In this
novel, Paulo Coelho tackles the meaning of life. Taking different tone to his previous bestselling novel, The Alchemist; he writes from the point of view of Veronika, a
young woman, who, feeling dissatisfied with life, attempts suicide and finds herself in a mental
institution as a result.
Veronika is a young woman who has a perfectly adequate life, but the mediocrity of her
existence becomes too much for her and she attempts to take her own life by overdosing on sleeping pills. However, she wakes up in Villette, a local mental institution and is
told that her attempted suicide has damaged her heart and that she now only has a week to live. Faced with the knowledge of her impending death, Veronika begins to re-evaluate her existence.
Surrounded by 'mad' people, Veronika decides to
completely give in to her natural instincts and for the first time, she gives herself completely in to her emotions and allows herself to feel anger and desire and express it in a way she would never have considered before.
This novel will make you re-examine the way you live your life, and consider what 'madness' really is, other than a refusal to confirm to society's norms - which, rather than being a sign of intellectual inferiority or insanity, can often be an indication of genius (what if all of the world's great inventors believed those who told them their inventions were ridiculous?).
An enjoyable story, with a life affirming message - read it, and then live your life to its fullest.
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