Product Description

A Magical Tale About Forgiving Our Past and Believing in Our Future

The enchanting, true story of The Valkyries begins in Rio de Janeiro when author Paulo Coelho gives his mysterious master, J., the only manuscript for his book The Alchemist. Haunted by a devastating curse, Coelho confesses to J., "I've seen my dreams fall apart just when I seemed about to achieve them." In response, J. gives Coelho a daunting task: He must find and speak with his guardian angel. "The curse can be broken," he replies, "if you complete the task."

Rising to the challenge, Paulo and his wife, Cristina, drop everything, pack their bags, and take off on a forty day adventure into the starkly beautiful and sometimes dangerous Mojave Desert--where they encounter more than they bargained for. A masterful blend of the exotic locales, dramatic adventure, and magical storytelling for which Coelho's fictional works are renowned, this true-life account is at once a modern-day adventure and a metaphysical odyssey.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14963 in Books
• Published on: 1996-09-11
• Released on: 1996-08-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

From Booklist
There is enough interest in angels to ensure this peculiar little book a significant audience. It traces a spiritual journey of sorts, stereotypically cast as a journey into the desert, that embodies a New Age conception of liberation as liberation from the past in confrontation with oneself. The "ritual that demolishes rituals," which is the climax of the book, is all done with mirrors. As Simone de Beauvoir would note, the "mirrors" are women--and that calls into question both the "newness" of the story and the "age" it heralds. But it is a strange tale many will find compelling. Steve Schroeder

Review
"A book that delights, fascinates, frightens, and enlightens all at once... A delightful read that leaves you pondering eternal truths long after you put it down." -- -- NAPRA Review

"Coelho's gripping tale of his adventures...reads like a suspense novel." -- -- San Mateo Times

"Coelho's gripping tale of his adventures...reads like a suspense novel." -- -- San Mateo Times

Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Portugese

Customer Reviews

Coelho's Book
I have read all of his books... Too sad the copy I purchased was not available in Spanish.

Has gems...would make more sense on acid
There are some great insights into the human condition, much like in The Alchemist, but this story is bizarre to the point where its bizarreness detracts from the message being conveyed.

In The Alchemist the storyline served as a vehicle to convey deeper human truths, and these truths were the point of the book. In The Valkyries, the storyline itself seemed like the point. It seemed like Coelho wanted the world to know the weird magic/drugs/psychedelic jaunts he's been on; it's 187 pages ripped out of his personal journal with no real point. The deeper human truths felt like a literary afterthought.

If you haven't read The Alchemist, read that first. This book would have spoiled me on the author. I'd give it a pass.

A review of The Valkyries by Paulo Coelho
I found Paulo Coelho's The Valkyries a bit of an enigma. I suspect the author at least partly intended it to be so. In a nutshell, the author seeks to discover new aspects of his psyche, to develop new angles on his existing skills. After a consultation with his mentor, he and his wife set off for a jaunt in the Mojave Desert to find what it is that they seek. Our author is in engaged in a quest, a search for his personal Angel. The reader, I am sure, will be convinced from the start that she accompanied him throughout.

They wander off in full sun one day, take their clothes off (for some reason) and have to be rescued by Gene, who has seen it all before. He reassures the travellers that they will find their valkyries. And they do. They turn out to be a band of leather-clad women on motorbikes, ladies who have profound mystic powers which they practise amidst their regular partying.

I was a bit perplexed by the narrator who claimed to have trained as an engineer in one breath and then discussed the existence of the universe in terms of ancient Greek elements. I suspect that the high performance motorbikes relied on a rather more complex analysis of matter. But honing the skills of a magus apparently requires the application of ancient knowledge, no matter how wrong, whatever the context. And sure enough the revelations come flooding in and lives are duly transformed. I have just a suspicion that there is something in the observation that no matter what one does with reality, spirituality is necessarily a personal experience, its significance purely internal, even when shared with others.

The Valkyries has all the Paulo Coelho elements. There are short scenes presented in a variety of literary shorthand. The text is suffused with magic, religiosity and self-realisation set in an earthly medium. It's a quick and easy read but ultimately a satisfying one, even for someone like myself, who cannot suspend belief long enough to share in the book's experiences.

But Paulo Coelho is a magus and a magician of the highest order. He has sold over 90 million books and, as a writer myself, I will read more of his books in the hope that I might discover his magus touch, his waft of a wand that will reveal his secret. Even without sympathy for the detail, it's a lovely, rhythmic read.