The morose but ultimately uplifting story of the suicidal Veronika, who creeps along the boundary between life and death, sanity and madness, happiness and despair.

Veronika, 24, works in a library in Ljubljana, Slovenia, and rents a room in a convent; she is an attractive woman with friends and family, but feelings of powerlessness and apathy tempt her to find "freedom" in an overdose of sleeping pills. When Veronika awakens in the purgatory of Villete, the country's famous lunatic asylum, she is told her suicide attempt weakened her heart and she has only days to live.

In a sedative-induced haze, Veronika finds companionship in white-haired Mari, who suffers from panic attacks, and Eduard, an ambassador's son who has been diagnosed as schizophrenic, and she begins to question the definition of insanity. It is her supposed death sentence from the devious Dr. Igor, who is trying to shock her back into reality, that allows Veronika to reacquire the will to live and love.

Why do people go on when life seems unfair and fate indifferent? The simple, often banal prose contrasts Veronika's bleak inner landscape with the beautiful contours of Slovenia, gradually culminating in an upbeat ending with the message that each day of life is a miracle.

This poignant international bestseller by the author of The Alchemist takes readers on a quest to find meaning in a culture overshadowed by angst, soulless routine, and pervasive conformity. Based on events in Coelho's own life, Veronika Decides to Die questions the meaning of madness and celebrates individuals who do not fit into patterns society considers to be normal. Bold and illuminating, it is a dazzling portrait of a young woman at the crossroads of despair and liberation, and a poetic, exuberant appreciation of each day as a renewed opportunity.

Sorry, but this bookray is now closed!

Here's the list (person currently in possession of the book is in bold):





ellymae58 - California, USA*
spark - California, USA
CrazyPooka - Oregon, USA
MsPooh - Texas, USA
kymberlie - Texas, USA
WWestWind - Colorado, USA* <----- please skip, BC'er MIA
mysteryfan03 - Missouri, USA*
Booknose - Indiana, USA
mellion108 - Michigan, USA*
InAPerfectBind - Pennsylvania, USA
Wildflower67 - New Jersey, USA* (has already read it)
nillabreen - Massachusetts, USA*
kalipriestess - Florida, USA removed due to MIA status
pchemphd - Florida, USA*
Wandeca - Canada*
Theresa-A - UK*
blacksheeps99 - Austria*
Caracas - Germany*
Ench - Germany
TheBloody - Germany*
misfitgrrl - Germany*
starbytes - Malaysia*
veracity - Australia*
lijebook - Portugal

(* = will ship anywhere)

Please note: I will make adjustments to the list as needed, to account for geography and to accomodate shipping preferences. Thanks!

Once you're ready to send the book on, please check the list for the next recipient and PM them for their mailing information. And please don't forget to make a journal entry and/or release notes! I'd like to know what everyone thinks of the book, as well as keep track of where it is! Thanks!

Last person on the list will release into the wild!

I stayed up and finished this book last night. I thought it was excellent. I liked how each character's background was told. The ending was definitely not what I was expecting!

This picture is of Ljubljana Castle. I thought it was fitting, since the castle is mentioned in the book, not to mention one of the final scenes in the book takes place there.

In my search of this picture, I found some amazing pictures of Slovenia. It is beautiful! Here's a link to one of the best web pages I found. I thought everyone in this ray might enjoy seeing the city that the story takes place in. Happy reading, everyone!

Book received by spark on 7/28.

Okay -- now I remember Paulo Coelho's other book I recently read, The Alchemist. I had trouble with that book. I had trouble with this one. He is a fine writer, no doubt about that. This book is existentially dark and appeals to me on a certain level, having been trapped myself in moments of sheer boredom with life and the feelings Veronika faces in this story. But somewhere along the path of this book, the story, like life itself, began to repeat itself in minor and not so minor ways. I wanted to run away from the book. I stuck it out to the bitter end and I'm not sure what the point of the book is. I suppose we could have a discussion when everyone has read it! Anyway, I found much of this book just annoying. Like a rabbit in a maze, I felt trapped in the confusing swirl of tunnels... sending this on to Crazypooka who will perhaps understand this book totaly and put me in my place. :=)

I received this one in the mail today. I will start it this weekend, and tell all. Thanks for offering it up.

CrazyPooka here: I recommend this book to anyone who has ever been depressed, or think they will ever be depressed. I think someone here didn't understand the ending...and I don't want to give it away. But what I took was: you have to live your life like each day is your last. This is nothing new in fiction or non-fiction, but it's the way that Coelho ties his characters together that DOES make this new in "veronika decides to die."

There is basically one key thing revealed at the end, it explains the rest of it. Through Veronika, and her will to live her last moments, an entire mental hospital awakens. And so did I. I read this book fairly fast, it just compelled me to move forward. Maybe there was something about not regretting in there, but I'm not sure. All I know is that the parts about everyone else being crazy, and the crazy people being more normal really made me happy. The doctor says, wouldn't it make more sense to eat when you're hungry, and play when you want to? But, people who don't like to function according to a set schedule, or set rules on behavior are considered insane. Veronika, at times, is pretty silly, and I didn't like her. Othertimes, I totally related. The peripheral characters have just as much importance as her, which make this little book so deep.

Do I understand this book? Can I tell all? Not really, but it helped me understand my own dark moments. It helped me realized my own moment to moment desires, and the choice that I have in fulfilling them, or hiding from them. So-called responsibility and self-induced guilt are killing people everyday. Just like Veronika, I have personal shackels--and what am I going to do about them?

Dr. Igor is 49% bad man, and 51% god-send. Vitirol is for real! (If you don't think so, just examine you fear levels throughout on week...is there a peak and bitter taste in your mouth come Sunday night?) I am reminded of Vonnegut's Icenine, with this Vitirol thing---they are both micro/macro commentaries on our world.

Sending to MsPooh this week. Happy reading.

Released on Friday, August 29, 2003 at Mailed to a fellow Bookcrosser in Portland, Oregon USA.

Sent snail mail to MsPooh in Round Rock Texas. This book was surprisingly uplifting. A rewarding little read. i think I may check out some of Coelho other works as a result. Thanks for the chance to read this...I never would have guessed it from the title, and I never would have found it by myself. This is why I LOVE bookcrossing!

I am in a book currently, and have 1 ray in front of this. Will get to quickly and back out on the way.


~~~Hmm, ok, I tried to get into it as it has such good reviews. For some reason tho it just did not grab me. I got about 1/4 way thru, and kept finding other things to do rather than read. Just no interest. Hope the rest of you enjoy it as much as the others have.

Release planned for Saturday, September 20, 2003 at BookRay in Round Rock, Texas USA.

Heading out to the next participant, kymberlie

Received today. I'm going to work through the rest of my rings/rays and get to this as soon as possible. Thanks for the opportunity to read this book! Also, thanks for the lovely card, MsPooh - it's gorgeous!

Unfortunately, this book has been stalled with kymberlie, and I do not get any responses to my numerous PMs to her.

Right now, this bookray is cancelled indefinitely. I will try and obtain another copy of this book to restart it if possible.

Okay, I don't have this book. :)

I was checking out the status of rings/rays today, and am sad to see that this one has died. This book, while challenging and potentially off-putting, can be great inspiration to the right individual. Three of my friends wanted to read it, as they saw me reading it and heard me talking about---but I did the BC thing and passed it on. I'm not trying to give myself "props", just saying...let go of your guilt or shame or whatever and mail it on. heheh

p.s. i hope i'm not messing anything up by adding to this book's thread. just wanted to mourn the ring's death--funny thang is...more distressed at it's outcome than the presumed DOA of some of my own rings, i think i'm in denial. :) (plus I've been MIA from BC the past few months, but I"MMMMMM baaaaaaaaack.) Once I heard of a person getting so pissed and disgusted by a book (I think it was the poisonwood bible) that they destroyed it. I hope this hasn't happened...and the only questionable scene of I could think of was that "sex" scene. heheh

Ultimately, thanks ellymae for sharing it with us who got it.

I truly enjoyed this book and I'm sorry that I stalled the ring for so long! As soon as I get WWestWind's address, I'll mail it. Thanks for letting me read it.

I got this book today! thanks, I have a few rings in front of it and then will journal again....

I'm sorry. I just realized that I had not journaled this book after I read it!! I thought the book was interesting as a piece of fiction. In reality, it would be unreal. thanks so much for the chance to read this book. I was not entirely happy with the ending.

I mailed this on to Booknose 5-25.

I am so, so, so, sorry, I forgot to journal this when it came in and that I have had it for so long, it arrived in a huge influx of rays, rings, trades etc.. and just got overlooked, I apologize. I am making this one my top priority now, and hope to have it read and out by the the first of next week.
Thanks Ellymae58 for your patience and for reminding me I had it.

Well first I will apologize for keeping this book so long, I had a lot in front of it but I knew I wanted to read it. This wasn't an easy read for me. I know several people who suffer from depression and I found this book to be very enlightening in that aspect. I guess no one ever really understands what a depressed person goes through until they have gone through it themselves, and I almost feel like I have with Veronika. I found this book effected my own moods at times it was so engrossing that I found myself feeling dark. I think I would like to read more books by this author, and will definitely be recommending this to one person I know who suffers from depression but would recommend to anyone who has dealt with depression in loved ones, it really helps to put it in perspective.
Sending on the Mellion108

Thanks for sending this my way, booknose, and thanks to ellymae58 for sharing!

I picked it up at my PO Box this afternoon. I have 2 other books that I'm reading right now (that need to be sent on to other people). This will be #3 on the stack!

Just finished this one earlier in the evening. I like the message of it and would agree that "sanity" and "normal" are terms that are merely defined by popular consensus. Whatever the majority does or thinks is considered normal, while everything else is labeled abnormal. I'm not in total agreement with the portrayal of mental illness as described by some of the characters in this book and couldn't help remembering a lot of the clients I worked with over the years who struggled with these very real, very frightening conditions. However, this was a decent read with a surprisingly positive message.

I just PM'd InAPerfectBind for her address, so this little book will be traveling once again soon! Thanks again for sharing.

Thought I'd journaled this when it arrived, but just tried to post an update and realized I hadn't! Sorry! Anyway, it got here safely, thank you, mellion108.

I have a huge project due on 9/24 and can't afford to enjoy any pleasure reading till it's done. Once that job is safely in the mail, there is one book ahead of this one. So I will get to it as soon as I can (looking forward to it!). If that's going to be a problem, please let me know. I don't want to upset anyone by holding on to this book too long.

Must get back to project!

I’m embarrassed to admit it, but I put this book in a "safe place" and then forgot all about it. I never even read it. I’ve been on overload for ages, and I should never have agreed to take it. My deepest apologies to everyone on this ray: former and future readers, and especially EllyMae58. I _never_ meant to hang on to the book this long. It is now moving again, to nillabreen (Wildflower67 has already read it) via U.S. postal service (www.usps.com) tracking number 03031910000031894943.

Received today. I'm just finishing up another book and should be able to start on this one tomorrow or Wednesday.. Thank you!

I finished this book a few weeks ago, but it is still in my possession because I've been having some trouble finding someone to send it to... I have not heard back from pm's... still trying, so I hope the book will be on its way soon.

It was ok. I'm glad I had the opportunity to read it. It explores the questions of sanity and obligation, and takes place in an institution in Europe -- so, I kept thinking of one of my very favorite books of all time, The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann. The Magic Mountain is a much better book, and I would recommend it for everyone on this bookray list who kept reading Veronika Decides to Die and hoping it would get better. The issues that Coelho takes on here are more complex than he acknowledges.

This one was good enough, though, that I might pick up The Alchemist if it happens my way.

Thank you, EllyMae58, for organizing this ray.

Received yesterday. Thanks a lot!!! Will start reading soon!

Received today. Thank you - will read as soon as possible

Just a little update - I´m still trying to get an address to keep this book going. Sorry for keeping it this long!

This bookring is now finished. blacksheeps99 made a sincere effort to contact readers on the list after her, but was unsuccessful. I have advised her to do whatever she likes with the book.


Thank you everyone for participating!!

Offered it to some people who have it on their wish-lists.

Edit Dec 5: The book is going to Greece - to PinkManager. Will post it tomorrow!

I got the book today!Thanks so much blacksheeps99!

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