Damascus Journey Book

"So what is magic?" she asked.

…"Magic is a bridge," he said at last, " a bridge that allows you to walk from the visible world over into the invisible world, and to learn the lessons of both those worlds."

"And how can I learn to cross that bridge?"

"By discovering your own way of crossing it. Everyone has their own way." My first exposure to Coelho was many years ago. I read The Alchemist at a time in my life when I was experiencing some major changes and I found very real comfort and guidance there. I enjoyed several more of his novels but after a time there seemed to be a repetitiveness to them that left me unsatisfied.

Brida is yet another enlightenment quest story from Coelho. I enjoyed it for a while, but well before reaching the end, I found that I was getting bored. It seemed like I was reading Casteneda after he had scarfed down a peyote button laced with Robert Heinlein. Despite the mysterious base of the subject matter, a young woman seeking to learn about magic and gain insight into her special "Gift", there is too much bright and cheery obviousness here. I recall once reading a book about auras in which the author assumed that after a few exercises the reader would be able to view human auras as easily as one might see the color of a hat worn by someone you pass in the street. There is that sort of presumption here, a presumption of a magic realm, a presumption of rituals that allow people access to that realm. Yes, it is a novel, but I expect that that is a politic way of marketing what Coelho believes to be more of a self-help book.


Paulo Coelho - image from Post-Gazette

I suppose it is possible that Coelho has some insight into other layers of existence, although I do not accept that as given. This book made me wish that he had made better use of what mystical powers or insights he might have to have written a more engaging story.

Read /posted - 2009
Revised/re-posted -12/18/15