A poor novel on so many levels
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Having run out of books on holiday, I started on other people's leftovers. One of them was Veronika Decides To Die - and in the normal run of things, I wouldn't have lifted it from the shelf. But this was an opportunity to try something a bit different.
And how different.
On the first page, up pops a Brazilian writer called Paulo Coelho. I kid you not, the pompous man has included himself as a character in his own novel. Basically, Veronika has taken an overdose of sleeping pills and whilst waiting to die, she reads a magazine article about Paolo Coelho and some computer game he invented.
And then, in a later chapter, Coelho the character is found discussing his family and the need to write this novel - ostensibly following his own incarceration in a mental asylum. This is following a meeting with a different girl called Veronika whose father ran the mental asylum where the first Veronika was taken after the overdose. What a small world, you say.
Anyway, the asylum - in Slovenia - had apparently gained a fearsome reputation since it was founded (apparently in 1991, and the book was published in 1997 so it got a fearsome reputation quite quickly). Nobody had ever escaped - perhaps the asylum hadn't been open long enough... And its patients were either kept in lockdown or could wander in and out freely, depending on which chapter you are reading. And also, it seems that there are four other asylums that are state run and don't charge fees - whereas this one does charge fees so it also operates as a hotel for people who like staying there. It's not obvious how Veronika ended up in the fee paying asylum following her overdose when there doesn't seem to be anyone to pay her bills.
Anyway, it seems that Veronika damaged her heart when she popped her pills, so she will die as her heart weakens further - some time in the next week to ten days. Indeed, she even has heart attacks. Fortunately these are of the variety that she can recover from instantly and get back to her daily life straight away. And fortunately she seems not to suffer from the chronic breathlessness of other heart failure patients. This affords her the opportunity to fall in love with a schizophrenic - a chap who expresses himself by standing mutely whilst Veronika plays the piano or performs sexual acts on herself.
Dr Igor, the Director, meanwhile sets about his nefarious plans - principally around discovering a whole new way of looking at mental illness and treating it using happiness. We see quite a lot of Dr Igor in the first half of the novel, which makes it something of a surprise to be introduced to him much later as (and I paraphrase): the Director of the Institution, a man with brown hair who goes by the name of Dr Igor.
And beyond the silly continuity errors and gaping holes in the plot, we find a complete lack of character development or empathy. We just find fact after fact; deed after deed; cod-philosophizing after cod-philosophizing. If we need Veronika to feel that today was the best day of her life, Coelho will just tell us that it was. There is no attempt made to convey that feeling or to describe it - it is simply announced.
This really is a poor novel on so many levels. It is shallow, implausible, inconsistent, haphazard and pretentious. Please avoid.
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best Paulo Coelho book I've read so far
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I have read a few Paulo Coelho books. He is one of my favourite authors and this is definitely the best book I have read so far.
It is quite depressing at times, but really gets you thinking about life and its meaning, so if you're into deep meaningful stuff, this is a good book to read.
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Bitesize philosophy
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That is a little crude, but it was the first title that popped into my head. This is a captivating, beautifully written (albeit short) story of a young woman who decides to commit suicide. However she doesn't die straight away, but wakes up in a mental institution and is told that she has irreparably damaged her heart and has less than a week to live. She then spends the next 5 days on a personal journey, learning to appreciate life, and cherish even the mundane moments. She can fulfil fantasies as she has no fear of rebuke. One prevalent theme in the novel is that we repress our feelings for fear of what others may think, when we should just have the courage to live.
There are many other complex issues touched on in this novel. Those surrounding mental illness, philosophy, love...I could write a thesis! But I won't. I will just say that this book comes highly recommended. I defy anyone who says that they can't identify with aspects of the characters, their thoughts and fears; and who isn't a little bit moved. This book will keep you thinking long after turning the last page.
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Will tomorrow always be there?
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A complicated story of a girl, who decides to die. It is far from corny, and is in reality much more insightful. I personally picked it up and dropped it about 10 times before finally managing to start it. My grandmother's recent passing made me think it would not be a pleasant read. Turns out it was, even in that context.
I loved it because it made me pause, and think, and realise, that I should not take tomorrow for granted. And neither should you. It's one of those books that you read once and they change you. Their lessons can never be forgotten.
Highly recommended reading.
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An interesting tale
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I really enjoyed reading this book. It is the sort of book that makes you think about the subject matter. It's about a young girl who is bored with her life and unable to bear living a moment longer in the monotony of her existence so she decides to kill herself. She then wakes up to find she has been taken to a mental hospital and is told that she only has a few days to live as the pills she has taken have irreversibly damaged her heart. During the few days she spends in the mental hospital knowing she will soon die, she begins to think about why she wanted to die and she discovers her true purpose in life. The story does not only follow Veronika's life story but also the interesting stories behind why some of the other patients in the mental hospital are there. It questions the definition of madness. The message in the book seems to be that most people don't find their true purpose in life because most people just lives their lives in the way they are expected to or in the way other people want them to.
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