Bel Canto

By: Ann Patchett

Narrated by: Anna Fields

Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award • Winner of the Orange Prize • National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist • New York Times Readers’ Pick: Top 100 Books of the 21st Century

""Bel Canto is its own universe. A marvel of a book."" —Washington Post Book World

New York Times bestselling author Ann Patchett’s spellbinding novel about love and opera, and the unifying ways people learn to communicate across cultural barriers in times of crisis

Somewhere in South America, at the home of the country's vice president, a lavish birthday party is being held in honor of the powerful businessman Mr. Hosokawa. 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 takes the entire party hostage. But what begins as a panicked, life-threatening scenario slowly evolves into something quite different, a moment of great beauty, as terrorists and hostages forge unexpected bonds and people from different continents become compatriots, intimate friends, and lovers.

Patchett's lyrical prose and lucid imagination make Bel Canto a captivating story of strength and frailty, love and imprisonment, and an inspiring tale of transcendent romance.

©2001 Ann Patchett; (P)2001 HarperCollins Publishers

Characters are Fleshed Out/ Plot is Slow

This book did not rivet me or make me excited to listen and hear what would happen next, but because of all of the good reviews and awards by the experts I stuck with it. I decided it was worth my listening time to wait for the payoff at the end. I knew there would be no plot surprise, because the author told me at the beginning of the book what was going to happen, so I was left wondering what was going to be the "other payoff." This is the deepening understanding that comes through spending hours with a group of characters that finally in the end show you something new about yourself. Unfortunately for me that did not happen. However, I did like all of the characters and I think the author painted a clear picture of most of her leads. I cared about them and I felt the pathos of what happened to them. I still was thinking of the book a couple of days later. But can I say that I enjoyed my listening experience? Maybe, but I don’t think it is one of my favorites.

Going back to the rave reviews and literary awards. I can see that the union between her subject matter (opera) and her stylistic form was very well crafted. This form makes for a great discussion in a book review. However, is that a reason to highly recommend a book to readers? No.

A suggestion... If these characters did more than sit around a house for four months getting to know each other the plot would have been more interesting.

Incredible

This is the perfect meeting of well-written novel and talented narrator. What a treat! Ms. Fields is responsible for making this book live in the ear, mind, and heart. A stunning achievement.

Excellent reading of an exceptional novel

This is a fabulous book and Anna Fields is a superb narrator. Fields is so good at giving the different characters, male or female, their individual voice. Ann Patchett is a truly gifted author. Highly recommended!

lyrical, lush, airy

this made me want to listen to opera more carefully and to drink it in. it was a lovely and engaging tale with poignancy, pleasure, charm. it is not a dense or complex story, though certainly a story with complex characters. and the narration was terrific.

Still haunts my memory

Ann Patchett is an author I can never review right away. Her stories need to sit with me, requiring some contemplating. She allows her readers to be wise, draw their own conclusions, and harbour their own hope for her characters. I loved the inevitable ending, while wishing against it with every fiber of my being. Her characters ended up feeling like friends and I didn't want to let them go. They still haunt me, like the ghost of a perfect aria cycling through my mind. Unlike most stories, I will not forget a moment of this one. It has become a top recommendation.