Veronica Decides To Die - By Paulo Coelho

   An illustrious author, acclaimed for ‘The Alchemist’, Paulo Coelho is an eminent wordsmith. With about 30 books divulging into versatile themes, including religion, society, magic, occultism, love and despair and his scriptures being translated into 81 languages, he is easily one of the best authors of time. His books leave an imprint on their readers, especially ‘The Alchemist’, altering the lives of people, such as Pharell Williams, Will Smith, Madonna… among many more.

  With the current buzz on suicide and death, brought about by ’13 Reasons Why’ and ‘Game of Thrones’, ‘Veronica Decides to Die’ seems like the perfect book to continue the solemn atmosphere. We learn of Veronica, our protagonist, being sent to a mental asylum as a repercussion for her attempt to commit suicide. The reason for this is simple, yet wholly bewildering. She is enervated by the monotony of life and seeks to escape it all, but in vain. However, when told in the asylum that she will still die, soon, as her overdose hampered her heart, Veronica is allayed, the restraining strings of her life finally snapped,. Under the veil of death, Veronica is exposed to an alternate world in the asylum. Inside, the patients are expected to be “crazy”, and so they are free to act as they please, beyond the fences of societal norms. Here, Veronica embraces passions she has never experienced before, she makes friends, falls in love, slaps an old man and learns a reality of the world outside. Consequently, she loses her desire to die, in pursuit of love instead.

  The story revolves around the concept that what the majority agree to are the appropriate norms of the society. Any deviance outside this rigid structure is either hidden away or smothered to non-existence. Thus people are bullied and sent to asylums for merely being, thinking, feeling different. They are “treated” to bring them back to “normal”, but What Is Normal? Paulo Coelho asked this question when sent to an asylum thrice by his parents, for wishing to pursue a career in writing, instead of one in law or engineering. This scintillated him to attempt to debunk societal norms of how, what is right is good, skilled, (as in the word adroit by the ways of ancient English scholars) and how everything else left, is wrong, gauche and sinister (again an amazing display of bias).

  Contrary to prior assumption of dull and solemn atmospheres, this tale is spun beautifully, with the perfect amount of hilarious incidences, heartfelt moments and an predictably unexpected ending. An excellent choice for those vexed with life, for every individual who is just bored of his monotonous routine, and most importantly, for those, who chose the “path more trodden” merely in fear of societal judgment and unacceptance and locked away their true aspirations. It’s never too late for choosing your passion, for stars wouldn’t shine without burning, and goals cannot be reached without hurdles.