This was a beautiful novel, so deserving of its win of the Pen Faulkner Award the year it was published. There is a dreamlike lyricism throughout the story that juxtaposes with the horrific element of terrorist, hostage taking. As the kidnappers and those kidnapped spend weeks together, they develop strong relationships, some loving and some deep friendships. They become their own entity, tucked away from the world that at times seems to have forgotten them. The tie that binds them is music. The music is the main character of this story. There is magic in the music that makes reality dissolve. The ending is justifiable and fitting. It could be no other way.Patchett has taken a real headline story and fictionalized and infused it with elements that make the reader feel like she has first-hand knowledge.