? Because your life as a hostage allows you to become a new person – a person that you couldn’t be in your real life. It’s this theme that is the cornerstone to Bel Canto by Ann Patchett.

The group was assembled to celebrate the birthday of a Japanese industrialist, Mr. Hosokawa. They were foreign dignitaries, priests and government officials – and the character that tied them all together was Roxane Coss, the American soprano who was the evening’s entertainment. Once the terrorists invaded the mansion, it was Roxane who called the shots. She used her lovely voice as collateral and was able to negotiate shampoo, food and other amenities for her fellow captives. In turn, she sang for the terrorists and hostages – and they all fell under the spell of Roxane’s music.

Spending months together blurred the lines between the terrorists and hostages. Together, they played chess, took reading lessons, cooked and made love. The hostages, mostly older men, showed fatherly affection to some of the terrorists. With this attention, the teens began to blossom. A boy could sing, a girl could read, another could play chess. They transformed from being jungle children to individuals with hearts and souls – all wanting love and approval.

Bel Canto runs at a slow pace, which probably won’t suit many readers. However, if you love character-driven stories, this is the perfect book for you. My only complaint was the epilogue, which tied together some unnecessary loose strings. Sometimes, stories just need to end on its tragic note – because that’s what happens in real life. Other than this small flaw, I enjoyed Bel Canto and look forward to reading more fiction by the talented Ann Patchett. ( )

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett (Nicole)

Originally posted here on July 16, 2008.

Beautifully written, this book reminded me of reading Gabriel Garcia Marquez.  The "unreality" of it all.  Not meant to be taken literally.   Loved the way the narrator was upfront about what happened later in the story because then our concentration is on how it all unfolds.  Great use of the omniscient point of view.  The narrator puts his spin and interpretation of events as they are unfolding.  People coming together and crossing the artificial boundaries that we put up to separate ourselves.  The characters are able to find themselves as they are being held hostage.  Their needs and wants, and also those of the hostage takers, are reduced yet intensified with their limitations as hostages. (I'm sure there is a better word for hostage takers, but I can't think of one now. Captors?)

It was interesting to hear another friend's perspective on this book.  I had heard before reading it that it was either hated or loved.  After talking with my friend who hated it, I better understand the polarization.  Suspension of disbelief is necessary to enjoy this book.  Her main reason for not being able to enjoy the book was predicated on her belief that that people in a hostage situation wouldn't behave in this way, and she has a point, they wouldn't. However for me, it wasn't so far from the realms of possibility.  In horrific situations people do amazing things to adapt, and will often identify with their captors.  I was willing to suspend disbelief because I was caught up in the greater beauty of the connections the characters starting making with themselves and with each other.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys beautiful and lyrical prose in a tale that leans heavily on the fantastical.

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

This review was originally posted on my blog in June 2006.

Somewhere in South America, at the home of the country's vice president, a lavish birthday party is being held in honor of Mr. Hosokawa, a powerful Japanese businessman. Roxanne Coss, opera's most revered soprano, has mesmerized the international guests with her singing. It is a perfect evening -- until a band of gun-wielding terrorists breaks in through the air-conditioning vents and takes the entire party hostage. But what begins as a panicked, life-threatening scenario slowly evolves into something quite different, as terrorists and hostages forge unexpected bonds and people from different countries and continents become compatriots.

Without the demands of the world to shape their days, life on the inside becomes more beautiful than anything they had ever known before. At once riveting and impassioned, the narrative becomes a moving exploration of how people communicate when music is the only common language. Friendship, compassion, and the chance for great love lead the characters to forget the real danger that has been set in motion and cannot be stopped.

You know...the blurb on this one tells enough to make it sound interesting. The main characters in this novel are Roxanne Coss (the opera singer), Mister Hosakawa (the opera fan), Gen (his interpreter) and Carmen (one of the terrorists), however there are several other characters that take a turn in the spotlight.

Whilst the pace of this book is ponderous at times, the writing is beautiful, and you can feel the book moving to an inevitably crashing crescendo. The hostage situation has been ongoing for many months, and whilst for the people within the compound that life has settled into a pleasant routine with music and football as part of the life they have become accustomed to, as far as the world outside is concerned the situation cannot continue.

If there was one thing that I didn't like it was the Epilogue, which certainly tied up a couple of loose ends, but in a way that was almost against the flow of the relationships that happened throughout the rest of the book.

If you are looking for a book to meander through, then this could be one for you.

Rating 3.5/5

Updated to add:

Now that I have some distance on reading this book, I think the grade was right, but I probably would have written up the content a little differently (it's a little scary to see how your review style changes over a period of a couple of years), and yet I still remember it quite well. That does sound kind of contradictory I guess, but then again that probably sums up my feelings about this book. I have never really gone out of my way to pick up any other Ann Patchett books since reading this book.