I’ve already read four books from this author and I thought I’d write short comments/reviews on those books. I won’t pretend that I’m such an intelligent book reviewer because I’m really not (I'm no literary critique!). I have read few books in the past. Most of the books that I’ve read are those which we were required to read (academic books that is, whatever you call it, including the boring accounting books and all). I remembered my grade school days… We were required to read a certain number of Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys novels. I preferred the former. It was okay for me. But I got bored with them, honestly. While reading, I was at the same time thinking “Read fast, read fast, you still have to read another mystery!” So I was a fast reader! But then most of the time, I failed to grasp and appreciate the story. You see, I felt obliged to read them. And later I realized that what I did was a total waste of time – reading without comprehending. Now tell me how weird is that! Wahehe.. The thing is I never really considered myself a “bookworm”. I’m actually more of a TV/movie/music buff than a book reader. That’s one of my regrets now. Maybe I should have spent more time on reading worthwhile books than getting glued on television watching nonsense stuff.
I have recently read the books of Paulo Coelho. I have positive and negative things to say about the books so I cannot really consider him, at this point, as my most favorite author. But I think he’s one of those authors who write with purpose. And most of his novels really inspire its readers.
I first read The Alchemist (his most popular book) and I loved it! I did appreciate it maybe because I can relate to the story. It’s about life’s journey, about dreaming and about reaching your goals. In this novel, Coelho used a lot of allegories and there were few of those which I did not understand. Haha. Nevertheless, it wasn’t too intellectual or hard-to-understand. It was inspiring, especially for dreamers out there and a simple story actually but narrated in a unique and creative way. Here are some of my favorite lines:
He said that to himself with certainty, but he was no longer happy with his decision. He had worked for an entire year to make a dream come true, and that dream, minute by minute, was becoming less important. Maybe because that wasn't really his dream.
Because I don't live in either my past or my future. I'm interested only in the present. If you can concentrate always on the present, you'll be a happy man.
Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself.
I heard from other readers that they liked his other books as well, particularly By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept, Eleven Minutes and Veronica Decides to Die. After reading these three books, I still say that my favorite novel from him is The Alchemist.
By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept was a good read. It talks about God, religion and most of all…love. I definitely cannot relate to Pilar, the female lead character, because I am not dating someone who had entered a seminary and who is contemplating on becoming a priest (Actually, I can rephrase this sentence and place a period after the word “someone”. Haha.) Coelho is so creative and poetic in his words. He mentioned that you can think of a feminine face of God. I’d like to quote some words in his note… this is so true “Traditional religious practices are important: they allow us to share with others the communal experience of adoration and prayer… But spiritual experience is above all a practical experience of love. And with love, there are no rules.” On the down side, I thought that the conversations of the two lead characters/lovers were quite unrealistic. It is understandable for Pilar’s boyfriend to talk so intellectually and profoundly about God, religion and life because that was his character. He is a charismatic spiritual leader who gives lectures so I got that. But Pilar, an ordinary woman, also talks so deeply so I was thinking “Do ordinary people talk like that?” But then I thought that was the author’s way of capturing the story. But overall, I did like it. It’s a kind of book which you can read over and over again. Just open it without minding what page you are and you’ll read (through their conversations) something worthwhile.
My next Paulo Coelho reading session was Eleven Minutes. I read the back cover summary and author’s introduction and learned that this is going to be different and shocking. It actually talked about the “inner light” and the sacredness of sex and yeah, there is still love story into it. The main character was Maria, a naive young woman from Brazil who went to Switzerland and became a high-class prostitute. Maria had some sexual problems and the author was quite direct, frank and sometimes harsh in describing them, you know those things. I am not a fifteen-year old kid so I guess I was mature enough to read something like that. Nevertheless, it still shocked me. And there were lots of things which I did not understand. Since it delved into the sacredness of sex, things like sadism and masochism were also discussed. And the descriptions of the actual sex were quite explicit (Or shall I say erotic? Hehe.) Coelho must really be a religious person and this book, despite its sexual theme, did not end without relating its story to God and spirituality. But most of all, like the Alchemist, I think that its main point, other than the sacredness of sex, is about realizing your dreams. Maria was a dreamer like Santiago of The Alchemist. During her stay in Geneva, she always thought of going home, buying a farm for her family and making them proud of her. I said that I was inspired by Santiago’s adventures. Though he and Maria had quite similar fate, I wasn’t that inspired with the latter. She decidedly too quickly on things and gave up (or risked) a lot that in the end, she lost her dignity (for me). She found her true love though and I don’t think she felt like she lost her dignity. She was a brave woman. And reading it, I don’t think she regretted what she did.
The last book on the list is Veronika Decides to Die. I was so intrigued from the title itself, it sounded so interesting (my second favorite probably). The first sentence of the book was this “On November 11, 1997, Veronika decided that the moment to kill herself had- at last!–arrived.” By the time these things were happening, Veronika was 24. I am also 24 years old so I thought we’re of the same level in terms of thinking, experience (well, not really, basta ka-age mi! wala lang!). In the back cover, it described Veronika “to have everything – youth and beauty, boyfriends, loving family fulfilling job”… (Do I have all these? I don’t think so! I-relate ba?!) “But something is missing in her life.” I am just going to sum it up and say that I liked it because it’s very informative. It wasn’t too addictive though. I always put down the book when I feel sleepy and resume to reading when I feel like reading it again. Wahehe. But I still liked it. Aside from Veronika, it also featured the stories of other three individuals in Villete (a mental hospital) with different psychotic disorders like schizophrenia, panic attacks, etc. I learned that not all people admitted in mental hospitals are crazy, lunatic or have psychological problems. I believe this is true… that there are some who are just sent there because they are accused of insanity and some who hated the outside world are just pretending to be insane! Back to Veronika, when she learned she only have days to live (You see, she took sleeping pills which affected her heart condition), she realizes that she still wants to live. Gosh! How scary could that be! I presume no one is reading this blog so I am going to say that she did not die at the end. Haha, spoiler! Maybe one lesson I’ve learned from this is you have to see and appreciate the beauty of life. It can be found on the simplest things. It also challenges the readers to think. What is really “normal”? Does it pertain to things which our society considers to be normal? You know something like that.
Okay..i think this entry is too long already. Bye. ;)
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