Book Blog: Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

BEL CANTO by Ann Patchett

★★★★

The beauty of Bel Canto isn’t only for musicians, but for anyone who recognizes the beauty of art in their everyday life. Set against an unlikely background of a hostage situation in an unnamed South American country (loosely based in the ‘96 Lima Crisis in Peru), this novel deeply explores the intricate set of relationships that develop among the captives over several months, as they gradually turn to art, music, and companionship to find solace in their confinement.

Any classical singer will love the interpretation of Roxanne Coss, a beloved soprano who captivates everyone in the house with her beautiful voice and gentle nature. She has been invited to perform at a private concert for Mr. Hosokawa, a Japanese businessman and devoted opera fan, whose excitement quickly turns to horror when armed rebels take over the estate. Though most of the women are initially released, Roxanne is kept - not only as a bargaining tool, but because no one wanted to lose the beauty of her voice. “She sang as if she was saving the life of every person in the room.”

The novel introduces a varied cast of characters: diplomats, businessmen, and translators among the hostages, while the captors are mostly young and inexperienced soldiers simply following orders. As time passes, the boundaries between them shift. Removed from their usual routines, the hostages immerse themselves in music, conversation, and even chess, finding purpose in unexpected places. Even the captors, initially hardened and distant, begin to soften under the influence of art and companionship, often partaking in shared activities with the hostages.

During the early days of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, many people were bound in their homes during lockdown, and found themselves without their regular routines, jobs, and social interactions. Instead, they found themselves with the time to live a slower, more purposeful life, leading to stories of baking bread, taking up new hobbies, and rediscovering forgotten passions. Bel Canto carries a similar feeling. Removed from their high-pressure positions and daily responsibilities, many of the hostages begin to find joy in simple, meaningful pursuits. Under the eye of their watchful captors, they nonetheless take the time to play the piano, listen to Roxanne, learn new languages, and even fall in love. Stripped of their usual routines and obligations, they become immersed creative pursuits they never had time to explore before. For musicians, this serves as a powerful reminder of exactly why art matters - requires presence, invites reflection, and enriches the human experience, in even the absolute worst of circumstances. It’s why art remains so important even today.

Reading this novel feels like attending an opera itself - in a short period of time, there are grand gestures, romantic entanglements, and a range of heightened emotions as guests deliberate whether or not they will live or die, or whether or not they should or shouldn’t play the piano. The plot moves slowly and deliberately (this is not a quick read). Over time, the hostages develop a surprising attachment to their captors, a dynamic that can be read as a form of Stockholm Syndrome.

But just as events on stage can unfold in ways that would not be unfortunate in reality, so too does the fragile harmony within the house. What felt like a world suspended in time is shattered by the inevitable arrival of the outside world. The sense of refuge they had created is upended in an instant, forcing both captors and hostages to confront the reality they had momentarily escaped.

—

“Bel Canto has all the qualities one has come to expect from a classic Ann Patchett novel: grace, beauty, elegance, and magic.” - Madison Smartt Bell

“A provocative and enchanting look at the power art has to suspend real life and to create a better world, one in which the differences between people can be erased and the barriers to our best selves can be hurdled.” - Detroit Free Press

—

“Some people are born to make great art and others are born to appreciate it. Don't you think? It is a kind of talent in itself, to be an audience, whether you are the spectator in the gallery or you are listening to the voice of the world's greatest soprano. Not everyone can be the artist. There have to be those who witness the art, who love and appreciate what they have been privileged to see.” This classic is a novel worth experiencing all the way through.

Find Bel Canto at your local library or shop at Bookshop.org!