Books : The Zahir: A Novel of Obsession (P.S.)

Rating: - "A novel about obsesion, love, appreciation, living in the present moment and more"
This is a story about a famous writer whose wife, a journalist, suddenly disapears. He had become unapreciative of his partner, and has a long history of infidelity, however, this couple seemed to have an open marriage, meaning he didn't expect fidelity from her either. A long time goes by without anybody knowing where is Esther, that's her name, but suddenly a man which whom she was last seen and whom is suspected to be her lover comes to talk to him while he was promoting his last book, books that he writes about his love for Esther and the experience he is going through since she disappeared, from then on starts a journey about knowing who Esther really was, her own journey, in the process, he rediscovered himself. This was a man with Spiritual knowledge, but after reaching certain point had become complacent and self-indulgent.
I don't want to give the story away, only I got to tell you that since I first read The Alchemist, I have read most every book of Paulo Coelho and have never been disapointed, in all of them I have gained wisdom for my own life. From this book I learned that very rarely we live in the present moment, and when we don't live in the present moment, is as if we are not really alive, I learned to dumped my story, the book even shares a Shamanic exercize to dump your story, in other words empty your vessel, A warrior of the Light doesn't have a past, so much energy waisted in our story that we could use for our present moment, I was reminded to be opened to new experiences and to aknowledge the feelings buried inside me, the book also teaches about forgiveness and humbleness, honesty and trust in the Divine, it talks about the Divine Femenine awakening, about signs and being alert to follown the signs the Universe gives us, trust in the Divine guidance. As if this wasn't enough, I am sure there is more that escapes my mind at this moment and you will probably discover some more for yourself! oh yes, and appreciation, learn and appreciate the people in our lives!

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Rating: - it was not worth wasting my time
Even though it would be the last sentence of the review, i'll share the last in the very first. This is the first book i've read written by Coelho and i reckon that it'll be the last one as well. It doesn't mean the book itself is utterly hollow, there are some parts which make you ponder on some certain subjects nevertheless it's full of chiche,contradictions and repeat therein which really bores.

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Rating: - All books by Paulo Coelho
I absolutely love every book Paulo Coelho has written. I have not found another author that is truly as inspirational and moving. I loved the Zahir. My other favorites are Eleven Minutes, By the River Piedra I sat and Wept, and The Devil and Ms Prym.

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Rating: - All the good of The Alchemist, but with characters you can connect to
Coelho's The Alchemist gets all the press, but I enjoyed this book so much more. The biggest difference for me was that I connected to the characters in The Zahir, whereas those in The Alchemist were too broadly drawn -- like the stars in Aesop's fables, I learned from them, but I did not feel for them.

Other than that, Coelho's trademark style and simplicity, his worldliness, his intimacy -- these are all intact, and effective as ever. He's really a wonderful writer, and a great storyteller, and a lot of things that I aspire to be.

I can't say that I agree with everything Coelho posits in The Zahir, but I can say that I think people need to know and understand points of view that do not agree with their own, in order to better understand themselves and the world.

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Rating: - One of the few books I could not finish...
Having loved The Alchemist, I was excited to read The Zahir. However, after 100 pages more or less, I found the writing to be repetitive, the main character a self-absorbed, whining boor (If I were Esther, I'd leave him, too) and the whole venture with Mikhail, the supposed lover of Esther, meaningless. I did not finish the book because I felt it was going nowhere. Having spent the whole summer reading Bleak House (and loving it because there was a story there), I just couldn't waste any more time trying to finish The Zahir. I won't give up on Coelho, though. The Valkyries is of interest to me basically for its regional appeal (the Mojave desert) so I will try again to see if there is a story there.