BocelliOnline

[Joyce]

Adele recommended we read "Tempesta's Dream" by Vincent B. LoCoco. I was predisposed to like the book even before I ordered it because it was referred by a "Bo person." I read it with a favorable eye because the author is a fellow attorney and we ALL love our attorney's (don't we?). But, alas, I sadly am going to suggest that you not spend your money ordering this book. The part of the book that incorporates opera lyrics and the history of opera was well done. The use of the retirement home for retired opera performers was a perfect backdrop to bring opera history into the plot. Even though there was a plot, the plot could only rise as high as the characters and the characters were NEVER properly developed. All the characters had potential, but LoCoco simply gave them a one-dimensional presentation so the overall affect fell flat. The spastic vignettes needed to be elongated so we could become acquainted with and more readily identify with the characters. Alfredo came the closest to being fully presented but Tempesta and Isabella, along with the Judge who could have been a "person you love to hate", were given such short shrift, that you never adequately knew them. One final thought for any who decide to tread the shallow waters - it appears to me the author borrowed from Bocelli's life as inspiration. A struggling opera tenor, Tempesta is rejected by the opera community but embraced by the common man. Tempesta sings in a local bar where he meets a very young and beautiful lady whom he marries. His teacher is blind. Tempesta sings both opera and Broadway tunes. The author wrote, "Who sent you to me, God?" Also the author wrote, "When one listens to your voice, there is poetry. It is not just a loud voice, but a voice that is warm and tender." I did not find the illusion of a Bocelli character objectionable, but without better development of the characters, what was on paper did not translate into an inspirational life.