Veronika decides to die by Paulo Coelho

Has the word ‘suicide’ ever crossed your mind? What can you say about suicide related to having mental issues? Veronika certainly thinks planning to kill yourself is not a sign that you’re crazy... But of course the world doesn’t believe her. This book straight away starts out ‘heavy’ with Veronika who decides to commit suicide but fails in her attempt and wakes up in Villette, a much feared mental asylum. She is informed that although she didn’t die, death awaits just around the corner as her heart became severely damaged from the sleeping pills.

With no apparent reason, with beauty, youth, family, she failed to see what life had in store for her and how lucky she actually is. At the institution, the inmates made her observe life more clearly; ironically, something ‘normal’ people couldn’t make her see. Through the intense pages, Veronika starts to fall in love with life and also Eduard, a schizophrenic, who turned out to be not so crazy after all. In this book, you will also meet Zedka, who was admitted for deep depression and although she is almost cured, wishes to stay in Villete due to the comfort and bond she feels with the surrounding. Mari, a part of a group of older members who could have left years ago, but stay at the government’s expenses and who act all wild and dangerous during regular state inspection.

The book gets even more passionate as Veronika and Eduard try to run away and more heart empowering as the readers get to a climax so unexpected and overwhelming. Tragedy and irony which sails towards the end of the book will also leave readers speechless.

An interesting background on the author which links to the book is the fact that Paulo Coelho had been confined to a mental asylum 3 times in his life. He being different from his teenage peers was apparently a good enough reason for him to be judged as ‘mental’. He promised to write about his experiences but vowed not to do so until his parents were still alive, out of respect to their feelings. Paulo Coelho released his feelings through this book and is therefore a work of excellence taken from the author’s past experiences.

Through Veronika, we weigh the other side of the word “mental”. Through her, we find new ideas of what really goes on in a ‘mental’ person’s head and in an asylum. Through her we will end up questioning ourselves, that in reality who is sane and who is not?!