Rating: 
Summary: Profound.
Review: I just finished this book. I am almost at a loss for words. This poignant novel tells the story of a young woman named Veronika who seems to have everything: beauty, a loving family, a good job, etc. However she feels empty inside, wondering what the purpose of life may be if things will just go downhill from then on. Thus she decides to end her life, cleanly and quietly. Yet she does not succeed. She awakens sometime later in a mental hospital, Villete, and is told she only has days to live, as her attempt left unreparable damage on her heart. She attempts to find ways to end her life more quickly while trapped in Villete, but ends up finding LIFE instead. With a death sentence creeping up on her, she battles inwardly between her previous wish to die, and her current fascination and discovery of life. We all know how we are "supposed" to live, the rules and regulations that we abide by each and every day without even realizing it. Is this living? Paulo Coelho addresses this question brilliantly. Veronika's lesson is one that should be heeded by all. Unforunately it seems that those who truly live their own lives will instead be deemed "insane" or "crazy" by the law-abiding people surround them. What is life? Who can define another's choices, characteristics, and temperments? If a CEO decides not to wear a tie to work anymore, because he says it is stupid to nearly choke on a piece of fabric for ten hours everyday, who is to decide if he is crazy or not? These questions and more like them will invade your thoughts after reading "Veronika Decides to Die". I strongly urge young and old, male and female, directed and hopeless, to read this book. I think we can all use a little insight into life.
Rating: 
Summary: Worthwhile Read...
Review: When Veronika decides to commit suicide, it seems that perhaps tha greatest thing wrong in her life, is that nothing appears to be wrong with it. After taking sleeping pills, she wakes up in an infamous mental hospital, Villete, and is told she has caused irreversible damage to her heart and will die within a week. Waiting to die, she meets other patients: Zedka, who had suffered from panic attacks, a group of people who chosed to stay in Villete even though they could leave, Eduard, a young schitzophrenic. Talking to these people and finally being able to change the cycle and break the rules (after all, the patients were supposedly crazy: what were rules to them?) Veronika finds new reasons to live in the face of death. Veronika Decides to Die is written languidly and descriptively, allowing the reader to explore different possibilites and mentalities towards life. I think it's definitely a worthwhile book to read.
Rating: 
Summary: Cheap Literature for Lazy Readers!
Review: If you like cheap literature and you are lazy reader this is a great book. Easy to digest! There is no profound literary education in this work. Cheap literature for cheap readers!!!!
Rating:
Summary: a great book
Review: i have recently read this book and liked it alot.coelho's writing is poetic and inspiring ,and him using an easy language is an advantage;not a down point.Paulo is a very gifted writer and succeeds in creating a magical atmosphere which attracts you to the story.the plot is a very original one, inspite of being realistic.as the story proceeds, he goes deeper into the human character.
veronika is 24 years old ,beautiful& young ,with a very interesting character.she has a nice job and a loving family ,and never had any trouble finding boyfriends.yet she decides to end her life by taking an over dose of sleeping pills,her main reason for this is lack of point & meaning of her life.however when she wakes up she find her self in a mental hospital and finds out that her heart has been permanently damaged and that she only had few days to live.at first she is happy to know this,but after sometime,to her own surprise,she finds her self wishing to live longer,and finds out that the lack of meaning in her life is no body's fault but her own.
Rating:
Summary: !!! Excellent book !!!
Review: I am not surprised that 'Veronika decides to die' is an international bestseller. It is written by Paulo Coelho, who was born in Brazil.
This book has definitely inspired and/or changed the lives of many people out there. It is a book that will make you think, appreciate life.
It was my first experience of Paulo Coelho and it has made me to read more. He has a gift for writing books, which changes the way you think about life in general. That book is undoubtedly a phenomenon. I really enjoyed reading this satisfying book. I found the story quite gripping. It is a wonderful although bizarre declaration of love to all mad people in our world and to the life itself. The book really touched me very deeply. Paulo Coelho tells from elementary experiences and the readers recognize themselves: with their frailties and fears and also with their yearnings and dreams. Short summary of 'Veronika decides to die':
Veronika has everything she could wish for. She is young and pretty, with plenty of attractive boyfriends. She has a steady job and a loving family. Yet Veronika is not happy and one winter's morning she takes an overdose of sleeping pills, only to wake up some time later in a local mental hospital. There she is told that although she is alive, her heart is now irreparably damaged and she has only a few days to live. First Veronika feels a tiny bit happy about that message. Then she begins to think about her life. This story follows her through these intense days as she starts to question all her ideas about life. Soon she comes to realize that every second of existence is a choice we all make between living and dying.
The way it alters her way of thinking and seeing the world. How she starts to question everything around her and also her own mortality. The way Veronika explores her life is inspirational.
It obviously shows us how often we don't know what we have until it is too late.
In addition to its messages, 'Veronika decides to die' offers an interesting insight into how people deal with mental illness. A review of this novel would not be complete without mentioning the doctor, the ambitious psychiatrist with his eyes on alternative techniques and methods. He is a central character in the plot of this book, although you don't actually see a great deal of him. At this point I don't want to write much more about that book. I don't want to ruin it for those people, who have not read this great book yet. In conclusion may I say that it is a moving and uplifting song of life, one that reminds us that every moment in our lives is special and precious. Paulo Coelho is a wonderful storyteller with the power to inspire nations and change people's lives.
I can highly recommend to read this and/or other books of Paulo Coelho.
An excellent novel! A must read for all!
It has changed my way of thinking. I am sure that it will change also your way of thinking!
Rating:
Summary: Veronika a Bad Taste Reading!
Review: I started to read this book and I stoped, because I can't stand Paulo Coelho cheap ideas and writing. If you are into real literature this book is not for you. SUCKS!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Herein lies the meaning of life
Review: Paulo Coelho's new novel is beautful - both in the writing and the story being told. I first read Coelho's Alchemist and was blown away by the simplicity of his writing style and the beauty that he elicited through the weaving his tale. His novels always leave a wonderful glow behind and Veronika Decides To Die is no different. Veronica suffers from malaise and decides that she would be better off dead. Veronika commits suicide and is shocked to awaken in Villete, a well known mental hospital, only to be told that while she was not successful in dying she has committed herself to death as her attempt at suicide has damaged her heart and she now has a few days left to live. During this week, Veronika gets to know the other patients at Villete, from the Dr. Igor to Zedka, Mari, Eduard and the Fraternity. Each person has something to share with Veronkia - who in time comes to learn the joy pain of life and all of the emotions in between. Readers will enjoy this trip of self discovery as it speaks to all of us. I certainly left this book with more than I went into it with. It really moved me and has made me think - about life, love, happiness, despair and so much more. I look forward to more beautfully provocative and thought provoking work from Paulo Coelho.
Rating:
Summary: Glad to see the negative reviews
Review: I was wondering whether to read "11 Minutes" by Paulo Coelho, but now I definitely will! I have read - and loved - "The Alchemist," "The Pilgrimage," "The Fifth Mountain," "The Valkyries," as well as "Veronika Decides to Die." The bad reviewers show how bad their taste is! As Madeleine Murray O'Hare strenthened my faith by her hateful atheism, so have the bad reviewers caused me to resolve to read more Paulo Coelho!
Rating: 
Summary: overrated
Review: it took me SO LONG to read this book because it was boring and i kept putting it down. Coelho is heavy- handed with his message- i felt flogged! maybe i just prefer sublety. if i want to be preached to, i'll read a self-help book.
Rating:
Summary: Inpiring, but still overrated !!
Review: Ok I'll start with the pros, then I'll lash out the cons at the end.....first of all, I do think the plot of "Veronika Decides to Die" is intriguing and original (a young woman suffers a failed suicide attempt and lands in a mental hospital, suspended somewhere between life and death, believing her days to be limited due to irreversible heart failure and acting upon this belief. During her stay at the hospital, her closeness to death renews in her an appreciation of the life she had attempted to take away. Through her exchanges with her inmates, she learns about love, madness, dreams, freedom and the need to break free from self-imposed inhibitions and social "norms." Here, some interesting questions are raised in the novel...what IS the "norm"? why does society fear that which is different/erratic/new? why is being "different" considered a kind of madness? and who is madder....those who live as they please or those who destroy their dreams and limit their potential in order to conform? The intended message is inspiring and beautiful .. one must discover the true value of life, the richness with with it can be lived, the meaning of living it. We should not be apathetic and resigned to the dull norms, instead we should savor every mad moment, every whim, every impulse we feel...so long as we do not cause destruction to those around us....sing in the rain, climb a mountain, paint, dance, laugh with the joy of life and living, unleash the individual within you and cry, scream, go out and follow your dream. It is an inspiring approach to our existence and the book answers to a modern-day malaise inflicting thousands of people world wide: boredom/apathy/depression. All of us meet face-to-face with sadness and emptiness at some point in our lives, and at such times we should take heed of some of Coelho's inspiring words in the novel: "the 2 hardest tests on the spiritual road are the patience to wait for the right moment, and the courage not to be dissapointed with what you encounter along the way" ..... there's another assertion by Veronika that I enjoyed reading: "to smell the earth is to feel alive" and "the meaninglessness of life was no one's fault but mine". A beautiful message, much needed in this age of prozac and therapy... HOWEVER, I am a very objective and critical reader, and my interest in the book's main idea does not change what I've always believed to be true about Paulo Coelho: he IS an overrated writer and a bit of a pseudo-philosopher as well....yes, he is interesting, but if you read his works, for example "Veronika", you realise that the entire book revolves around one very elementary idea that he fluffs up with pretty parables and cute little symbols and metaphors JUST to give the illusion of profundity....and while he's at it, he makes it a point to mention his own admission to a mental hospital in order to appeal to the reader's sympathy and to re-confirm that he writes what he writes out of personal experience and depth of feeling.... it is so obviously fake....unfortunately, though, this is what sells his books: he appeals to an exoteric, moderately intelligent audience whilst allowing them to believe that they have just read a work of great depth and perception ... and many also think that his "simple" vocabulary is a sign of his unpretentious, down-to-earth persona ....I think its just a sign of bad writing. Yes, the book's message is great, yes, life should be lived happily and yes, one should sit back and assess the meaning of their existence and what they can do with their lives, but for god's sake if you're looking for depth, go out and read Hesse, Roth, Dostoevsky......ignore the Coelho fad and start giving credit where real credit is due! And in case you're still wondering, the 4 stars are for the IDEA/PLOT and not for the WRITING/DEPTH.
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