Título: Veronika Decides to Die
Autor: Paulo Coelho
Sinopse: The bestselling Brazilian author of The Alchemist delicately etches this morose but ultimately uplifting story of the suicidal Veronika, who creeps along the boundary between life and death, sanity and madness, happiness and despair. Veronika, 24, works in a library in Ljubljana, Slovenia, and rents a room in a convent; she is an attractive woman with friends and family, but feelings of powerlessness and apathy tempt her to find "freedom" in an overdose of sleeping pills. When Veronika awakens in the purgatory of Villete, the country's famous lunatic asylum, she is told her suicide attempt weakened her heart and she has only days to live. At this point, Coelho takes a role in the novel; he describes the circumstances under which he discovered Veronika's story and then recounts his own youthful incarceration in a Brazilian sanatorium, consigned there by parents who couldn't understand his "unusual behavior." As quickly as he drops in, however, he drops out again, relying on interior monologues to set scenes. In a sedative-induced haze, Veronika finds companionship in white-haired Mari, who suffers from panic attacks, and Eduard, an ambassador's son who has been diagnosed as schizophrenic, and she begins to question the definition of insanity. It is her supposed death sentence from the devious Dr. Igor, who is trying to shock her back into reality, that allows Veronika to reacquire the will to live and love. Employing his trademark blend of religious and philosophical overtones, Coelho focuses on his central question: why do people go on when life seems unfair and fate indifferent? The simple, often banal prose contrasts Veronika's bleak inner landscape with the beautiful contours of Slovenia, gradually culminating in an upbeat ending with the message that each day of life is a miracle. Coelho's latest will appeal to readers who enjoy animated homilies about the worth of human existence.
Contexto da obra
Quando a classificação é mais ampla, o contexto do livro costuma depender ainda mais de autoria, tema e edição. “Veronika Decides to Die”, de Paulo Coelho, publicado pela editora HarperCollins Publishers, em 1998 e com 191 páginas, integra a categoria Livros Variados. Por isso, autoria, edição e tema acabam tendo ainda mais peso na forma de apresentar o livro.
Editora: HarperCollins Publishers
Páginas: 191
Ano: 1998
Edição:
Linguagem: inglês
ISBN: 0007835442
ISBN13: 9780007835447
Sobre a editora
Os livros da editora HarperCollins Publishers trazem narrativas que transitam entre o histórico e o contemporâneo, frequentemente explorando conflitos pessoais em meio a cenários ricos em detalhes. A experiência de leitura varia do suspense juvenil, marcado por investigações e segredos sombrios, até sagas históricas que envolvem intrigas familiares e batalhas épicas. O catálogo sugere uma predileção por histórias que combinam personagens complexos com tramas que mesclam ação, mistério e elementos culturais, seja em ambientes urbanos modernos ou em paisagens remotas e fantásticas. Além disso, há obras que se aprofundam em biografias e relatos documentais, oferecendo ao leitor uma diversidade que vai do entretenimento à reflexão.
