Eleven Minutes details from bookadda

About the Book: Eleven Minutes

Paulo Coelho's astonishingly beautiful writing in Eleven Minutes virtually guarantees it the cult status that The Alchemist already enjoys. But what is the Paulo Coelho phenomenon? How can an author who (only a short time ago) was virtually unknown to most readers have taken the world of books by storm--and without the benefit of glitzy advertising? The answer is simple: quality. Such books as The Fifth Mountain andThe Devil and Miss Prym are enough to explain a considerable following for the author, with their atmospheric prose and involving characters. Eleven Minutes tells the story of young Maria living an innocent life in a Brazilian village and is played out in a measured fashion, but with all the author's brilliant scene-setting (very lush here) fully in place. But then Maria experiences love and suffers great pain. From this point, Coelho has us inexorably in his grip. Maria's disillusionment with love leads her to Geneva where she finally ends up selling her body (Coelho may offer us the beauty of life, but never at the expense of its harshness). Maria's approach to sex is complex--this is no mere revulsion arising from what she is now doing with her life. And then she meets a seductive young painter, who may or may not offer her a new path in life. But does she prefer to continue on the dark sexual odyssey she has embarked on, at the expense of real love? There are echoes of DH Lawrence in Coelho's exploration of the sacred and spiritual aspects of sex and it's a brave author who tackles a subject that can so easily slip into strained seriousness. That never happens here, and Maria's journey is one that the reader willingly undertakes; the lesson she learns are lessons for the reader. --Barry Forshaw

About the Author: Paulo Coelho

Paulo Coelho is a Brazilian novelist and lyricist.

His books include The Alchemist, The Pilgrimage, The Greatest Gift, Brida, The Witch Of Portobello, Eleven Minutes, The Zahir, Veronica Decides To Die, The Fifth Mountain, Love Letters From A Prophet, Aleph, and The Winner Stands Alone.

His writing draws heavily from the experiences of his life. His books have sold over a 100 million copies across 150 countries and have been translated into 71 languages. Several of them have been adapted for other media. He encourages readers to share his books over peer-to-peer file sharing networks. He is also the bestselling Portuguese author of all time.

Coelho was born in 1947 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He was committed to a mental institution for refusing to follow a traditional path. He enrolled in law school at the behest of his parents only to drop out a year later and become a hippie. He has worked as a songwriter, journalist, actor, and director. He was once arrested as his lyrics were viewed as dangerous and left-wing by the military government in power. In 1986, a journey of over 500 miles on foot along the Road of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain turned his life around. He eventually gave up his songwriting career to start writing full-time. He was named a Messenger of Peace to the UN in 2007. Coelho has established an organization that helps children and elderly people with financial difficulties. He is married to Cristina Oiticica. The couple spends their time either in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, or in Europe.