The beginning of the book was especially satirical, biting without ever being cruel. Patchett’s sense of humor is very similar to mine, and I often found myself laughing out loud at her one-liners. One of my favorite things about Bel Canto was the balance between the dry, very sarcastic sense of humor, and the touching emotional moments. It’s something you can’t experience again, and it happened for me at such a young age that I don’t remember it. I loved seeing characters connect with music for the first time. It was wonderful to be reminded of what exactly it is about classical music that is so stirring, and how music can be so important in your life. As a former musician (did you know my bachelor’s degree is in music?) I loved this element. There was a profound love for music, especially opera, that permeated this entire book. It was so beautiful, and I connected with it so deeply. I don’t know how to adequately express how much I loved this book or why. Ultimately, of course, something has to give. Time stands still, priorities rearrange themselves. Joined by no common language except music, the 58 international hostages and their captors forge unexpected bonds. Days stretch into weeks, the weeks into months. Swiss Red Cross negotiator Joachim Messner comes and goes, wrangling over terms and demands.
And thus, from the beginning, things go awry.Īmong the hostages are Russian, Italian, and French diplomatic types. Their quarry is the president, who has unfortunately stayed home to watch a favorite soap opera. Alas, in the opening sequence, a ragtag band of 18 terrorists enters the vice-presidential mansion through the air conditioning ducts. In an unnamed South American country, a world-renowned soprano sings at a birthday party in honor of a visiting Japanese industrial titan.
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