Angels Brought me Here(A book Review of Paulo Coelho's The Valkyries)In the Author’s Note at the back of this book Paulo Coelho said: "Anyone who has read The Valkyries, will know that this book is very different from The Pilgrimage, The Alchemist and Brida" — true enough it is.The Valkyries sets off in Brazil when Paulo’s Master, J., gives him (yet another) a task: "to break the curse" by speaking with his angels. One week later, he and his wife Christina are on the road to the starkly beautiful yet dangerous Mojave Desert to seek "contacts," people that will help and guide him on a forty day quest to look for the Valkyries, leather clad warrior women who cruise around the desert on motorcycle that will show Paulo, and Christina as well, how to converse with their angels.I believe the book started out quite strong and, to be honest with you, I was moved by the central question it relates to the reader: "Why do we destroy the things we love most?" But as I progress it just become trudging reading for me. Half way through the book I’m still clueless how communicating with angels will truly help Paulo on his spiritual search — and I still am puzzled over it after closing the book. I was taken aback that what the author’s been trying to say can all be just condensed into a simple message in the epilogue of the book.The main thing why this book just didn’t really work for me is that it lacked the fabulist magic of The Alchemist and failed to capture the simple spiritual teachings that The Pilgrimage: A Contemporary Quest for Ancient Wisdom presented. It also seems to me that Coelho talks down to his reader, well not actually him, but this one concerns the Valkyries whose principles I find too preachy and overtly one-dimensional that it all unsuccessfully made an impression to me.Even so, The Valkyries retains some of the quintessential Coelho elements and has its share of rosy moments: one that really made an impact to me was when Chris learns "to look at the horizon." This for me works as a literal truth and a striking metaphor. A truth as I consider it a rare ability to live in the present, in the now all the while striving to strike a balance in a world that shouts for our constant attention; a metaphor in that it is much harder to attain a broad perspective of one’s life and sense of self. One of the things I consider the book’s strong point is that we encounter a different Coelho in its pages as we see him reveal details on his private life, on his almost failing marriage and in the process makes himself vulnerable, exposed to the judgment of others. As it is, the book is also peppered with nuggets of wisdom here and there, some of which I quote below:"Someone once said that the Earth produces enough to satisfy needs, but not enough to satisfy greed.""Faith is a difficult conquest, and it requires daily combat in order to be maintained.""That’s what infatuation is: the creation of an image of someone, with out advising that someone as to what the image is."I have faith in The Valkyries core message of “letting go of the past and believing in the future” in that I’m looking beyond this one and hopefully Paulo Coelho’s upcoming book that I’ll read soon will be none such as this.
I picked up 'The Valkyries' by Paulo Coelho for two reasons: one, because I fairly enjoyed 'The Alchemist' (though it didn't live up to all its hype) and two,because I noticed that many people violently disliked Paulo Coelho and so wanted to read a few more of his books to see how I feel about him. The book takes you on a spiritual journey with Paulo and his wife Chris in which they try to talk to and see their guardian angel. All the events are depicted as true except for one or two minor areas, but honestly I found it a little hard to believe. "He knew one of the women well, and had shared his universe with her. They had seen the same mountains, and the same trees, although each of them had seem them differently. She knew his weaknesses, his moments of hatred, of despair. Yet she was there at his side. They shared the same universe." Overall, it was an alright book. I liked it and got some good lessons from it e.g. letting go of the past, following your dreams (again), fear of failure, etc. But other than that I was not very impressed with it. The valyries, who are a bunch of women on motorbikes that believe their mission in the world is to spread the message of love and peace, were my least favourite characters, especially the oldest named 'Valhalla' and I found them to be a bit weird. Their rituals and chants were also highly irritating. "One way or another, I have wound up destroying what I've loved. I've seen my dreams fall apart just when I seemed to achieve them. I always thought that was just the way life was. My life and everybody else's." The characters I liked most was a 20 year old Magus Gene and also Paulo's wife Chris, who always felt like an outsider in between magic and communicating with angels and what not. What kept me going was the anxiety to know whether or not they actually see their angels. "Break a pact. Accept forgiveness. Make a bet." Would I recommend the book? Perhaps yes, if you're interested in magic, spirituality and the prospect of getting to see your guardian angel. I wasn't bored or anything of that sort, so it wouldn't hurt to try it out. And I would still like to try out more of Paulo's books to come to a conclusion as to whether or not I'm a fan.
What do You think about The Valkyries (1999)?
I did... I thought I would like it! The book was supposed to be a guy's quest to see his guardian angel.. but then I don't know the story seemed like witchcraft to me.. There was this other book called "the devil and Miss Prym" which was not about demons but the struggle to choose between the right and wrong.. and I loved it.. So I thought this book would be something like that..sigh
—Radia
Another interesting read from one of the masters of modern spiritual story-telling. Coelho is not afraid to give modern life a spiritual context and captures effectively the tension that often exists between living in this 21st century material world and trying to be a conscious, spiritually aware individual. In The Valkyries he seems to be sharing his own story as well as that of his wife, and he makes himself vulnerable and open to judgment as a result. I took away the concept of 'breaking the pact' with my negative conditioning, always a useful reminder and a refreshing way of looking at how to release old patterns. Definitely worth a read if you're into Coelho.
—Barry Durdant-Hollamby
As always, Coelho never fails to write stories that feel so real, yet are so full of magical atmospheres. In this book, letting go of the past and seeking out one's future shapes the main theme.On a quest in the Mojave Desert, Coelho encounters a group of "interesting" women who call themselves "Valkyries". Asking for their help, Coelho wishes to connect with his Guardian Angel, the only being that can free him from his burdens.Though it didn't reach equal heights as "The Alchemist", "By the river Piedra I sat down and wept" and "The witch of Portobello", this book still offers a solid amount of wisdom. Nevertheless, this is (in my opinion) the most hermetic (= difficult to understand) book of Paulo Coelho I've read so far. Due to this, it might prove difficult to truly grasp what the author is trying to convey in this auto-biographical tale.
—Ethan
