A Girl Named GeorgeThe Witch of Portobello
Paulo Coelho
Harper Perennial
So, one of the things that I really like about Paulo Coelho's writing is that he's unashamedly spiritual (please note that in his case, spiritual does not equate to crackpot.) Frequently, I find that his characters uncannily express how I'm feeling about myself and the world at the precise time that I am reading his texts.
The Witch of Portobello is basically a novel about self-definition. The story is told from a number of points of view and Coelho uses an interesting narrative device to relate the main character's story. We never actually hear from Athena directly -- the novel is set up as a series of transcribed interviews where people talk about how she has impacted/changed their lives by observing how she lived her own.
In terms of themes, this is a typical Coelho offering as it examines the ideas of courage, love, joy, passion, self-acceptance and sacrifice. Athena is definitely a Warrior of the Light and like the heroes from The Pilgrimage and The Alchemist, there is a lot that we can learn from being witness to her journey. Three spiritual guides out of five.
The Witch of Portobello is basically a novel about self-definition. The story is told from a number of points of view and Coelho uses an interesting narrative device to relate the main character's story. We never actually hear from Athena directly -- the novel is set up as a series of transcribed interviews where people talk about how she has impacted/changed their lives by observing how she lived her own.
In terms of themes, this is a typical Coelho offering as it examines the ideas of courage, love, joy, passion, self-acceptance and sacrifice. Athena is definitely a Warrior of the Light and like the heroes from The Pilgrimage and The Alchemist, there is a lot that we can learn from being witness to her journey. Three spiritual guides out of five.
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