Brida: A Novel (P.S.) [Paperback]

Paulo Coelho (Author)

Book Description

Release date: February 10, 2009 | Series: P.S.

Brida, a young Irish girl, has long been interested in various aspects of magic but is searching for something more. Her search leads her to people of great wisdom. She meets a wise man who dwells in a forest, who teaches her to trust in the goodness of the world, and a woman who teaches her how to dance to the music of the world. As Brida seeks her destiny, she struggles to find a balance between her relationships and her desire to become a witch.

This enthralling novel incorporates themes that fans of Paulo Coelho will recognize and treasure. It is a tale of love, passion, mystery, and spirituality from the master storyteller.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Coelho's brilliant tale of young Brida, an Irish girl who wishes to become a witch, is a compelling and vivid fantasy epic. Sadly, narrator Linda Emond's uninspired and monotonous reading is a disservice to this fantastic tale. Though the story is set in Ireland during the mid-'80s, Emond makes no attempt at a regional dialect or even the slightest shift in tone for any of the characters. Her narrative voice is dull and uninspired, read with a soft whisper that will surely put most listeners to sleep before it ignites their imaginations. The story would be much better served with a narrator more willing to put their performance skills to the test and dive into the story. A Harper hardcover (Reviews, Apr. 28). (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Written prior to The Alchemist (1993) and recently published in English, Coelho’s novel tells the story of young Irishwoman Brida O’Fern and her search for spiritual destiny. Brida consults a famous seer, and while seeking initiation into an ancient Wiccan ritual, she discovers her supernatural gifts. Brida struggles with her growing attraction to the seer and her destiny as a witch. Emond reads in a straightforward manner, using no Irish accents, despite the protagonist’s heritage. She deepens her pitch slightly to represent the male characters. Even when she is describing Wiccan rites and ceremonies, her narration is calm and introspective. Nevertheless, Emond’s low-key reading easily represents the searching, confused protagonist. For audio collections where previous Coelho novels are popular. --Laurie Hartshorn --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial; Reprint edition (February 10, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061578959
• ISBN-13: 978-0061578953
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (70 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,401 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A nice introduction to a great writer July 15, 2008

By Jackie Blem

Format:Hardcover

I've never read anything by Paulo Coelho before, so I was rather surprised by the pagan spirituality of this little novel. It's the story of Brida, an Irish girl in training to become a witch. It is full of beautifully worded prose--I found myself making little tics and stars beside many paragraphs to go back and examine again (my apologies to those who get the ARC from me, lol). There is some seriously high minded spirituality folded into this simple book about a woman's quest to learn to use her powers and her heart. I was especially intrigued with the Catholic Christianity woven within the more traditional magical teachings and philosophies. This is, apparently, one of Coelho's earlier works that has finally been translatted from the original Portuguese. I found it a good way to whet my appetite for his other works before I come to a decision of what it is I think of him as a writer.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Very disappointed! October 9, 2010

By Karina

Format:Hardcover

Let's just say this book is not what I expected it would be after reading the Alchemist,which was great!Like other people said it before me it is boring and towards the end it gets so confusing ,it seems as if even the author himself forgot where he was going with the storyline.I honestly tried to focus on what I was reading but it's hard when it seems like the same words just keep repeating and the author can't get to the 'message 'of the story.I was very disappointed!

16 of 21 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Was this written by the same author who wrote the Alchemist? Hard to believe August 17, 2008

By Valerie White

Format:Hardcover

This is one of the worst books I have ever read. I have always enjoyed this author's works, but this was awful. He should stick to writing what he knows, obviously it is not the concepts of Wicca. It is a very misleading book for people who might think they are actually being taught something about Wicca and modern witchcraft. it is strictly fiction and nonsense. Dancing naked around a fire and a woman named Wicca quoting Jesus all the time- puleese!! It's ridiculous, and not only that, but it is badly written and boring. If you want to learn about soulmates and Irish Druids there are many good books that teach the reality of such things. You don't need to dance naked to be a "wise one" which is what wicca means. And you certainly would never want a teacher quoting a bunch of christianity at you if you wanted to learn about the old religion. St Patrick and the church were killing Druids and pagans (the country people who had their own religion) not snakes. This book was just plain silly. I kept reading hoping it would get better, but it got worse.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars My first and last book by this author. July 9, 2011

By WiltDurkey

Format:Paperback

Now, I admit, I was far out of my usual reading territory, but it is a short book and pretty easy to read. Problem is, from start to finish, I was just totally hermetic to the subject matter.

I don't care about his cloying and vapid handling of Brida's coming of age and self-realization. You know what? I profoundly don't like Brida and her ingenue self. I found the teacher pompous and creepy, because of the age difference. And Brida's boyfriend is way too self-effacing.

I don't care about his version of witchcraft, which doesn't even sound like real Wicca, more like some fluffy New Age. I don't care for the preface that tells you "don't try these rituals at home because they can be dangerous". Is he serious??? Parts of it read like Lobsang T Rampa's Third Eye and you can look up how genuine that was.

He might have gone somewhere with the soulmate idea. Except that it is far from original and the combination of repetition and silly rituals took all the wind out of deeper ideas. There was little else to be found in the plot, and surprisingly little romantic suspense, so I was bored senseless.

Disclaimer:

I am male, well-educated, work in a technical field, and neither religiously nor spiritually inclined. Agnostic, rather than atheist. The closest I come to this subject matter is through magical realism and the occasional romantic novel, Love in the Time of Cholera being a recent favorite. Much more likely to read science, economics or history as non-fiction, rather than philosophy or self-help. New Age is... not my thing, though I would respect real Wiccans.

Despite what it sounds like, the point of this review is not really to criticize the book. It is obviously a fine book to many....

It is more to warn a certain category of potential readers that they might take to it like oil to water. I mostly agree with the other 1 star reviewers' criticism, but they don't have the same motivations as me for their reaction. The Alchemist may be a fine book, I've had people recommend it to me rather than this. But this review is about Brida, not the Alchemist. Read more ›

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars solid Coelho book May 29, 2009

By atlantagirl

Format:Paperback

I have read all of Paulo Coelho's books and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. Not a masterpiece, but it is solidly written (great flow), enchanting (following Brida's path to self-fulfillment) and enlightening (don't we all need to find our 'path' again every once in a while?). Not as metaphysical as some of his other books. Overall a good, fast read, that succeeds in the reader's evaluation of his/her own life choices after the last page is read.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Not His Best Work July 29, 2008

By T. Weefur

Format:Hardcover

Coelho is one of my all-time favorite authors, and while I could respect the the themes woven in the subtext of the plot, as well as the usual, excellent writing, I wasn't as thrilled reading this book compared to the others (Veronica Decides to Die, By the River Piedra..., Alchemist). If you're a new reader of his work, I'd start there and skip this one.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved It, For Seekers and Teachers of Any Mystic Tradition May 5, 2012

By L. Erickson TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

I haven't read a lot of Coelho, only The Alchemist, which I liked but didn't love as much as many people, and his most recent book Aleph, which I liked a lot and is the reason I decided to try some of his other works. I'm glad I did because I loved Brida. However, looking through the reviews I find that I didn't see it in quite the same way many readers did - as a love story or story about the wicca path. Instead I read it as a story about the universal truths of both seeking and teaching the mysteries in any tradition. I felt it was really about the choices we face on any mystic path, particularly the choice to give up an uncomplicated view of existence in pursuit of truth, which we then find will always be incomplete. I also felt it had many insights about being a teacher within such paths - the sacred trust that this is, and the personal sacrifices that must be made to consider what is right for a student - what will lead them closer to their own path in a particular moment - at all times.

On the surface it's the story of a young woman, Brida, who pursues the study of magic on a wicca-like path, the Tradition of the Moon, but also has another teacher, a Magus, who teaches the Tradition of the Sun. She also is seeking love, and her soul mates, and there is a lot of discussion of what love really is, and how it changes once one is on a path such as this. Coelho really is a magnificent writer. The book builds into a crescendo of insights on the part of each of the characters, just as the final ritual in the book builds.... I saw that at least one reviewer complained that this ritual is not authentic, but that didn't bother me - this is a novel, Coelho always merges many paths in his work (and that is part of the point no doubt) and the ritual here is masterful as a aesthetic choice. So overall, I really loved this little book! Read more ›