The Mapmakers Opera

By: Bea Gonzalez

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Paperback | 6 March 2006

At a Glance

Paperback
320 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
20.5 x 16.0 x 2.0

Paperback

$31.75

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In the tradition of Allende, this is a magical novel, written in the form of an opera, and set in Seville and Mexico in the late 1800s.

Act I opens in Seville. Emilio has been forced by his overbearing mother into the priesthood. Monica is a governess in a wealthy household who falls pregnant by the head of the house. A chance meeting in Seville cathedral suggests a solution to both their predicaments - they decide to marry, though it is not a love match. Emilio raises Monica's son Diego as his own, and they form a close bond over their mutual love of language, books, maps and birds. When Emilio dies, Monica reveals that he was not Diego's father. She grows ever more embittered and eventually dies, leaving Diego to pursue his true calling - his love of birds.

Act 2 follows Diego's life in Mexico - his apprenticeship to an American who is mapping the birds of Mexico; his love for Sofia, the beautiful, independent daughter of a Mexican farmer; and his obsession with saving the Passenger Pigeon from extinction. The cities of Seville and Merida are so central to the narrative, and evoked so beautifully, that they are almost characters themselves.

Taking in many of the stock characters that appear in the best operas - the philanderer, the wronged wife, the harassed servant, the star-crossed lovers - The Mapmaker's Opera is an original and magical novel which will appeal to lovers of Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Isabel Allende.

Industry Reviews

Praise for Bea Gonzalez and her writing: 'Like plunging headfirst into a Goya painting...I was completely engulfed by this extraordinary novel.' Toronto Globe and Mail 'Great story, delicious prose...Bea Gonzalez has written a splendid piece of literature...perfection lies in the details and Gonzalez gets it so right that her imagery provokes bursts of delighted laughter.' Vancouver Sun 'In The Mapmaker's Opera, Bea Gonzalez has created a world bursting at the seams with images and ideas, social history, revolutionary fervour...This is a wonderfully vibrant tapestry, enveloping the reader with its richness.' Quill & Quire 'Gonzalez enlivens the page with the colour and richness of a theatrical production...The Mapmaker's Opera is nothing less than a sheer pleasure to read, and an oratoria that transports the reader.' The Calgary Herald

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