None of my literature-studying friends in Colombia can take Paulo Coelho seriously, yet the same demographic in America seems to derive inspiration from his work. The bookseller at the cash register told me that his books were kept hidden with Kerouac and Bukowski because they were stolen at a similar rate.
Young men who write, she told me, stole Coelho and Bukowski at the same time. Young men who write in America and my mother was a cross section of a Venn diagram I had never expected to find. The people who come looking for his books are mostly young people who might want self-help but are also looking for a narrative or poetic book.
Only 20 copies of the book in Spanish have been sold over the past year in that same store. How many books by Clarice Lispector? The Second Death of Clarice Lispector. Meanwhile, in Colombia we have bookstores like Wilborada that choose not to carry Coelho.
Like Brookline Booksmith, Wilborada is the kind of local bookstore that holds readings, hosts book clubs, and has gathered a loyal customer base that enjoys, and trusts, the tastes of their booksellers. On top of that, Coelho is not even as popular as he used to be within the intended audience.
Any translation is an interpretation, and as such it should not be terribly surprising that new nuances and shades come up and attract an audience that the original language might have ignored.
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What does this all have to do with Paulo Coelho? Well, I have realised the problem I have with Paulo Coelho is that he pretends to be literary fiction. Whereas Danielle Steel or Dan Brown resigned themselves to provide us with mindless entertainment and are free of any pretences that they give us anything more than that, Coelho is duping us into believing that he is revealing some great philosophical truths.
No reason is needed for loving. Forgetting hurts. But not knowing which decision to take is the worst of suffering. Then they go and say that Paulo Coelho changed their lives, that The Alchemist is the most important book they have read. And I can't listen to this because it is hurting my ears.
I try to fight and say that Coelho just took some Hallmark cards and some well known fables, mixed them together thus produced a bastard offspring that he brazenly called literature. And then they say I just didn't understand it! How can you NOT understand Coelho? His books are as complicated as shoelaces. Then I say "So you believe that 'when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it?
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I found it superficial, too. Yes, he just starts pulling material from everywhere! Absolutely spot on. This post deserves one of those slow claps like you see in films. It seems like most people prefer to follow what everyone else likes in literature instead of actually thinking about the validity of the views expressed! Shame on you Paulo Coelho! Woo hoo, thank you! Yes, the core messages are absolutely rotten!
Oh yeah, the book certainly sounds good and the use of language is quite interesting. Never trust Oprah! It was so annoying. I think she might have mind control powers. No way! And it validates my generally low opinion of Oprah. I totally agree with you.
I thought this book was dreadful! I could only stomach about 50 pages of it. Yes, I should have stopped 50 pages in, but it was quite short and I wanted to finish it so that I could lambast it here on the blog! Thanks for my laugh of the day! Now I know. Thank you! Thank Christ, I recently read it on holidays as one of those books that had always been recommended but I never got around to reading.
And thank goodness for your comment! I always get a little nervous whenever I post a review as negative as this one! Luckily everyone seems to agree with me so far. You are commenting using your WordPress. You are commenting using your Google account. You are commenting using your Twitter account. You are commenting using your Facebook account. Notify me of new comments via email. Notify me of new posts via email.
An article from Psychology Today explains why the Barnum Effect is so seductive: The second reason people fall for the Barnum effect applies more to predictions about the future, the ones we find in fortune cookies and horoscopes.
Like this: Like Loading Previous Post Mini Film Reviews 1. Indeed, I think many people are starved for a message, as you say!
Haha no worries! Yes, avoid this book at all costs! Share your thoughts below. Cancel reply Enter your comment here
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