Just being a book about female sexuality written by a man, “Eleven Minutes” by Paulo Coelho, already tickles the readers’ curiosity. It only becomes better when you get into the author’s simple but charming day-to-day philosophy on such subjects as: love, sex, prostitution and marriage. As one gets carried away by the story of the main character, Maria, a Brazilian girl in her early twenties, who left her poor little town in order to become a “samba star” in a nightclub in Geneva, he or she finds it hard to stop reading until the book is finished, discovering dozens of quotes he or she can relate to- many of which you’ll be often enticed to write down.
However, if you are a thoughtful reader looking for deep hidden meanings, you may be disappointed at first: similar to that of Coelho’s first international bestseller, “The Alchemist,” the author’s philosophy glides on the surface, so you won’t have to dig it out yourself. Still, the beauty of the book lies in it simplicity, compared to that of fairy-tales. Started with the words, “Once upon a time…,” “Eleven Minutes” is indeed a unique fairy-tale for adults, a walking journey through the character’s search for her own identity and “light” through sex, which is definitely an unusual twist on the traditional story of a youth traveling the world in quest of adventures.
What fascinates you the most from the beginning of the book is how Maria’s story reminds you of many beautiful girls you’ve have heard of. She’s had a few heart breaks and at the age of 22 she believes she will never fall for anyone again. To her, love only makes women suffer. The Brazilian countryside does not provide her with any resources to satisfy her ambitions; the best thing she can do is to get married with the owner of the store she works for, who is head over heels for her. The man is respectable and wealthy and not unpleasant to Maria, but she doesn’t believe that her happiness lies in marriage. So as soon as the opportunity comes her way, she leaves for Switzerland, where she hopes she will become famous and rich. And course, like many other girls in similar situations, she turns into a prostitute instead of a world-known samba star.
In addition to being torn between her desire to find her true love and having a hard time letting go of her past disappointments, Maria also gets caught up in the process of making lots of easy money. She looks at people she sees on the streets of Geneva and comes to conclusion that this is what everyone does. Few of us enjoy doing our jobs; it is more common that individuals go to work in order to get a paycheck that covers their bills. As far as Maria is concerned, prostitution is just another job that allows her to save enough money in a year to come back home and buy a small farm she can take care of. Young as she is, she is aware of the trap of collecting more money than she needs, and she sets up a date of her homecoming. It is all planned out, and it would have worked if love didn’t cross her path.
Writing another book about finding true love, Coelho is different from other authors who explored the topic before. Whereas the traditional understanding of soul mates is purely platonic, this Brazilian writer puts sex into the picture. There is a curious controversy in his ideas: if two people are meant for each other, they don’t have to have sex; it is often enough to just be looking at each other or sitting by a fireplace talking all night, and at the same time, sex is a physical connection between a person and his or her “second half,” without which it can never be complete. As Coelho is telling a woman’s story, he addresses female body and orgasm, a subject a woman seldom brings up to her girlfriends, leave alone letting it out into literary works.
And finally, it is surprising how the author shows us that every person who comes into our lives makes a difference. Every acquaintance we meet teaches us something about the world and ourselves. And of course, like any other mentor, a person can have a life-changing impact on us or merely make us discover a different perspective on things we are used to having.
Similarly, this book might teach a reader a thing or two, or turn his or her world upside down. Whatever your perception is, there is still something that “Eleven Minutes” will definitely give you: the feeling that fairy tales are not only for children and reassurance that there is your true love out there, and sometimes you do have to go out of your way in order to find it.
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