Maria grew tired of saying "no"; she felt that all her disappointments in love was due to the fact that she never allowed herself to say "yes". So she took the risk and said yes to an offer to dance the samba in Switzerland, a land far from her country of Brazil. In Geneva, Maria encountered the consequences of her having said yes. Yet she plowed on, until she decided to be a prostitute. Her sexual rendezvous with the men whom she called her clients drove her soul deeper into her body. But Maria resolved to keep her soul alive by trusting that she will, one day, find love. Only then will the sex be sacred...
My favorite Paulo Coelho work, so far, beautifully narrates the adventures of his heroine in a foreign land. Prostitution is given a whole new meaning in this novel, but then again, it may have been this way ever since. We only refuse to acknowledge it as it is because of the stigma attached to the trade. However, I think all will agree with me that Maria is one extraordinary prostitute - learning all that is needed to improve her craft. Apart from the nice and touching story of Maria, the novel was infused with wisdom about love and the search for love. This novel, so simply written, is worth a read.