Books : Veronika Decides to Die: A Novel of Redemption (P.S.)

Rating: - Wonderful
Paolo Coelho truly has a way with words. His insights on the human mind are truly enlightening.

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Rating: - Another great one from Coelho
After reading "The Alchemist" and being touched by its message, I decided to read "Veronika Decides to Die". This book deals with the freedom of being considered insane and the appreciation of life's precious moments when faced with imminent death. As in the Alchemist, Mr. Coelho delivers an easy to read book laced with a lot of ideas and inspiration to ponder. I find it unfortunate that readers judge books in comparison with previous books written by the same author. Veronika Decides to Die stands proudly on its own.

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Rating: - Favorite book
I read this now in 3 languages. Lives up to the authors name, reputation, and style. Gives you something to think about in return. LOVE IT!

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Rating: - First time reading Paulo
The reviews I read are talking about this book giving you the meaning of life and such and that everything will be okay as long as you will be happy. For me the accent was on someting else and maybe it will help you decide if you want the book or not.

It was quite hard to follow, I don't know if it was the translation or not(haven't read it in English so I don't know about that). I found the phrases too short, too superficial if you want. The presence of the author as a character in the book(speaks about himself using 3rd person) is annoying at least, and I was close to drop the reading.

The main idea of the book in my opinion is that the society builds a standard for normality and that you are doomed if you question that standard and are in any way different. We are forced to act like we are normal, although we might miss our life by doing so. The message is not "do everything that makes you happy" but more "be true to yourself, discover and accept who you are". Other than that, the books relies in the idea that life itself does anything to conserve itself(she wants to live after being told she would die in 5 days, although she was suicidal).

I enjoyed the questioning of what is normality. Be aware, though, if you go through a difficult phase in your life it is better to postpone this book.

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Rating: - Paulo Decides to Retire
Paulo Coelho was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1947, has been awarded France's Legion d'Honneur, Italy's Grinzane Cavour and was inducted into the Brazilian Academy of Letters in 2002. "Veronika Decides to Die" is his twelfth book and was first published in 1998.

The story begins in late 1997 and follows the story of Veronika - a twenty four year old woman living in Slovenia. The book begins with her attempted suicide : however, having overdosed on tranquilisers, she is discovered in time and taken to hospital before she dies. The hospital in question is Vilette - a well known asylum in Ljubljana. Although she has survived, she is told - due to the damage the tranquilisers have done to her heart - she only has about a week to live. Having always kept herself firmly under control, Veronika finds herself broadening her range of experiences and feelings, and gradually comes to see her life as something worth living. Her arrival in Vilette also has an impact on some of the asylum's other patients - specifically, Eduard (a schizophrenic), Zedka (who suffers from depression) and Mari (who suffers from panic attacks).

This is an absolutely awful book : rather than "beautiful", "poetic" or "inspiring", I've never found writing so bland. Despite her situation, Coelho finds himself incapable of establishing any empathy with or sympathy for Veronika. In fact, I even think he wrote about the wrong character - Zedka's story, in the hands of an author up to the task, is a story I'd rather have heard. Coelho's decision to include himself in the story stank of ego, and the way that he wrote that section ("Paulo Coelho wanted to know all the details of what had happened" rather than "I wanted to know all the details of what had happened") was really irritating. The only apparent hobby the patients had - a solitary pastime known to some as 'merchant banking' - was given too high a profile : Veronika's activities on this front were irrelevant and did nothing to help the story. Then again, Coelho has spent some time in an asylum as a patient - perhaps he knows something I don't. Unfortunately, he just doesn't seem capable of putting what he knows into words : avoid this book at all costs.