"Eleven Minutes" by Paulo Cuelho - Reviewed by TM Mohit Bhala

About the book:

“The woman of the streets”, “Grande Horizontale”, “Scarlet Woman” are a few of the umpteen disparaging terms we use to address them. Little do we know about the circumstances in which they are battered, that compels them to indulge in paid rape. In this 300-page book, Paulo Coelho sheds light upon the life of an aspiring artist, who ended up being a prostitute. 

About the author:
Paul Coelho is a Brazilian lyricist & a novelist, known popularly for the best-selling and the most translated book “The Alchemist”. His words are unembellished, and deriving emotions out of it is as easy as falling off a log. Metaphysical and visionary fiction is his specialty. He is known for employing rich symbolism in his depictions of the often spiritually-motivated journeys taken by his characters. 

The story in a nutshell:
The book revolves around a young Brazilian girl Maria, who wants to live a comfortable and lavish life and ends up selling her body and becoming a prostitute at a bar in Geneva. The book starts with “Once upon a time......” making it sound like a fable, but instead this book speaks about harsh realities of life and how a young girl compromises with her body for a time period of eleven minutes with every client in order to fulfill her dream of living a lavish life in her hometown. Eleven minutes of embarrassing courage and the eleven minutes of guilty pleasures. 

The book also has excerpts of the diary which the main character writes at the end of each day in which she explains her inner conundrum that contributes to her enigmatic personality, which reflects the chaotic mind of hers. It also mentions the way she undergoes self-discovery from both spiritual and sexual aspects. Subtle little pleasures of sexual activities to subtle little complexities of this profession, everything has been unequivocally discussed in this book, which is usually unheard of, as sex still remains a taboo topic in today’s world.

What makes it my favourite read:
Use of elementary language, bare basics and philosophical aspect makes this book one of my favorites.  The plot beautifully brings out the love story of a prostitute and an artist. Maria has indulged in sexual activities with hundreds of clients, still she feels that her soul is sacred and pristine and is in constant search of true love. The positive climax and union of the two lovers makes this book really beautiful. The plot develops coherently and streams beautifully.

The most beautiful thing about this book is the way it allows us to delve deep into the world of prostitution. The affluent clientele base, unrequited love, fake promises, derogatory terms, moral dilemma and chaos that goes on in the mind of a call girl, everything has been mentioned in this work. This book also discusses the ways in which groomed professionals relax their client’s mind and calm their soul.

Quotes (Excerpts from Maria's Diary): 

"Everything tells me that I am about to make a wrong decision, but making mistakes is just part of life. What does the world want of me? Does it want me to take no risks, to go back to where I came from because I didn't have the courage to say 'yes' to life"

"At every moment of our lives, we all have one foot in a fairy tale and the other in the abyss."

"I am two women: one wants to have all the joy, passion & adventure that life can give me. The other wants to be a slave to routine, to family life, to the things that can be planned and achieved. I'm a housewife & a prostitute, both of us living in the same body & doing battle with each other. The meeting of these two women is a game with serious risks. A divine dance. When we meet, we are two divine energies, two universes colliding. If the meeting is not carried out with due reverence, one universe destroys the other."



Recommendation: 

It is my favorite book. Do give it a try. It is definitely worth your time and you will not regret it.