I was recommended this book by Lucy, an ex co-worker of mine from the Melbourne restaurant I worked in last year. We had been talking about The Alchemist, and both felt that although it is inspirational in a lot of ways, it tends not to be subtle about it.
When you start reading Veronika Decides To Die, you expect a simple story on a 24-year-old suicidal Slovenian girl, focused on why she has chosen to end her life so young. While this is certainly addressed in the first few chapters, Coelho actually goes one step further- he allows Vernokia to survive her ordeal, and places her in 'Vilette', a mental hospital- where she learns about the irreparable damage to her heart. As Veronika absorbs and regrets the fact of her imminent death, she reflects on what her life should have been- along with her fellow patients, and of course the reader.
The imbecilic doctor, Dr. Igor, who is too wrapped up with his ridiculous theories to truly help anybody, is a fantastic creation by Coelho. The author's dry style allows the reader to see the doctor's true priorities, and leads to a sympathy for Vilette's patients. Every reader will be able to relate with the tribulations of at least one patient; I identified with a few. I loved the slow unveiling of Eduard, the silent schizophrenic- and could actually relate to some of the reasons behind his 'madness'. Throughout the novel, my opinion of Veronika changed. I started off by thinking she was weak for trying to take her own life, but as I got to know her- her passion for music, for history, for love- I realised she had always had the potential to be strong, she had just chosen not to be- to take the easy route in life rather than what made her happy.
There are so many inspirational quotations to choose from in VDTD, but one in particular really hit home for me, from a Sufi master who comes to visit the 'Fraternity'- a group of 'mentally stable' people who choose incaceration over the unpredictability of life outside Vilette:
'You have two choices: to control your mind or to let your mind control you...allowing yourself to be swept away by fears, neuroses, insecurity, for we all have self-destructive tendencies.
Don't confuse madness with a loss of control. Remember that in the sufi tradition, the master- Nasrudin- is the one everyone calls the madman. And it is precisely because his fellow citizens consider him mad that Nasrudin can say whatever he thinks and do whatever he wants. So it was with court jesters in the Middle Ages; they could alert the king to dangers that the ministers would not dare comment upon, because they were afraid of losing their positions.
That's how it should be with you; stay mad, but behave like normal people. Run the risk of being different, but learn to do so without attracting attention.'
Through the foolish decision of one girl, Coelho aims to teach the reader a lesson about how life should be lived- about the true meaning of 'living'. This book certainly came at the right moment- when my life is particularly crazy and unpredictable. After reading Veronika Decides To Die, I feel as mad as Vilette's patients for pursuing my dreams- but somehow I believe Coelho would call it 'living'.
**********************************************
I'm currently reading Haruki Murakami's 'South Of The Border, West Of The Sun'. I LOVE Murakami; the wacky plotlines mixed with his beautiful language makes for compelling reading indeed. Just the thought of reading one of his next books excites me- that's how much of a book geek I am! Looking forward to reading 'Norwegian Wood' too, and seeing the recently released film (March in the UK, just a week ago in Canada).
Speaking of films, just have to say- the last Harry Potter was brilliant- shame about the '19 years later' bit. Note to David Yates, the director- a bit of stubble, a bad suit and a creepy smirk on your face does not automatically make an actor look 19 years older. Don't think people were meant to be laughing at the end.
No comments:
Post a Comment