Ann Patchett (Autor):Bel Canto: The best selling Winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction and author of The Dutch House - Winner of the Orange Prize for Fiction, Winner of the Pen/Faulkner Award (English Edit
- Taschenbuch 2002, ISBN: 9781841155838
[ED: Taschenbuch], [PU: Fourth Estate], ZUSTAND: Sehr gut, textsauber (keine Anstreichungen oder Markierungen).
The poignant – and at times very funny – novel from the author… Mehr…
[ED: Taschenbuch], [PU: Fourth Estate], ZUSTAND: Sehr gut, textsauber (keine Anstreichungen oder Markierungen).
The poignant – and at times very funny – novel from the author of The Dutch House and Commonwealth.
Somewhere in South America, at the home of the country's vice president, a lavish birthday party is being held in honour of the powerful businessman Mr. Hosokawa. Roxane Coss, opera's most revered soprano, has mesmerised 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.
Pressestimmen
`A beguiling mix of thriller, romantic comedy, and novel of ideas...Crisply written, immaculately plotted, and often very funny, it is that rarity - a literary novel you simply can't put down.' The Times `Like the blueprint of operatic performance that she has imported, Patchett slides from strutting camp to high tragedy, minute social comedy to sublime romanticism.' Alex Clark, The Guardian `Expect miracles when you read Ann Patchett's fiction. Comparisons are tempting to the unabashed romanticism of Laurie Colwin, the eccentric characters of Anne Tyler, the enchantments of Alice Hoffman. But Patchett is unique; a generous, fearless and startlingly wise young writer.' New York Times Review of Books `A fantastically gripping novel of romance under unexpected conditions.' Cosmopolitan -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verfügbare Ausgabe dieses Titels.
Amazon.de
In Ann Patchett's Bel Canto, an unnamed South American country, a world-renowned soprano sings at a birthday party in honour of a visiting Japanese industrial titan. Alas, in the opening sequence, just as the accompanist kisses the soprano, a ragtag band of 18 terrorists enters the vice-presidential mansion through the air-conditioning ducts. Their quarry is the president, who has unfortunately stayed home to watch a favourite soap opera--and thus, from the beginning, things go awry.
Among the hostages are not only Hosokawa and Roxanne Coss, the American soprano, but an assortment of Russian, Italian and French diplomats. A Swiss Red Cross negotiator named Joachim Messner is roped into service while on holiday. He comes and goes, wrangling over terms and demands, and the days stretch into weeks, the weeks into months.
With the omniscience of magic realism, Ann Patchett flits in and out of the hearts and psyches of hostage and terrorist alike, and in doing so reveals a profound, shared humanity. Her voice is suitably lyrical, melodic, full of warmth and compassion. Hearing opera sung live for the first time, a young priest reflects:
Never had he thought, never once, that such a woman existed, one who stood so close to God that God's own voice poured from her. How far she must have gone inside herself to call up that voice. It was as if the voice came from the centre part of the earth and by the sheer effort and diligence of her will she had pulled it up through the dirt and rock and through the floorboards of the house, up into her feet, where it pulled through her, reaching, lifting, warmed by her, and then out of the white lily of her throat and straight to God in heaven.
Joined by no common language except music, the 58 international hostages and their captors forge unexpected bonds. Ultimately, of course, something has to give, even in a novel so imbued with the rich imaginative potential of magic realism. But in a fractious world, Bel Canto remains a gentle reminder of the transcendence of beauty and love. --Victoria Jenkins, Amazon.com -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verfügbare Ausgabe dieses Titels.
Über den Autor und weitere Mitwirkende
Originally from Los Angeles, Ann Patchett has also written `The Magician's Assistant' and `The Patron Saint of Liars'. She lives in Nashville and is the Tennessee Williams Fellow in Creative Writing at the University of the South. -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verfügbare Ausgabe dieses Titels.
Synopsis
The poignant -- and at times very funny -- novel from the author of 'The Magician's Assistant', winner of the Orange Prize, repackaged and promoted as part of Perennial's fiction promotion in 2008. Latin terrorists storm an international gathering hosted by an underprivileged country to promote foreign interest and trade, only to find that their intended target, the President, has stayed home to watch his favourite soap opera on TV. Among the hostages are a world-class opera singer and her biggest fan, a Japanese tycoon who has been persuaded to attend the party on the understanding that she will perform half a dozen arias after dinner. The tycoon's engaging and sympathetic translator plays a vital role in the subsequent relationships between so many different nationalities closeted together, interpreting not only the terrorists' negotiations but also the language of love between lovers who cannot understand what the other is saying. Ultimately, it is the terrorist strike that does more to promote foreign relations than anyone could have hoped to achieve with the party. -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verfügbare Ausgabe dieses Titels.
Buchrückseite
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 guests with her singing. It is a perfect evening—until a band of terrorists breaks in, taking the entire party hostage.
But what begins as a life-threatening scenario slowly evolves into something quite different. 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.
Ann Patchett has written a novel that is as lyrical and profound as it is unforgettable. Bel Canto is a virtuoso performance by one of our best and most important writers.
Biografie
Ann Patchett wurde für ihren Bestseller »Bel Canto« mit dem PEN/Faulkner-Prize und dem britischen Orange Prize for Fiction ausgezeichnet. Die Idee ihres Romans entstand aus der Geiselnahme der japanischen Botschaft durch Guerillas in Lima 1996, die erst vier lange Monate später beendet wurde. Ann Patchett, die bereits drei Romane veröffentlicht hat, lebt in Nashville/Tennessee.
Rezensionen:
"Bel Canto is one of the best novels I have read over the last years, light, amusing and serious at the same time:very recommendable."
"One of my favourite reads of all times! The language is exquisite, the plot unusal yet fascinating and most impressive is the fact that the novel has a rhythm of its own, a bit like a dance which mirrors the plot. The characters are credible and likeable. Moments of great tension are interspersed with languour, nearly ennui and hilarity. An accessible and most satisfying read. I found it impossible to put this book down."
"Ann Patchett is an author that I have heard of but had never read any of her books. This book was recommended by a friend (whose taste I admire) and coincided with the author's latest book receiving some very positive marketing. So it's fair to say that I had high expectations.
Whilst I was reading the book I was talking to others about it and many people I know have read it.
To my delight I found this book to give me real joy as it is an amazing study of human nature. The action is set in an unspecified South American country where a party is drawn to an abrupt ending by a group of terrorists who then take everyone as hostages.
We then follow the progress of the situation and observe how the relationships develop.
In some ways the writing is immensely claustrophobic with frequent mention of the day to day detail necessary to maintain life and sanity. Surrounding this there is much beauty and love which seems both unlikely and absolutely natural at the same time.
Inside the house the terrorists and the hostages seem content for time to drift as their lives slow down and it's very much the same for the reader. It is odd how such a gripping book took me a long time to read - that's usually a bad sign but with this book I was just savouring it.
As the end approaches the tension for the reader mounts - we know the book is running out of pages but the hostages still have no idea what is going to happen (and I loved the end of the book, it was surprising but completely plausible).
I was particularly curious about how the passing of time was illustrated. It would have been easy for the author to date time chapters (or something similar) but it is handled in a much more subtle way with the reader having to search for clues (clothes needing to be washed and beards having been grown as just two examples). We really only have a vague idea about how long the siege has been underway which is much the same for all those involved."
"Enchanting story, told wonderfully. Read the negative reviews from those who expected a conventional action thriller and were disappointed. In fact this book is something far, far better. It has its tensions, but these are much more subtle as the characters and their relationships unfold in strange circumstances. And if you like music, especially opera, you are in for a rare treat."
"I have been wanting to read this since it first won the Orange Prize and it has taken me ten years to get round to it. I have read it in about three days, which is unusual, but it became compulsive reading.
The story unfolds slowly, bit by bit we find out about the former lives of both the captives and captors - often with little flares of wit; the opera loving young priest and his confession is an example. The minutiae of everyday life for all these people is explored, and above all, the power of music to change and illuminate their lives runs through the whole.
The style is spare and apparently dispassionate, at least at first, and the book asks many more questions than it answers. I loved it, and will probably re-read it from time to time to again meet these wonderful characters."
"Never before have I finished a book, turned back to the beginning and started again. In this extraordinary book Ann Patchett describes the nobler side of human nature in what ought to be terrible circumstances. A bungled kidnap turns into a long-term hostage situation. The hostages are men, all leaders in their field, and one exceptional woman, an opera singer, whose voice transcends the multitude of factors that should divide those confined together. Relationships develop between the hostages themselves and between the hostages and their captors, most of whom don't speak the same language. It is a rare book. It elevates humanity, showing how even those under enormous stress can show great courage and consideration for their fellow man. It made me laugh and cry - both times - and it has a great twist at the end! I'm sure I'll read it again."
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