Eleven Minutes By Paulo Coelho

Review:

Eleven minutes. 660 brief seconds. Moments of quick pleasure.

Reading the novel made me think about the current life style of people. Why we spend too much, for a luxury, for a "happiness" that would last only for a few moments. Why we try to look for happiness in mundane possessions, that people would actually believe to think that these temporary gifts of the earth would give them their life purpose. The novel spoke of profound and words that are rarely used in today's novels. It was so complex, something that could only be understood if you make an effort to take a look at its depth.

The story spoke volumes, of dreams that were never reached, of the things people aim for but were not to brave to actually try and take the chance. It did not only speak of the main character Maria, but it spoke of the different people around the world, struggling to know who they are and what they exactly want from the life they are living in.

Maria merely played the part of a person that lives in everyone of us, a person who wants to really know what else life has to offer. We all want to just let life take control of us, yet we are afraid of losing things, and we are afraid of change.

The story reflected on Maria's life, how she wanted to run away, how she wanted something new. We all could relate to that. We want to run away from the void that we got used to live in, that we yearn for something new to happen in our life. Most humans dread routine. So we want something new, something that makes our heart pound and make our brain think 10 times than what we were used to. Maria describes how she feels, in the most profound way. It is like, she is speaking with her soul pouring out onto the pages, as if you can feel her emotions rushing through your body as if they were yours.

Yes, the story may be about her becoming a prostitute, yet, aren't we all? We are prostitutes to the society, giving them all we have, just for some temporary happiness that we might feel once we gain our asking price. The story goes on with the twists and turns of her life, how one man changed her forever, how she could not run away from love. We are like this too, we run away from something, something that may have hurt or scared us. Yet somewhere along the way we found ourselves facing this fear again, and this time, just maybe, we're strong enough to withstand all that it has to throw at us.

The book surely is a must read for anyone. It may be a bore because of the long paragraphs and what not, but it is worth it. With this I shall end with a quote from the book, "The strongest love, is the love that demonstrates fragility."

About the book: (From Wikipedia)

Eleven Minutes (Portuguese: Onze Minutos) is a 2003 novel by Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho based on the experiences of a young Brazilian prostitute called Maria, whose first innocent brushes with love leave her heartbroken. At a tender age, she becomes convinced that she will never find true love, instead believing that "love is a terrible thing that will make you suffer....". When a chance meeting in Rio takes her to Geneva, she dreams of finding fame and fortune yet ends up working as a prostitute.

As Maria drifts further away from love, she develops a fascination with sex. But when she meets a handsome young painter she finds she must choose between pursuing a dark path of sexual pleasure for its own sake, or risking everything for the possibility of sacred sex; sex in the context of love.

About the author: (From Wikipedia)

Paulo Coelho (Portuguese: [ˈpawlu kuˈeʎu]; born August 24, 1947), is a Brazilian lyricist and novelist. He has become one of the most widely read authors in the world today. He is the recipient of numerous international awards, amongst them the Crystal Award by the World Economic Forum. The Alchemist, his most famous novel, has been translated into 67 languages. The author has sold 150 million copies worldwide.

----------------------------------
I think I'm going to do book reviews this way, that I'd still maintain how I write my stories. At least I won't lose my edge. Anyway, I'm open for any book for review! Any kind of book really. :)
Also, yehey for first blog post on my second blog!

Contact me

Hello!

Watcha got there? Is that a book? Let me reeeeeead! Just email me at lean.lacaba@gmail.com with a synopsis of your book, and I'd love to write about it! 

I usually read romance and mystery books, but I'd love for you to rewrite what I love to read. :)

Book Lovin' Babe

Previously on Imperfect is Beautiful..

Aren't just there moments in your life when you finish a book and you sigh and think, "I want to read that again."?

That's the power of a book. And being an eighteen year old girl who has read more books that the hair follicles on her hair, I know all about it. Funny thing, I first loved writing before I loved reading. Maybe it was because we didn't have a proper bookstore in our city when I was younger. All I had were my mother's monthly Reader's Digest, and a few Sweetvalley High books. But once I got into college three years ago and two bookstores opened up in the city, I piled up on books. And when I discovered e-books, I read more.

Addicted? Yes.

But one day though, I'd love to read my own book like I've never seen it before. Like I just bought the book for the heck of it, forgetting that I even wrote it.

Now that I've read 600 or so books, I'd love to read more. So I'm going to try and do some book reviews. Free books for my opinion sounds like a great idea.

Another reason I'm going to be a book blogger is that I'm taking a pause from posting my stories and poems online. Every writing competition seems to require that every entry has to be unpublished, so I'm going to take a break for a while. But fear not! Whenever I get published, I'd post it here immediately!

Here's my new blog, Book Lovin' Babe! I'm still working out the kinks :) 

Now off to more reading!

Care to recommend me to author's who'd like to get their books reviewed? :D