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midwifereading's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
**some spoiler-ish talk**
It took me two weeks to read this. I don't know how much of it was because of its slow pace, or because I have had an especially busy couple of work weeks. (It's raining babies here, y'all.)
Normally, a book people describe as slow will turn out to be one that I really enjoy, but this one didn't really work for me. I never had an urge to DNF it, but I also rarely felt urgently compelled to pick it up.
Ann Patchett's writing is superb, lyrical, and descriptive. Her characters have depth, and the relationships are especially complex and honest. The whole hostage/terrorist dynamic adds a layer that you are invited to forget right alongside each character, only to have stark reminders creep up on you. You just know this can't end well. But you lose sight of that in the hope that, somehow, against the odds, it will turn out okay.
It doesn't.
And the epilogue felt unreal and unbelievable to me, though I suppose it makes some sense.
I desperately wanted a happy ending for this story, but all we're given is bittersweet at best. I don't always need a happy ending, by any means, but I did this time.
The slow, melancholy pace is shot through with bright glimpses of hope, but you know, all along, it's not true hope. I almost wished everyone had died, so it's properly tragic. That would have been easier to swallow for me personally.
I can see why Patchett is a favorite author, and her acclaim is well-deserved! Yet, I don't know that she's right for me. Anything less than five stars feels wrong, objectively speaking, but since my ratings are exclusively based on how the book was for me personally, I can't rate it higher than I have.
It took me two weeks to read this. I don't know how much of it was because of its slow pace, or because I have had an especially busy couple of work weeks. (It's raining babies here, y'all.)
Normally, a book people describe as slow will turn out to be one that I really enjoy, but this one didn't really work for me. I never had an urge to DNF it, but I also rarely felt urgently compelled to pick it up.
Ann Patchett's writing is superb, lyrical, and descriptive. Her characters have depth, and the relationships are especially complex and honest. The whole hostage/terrorist dynamic adds a layer that you are invited to forget right alongside each character, only to have stark reminders creep up on you. You just know this can't end well. But you lose sight of that in the hope that, somehow, against the odds, it will turn out okay.
It doesn't.
And the epilogue felt unreal and unbelievable to me, though I suppose it makes some sense.
I desperately wanted a happy ending for this story, but all we're given is bittersweet at best. I don't always need a happy ending, by any means, but I did this time.
The slow, melancholy pace is shot through with bright glimpses of hope, but you know, all along, it's not true hope. I almost wished everyone had died, so it's properly tragic. That would have been easier to swallow for me personally.
I can see why Patchett is a favorite author, and her acclaim is well-deserved! Yet, I don't know that she's right for me. Anything less than five stars feels wrong, objectively speaking, but since my ratings are exclusively based on how the book was for me personally, I can't rate it higher than I have.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Sexual content
nialiversuch's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, and Classism
Minor: Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Vomit, and War
cotte_ford's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Sexual content
dev921's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, and Kidnapping
mylittlehappynook's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Gun violence, Sexual content, and Violence
greatexpectations77's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This is one of those books that unfolds slowly, and you spend so much time with it that you feel a little loss after it's over. Like your mind keeps wandering back to these fully formed characters that you've grown to care about, just to arrive at the conclusion that they're gone from your life forever. I felt such tenderness toward almost every character. And I think it was intentional, but the only bit for me that kept me from a 5-star review was that the ending was so abrupt that I thought I had missed pages. But the whole playing with tragicomedy was incredible, and I really enjoyed the writing.
*bought from the library book sales at Citizens Library in downtown Washington, PA.
*bought from the library book sales at Citizens Library in downtown Washington, PA.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, and Classism
Moderate: Gun violence, Grief, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Sexual content, Blood, and Alcohol
lottselgar's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
ann gave me the world and then ripped it out from under me. i was so hopeful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Sexual content
helen's review against another edition
4.0
Loosely based on events in Peru in 1996 when a guerrilla group entered the Japanese ambassador's residence and held people hostage for four months.
This book is set in an unspecified South American country and the hostages are from all over the world, including a famous American soprano, an opera-loving Japanese businessman, and his (very overworked!) translator.
The hostage-takers start off as a scary group with guns, but over the course of the book, via Patchett's excellent use of humour and pathos, they become individuals who are trapped by their circumstances. The author makes a bold decision to tell us their fate in chapter one. This has the effect of allowing us to slow down and sink into the unfurling story without the need to rush to the end to find out what happens.
Despite the violent beginning and ending, at its heart it's a kind story about trapped people finding a common language via music and love.
4 stars because I really disliked the epilogue.
Content notes: Death of main characters, guns, gun violence, on page sex
This book is set in an unspecified South American country and the hostages are from all over the world, including a famous American soprano, an opera-loving Japanese businessman, and his (very overworked!) translator.
The hostage-takers start off as a scary group with guns, but over the course of the book, via Patchett's excellent use of humour and pathos, they become individuals who are trapped by their circumstances. The author makes a bold decision to tell us their fate in chapter one. This has the effect of allowing us to slow down and sink into the unfurling story without the need to rush to the end to find out what happens.
Despite the violent beginning and ending, at its heart it's a kind story about trapped people finding a common language via music and love.
4 stars because I really disliked the epilogue.
Content notes:
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Sexual content
phantomgecko's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Often when I'm talking to my husband about what I'm reading, he'll ask, "What's the point of this book?" and basically if he needs to ask, the answer is just people. Bel Canto is 100% about people and how they feel. You get glimpses of much more than just the "main" characters. Backstory after backstory. Tidbits that don't affect the plot at all but add flavor to the people soup.
This character is ashamed of her cowardly husband; this character fell in love with art as a child; this character is in love with a coworker; this character is trying to use this situation for political gain.
It's a slow book. There's a plot, but often the plot doesn't matter. The characters do tho.
This character is ashamed of her cowardly husband; this character fell in love with art as a child; this character is in love with a coworker; this character is trying to use this situation for political gain.
It's a slow book. There's a plot, but often the plot doesn't matter. The characters do tho.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Gun violence, Sexual content, and Medical content
rosalind's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Gun violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death and Medical content
Minor: Sexual content