A thought on Paulo Coelho's Adultery

I had been so excited waiting for Adultery since last year and couldn't wait any longer when the book was finally published internationally. I went to my favorite bookshop and picked one up. I didn't read it right away, as I was still in the middle of another book by Jonasson (which I've reviewed here).

Once I finished with Jonasson's book, I started reading Adultery in a flash. I had such high hopes and expectations for this book, which so far received so few bad reviews. After all, Coelho is one of the most influential writers in this century. 

I understood clearly before reading it that it would be a controversial book, talking about a topic that was more than just black and white, adultery. But I thought this book would change my mind and perspective about it. I was mistaken.

Adultery tells the story of Linda, a woman of envy to everyone around her. Linda seems to be living a fairy tale; successful in her thirties, married to a loving husband, the mother of two children, and an accomplished journalist admired for her savvy reporting. She has the privilege to live a lifestyle that few people can live. But an interview with a famous writer changes everything. The writer's comment gets Linda thinking, and she examines her life more deeply, surprised to find a profound sadness beneath her impeccable facade. Nothing seems to help, until a meeting with her former boyfriend, Jacob Konig, sparks a fire that gives her life the meaning it's been lacking.*

Upon finishing the book, I was left in a daze, thinking that somehow Coelho had drifted apart from his magically wise mind, the warrior of light. His book teaches me nothing I haven't known about, which is a first. Unlike his previous book, Manuscript of Accra, which I love deeply even though it receives harsh reviews from critics for being too biblical and full of preaches, I find Adultery flat and full of common worldly view. It glorifies sex, which makes it less elegant. Please note that I've read Eleven Minutes and I still find it profoundly touching even when it revolves around prostitution. But the way Coelho brings sex in the center of Adultery can't be any worse than this. I felt like reading 50 Shades of Grey all over again, but with toned-down sex scenes and more wise words instead of moaning. 

What's more, the way the author justifies the act of infidelity as something common and most married couples will stumble upon, doesn't make a lot of sense. I do understand that you can have a fling, a crush, or even flirt with someone else other than your partner, but that doesn't give you right to have one night stands. Linda, the main character in the book, decided to deal with her problem heads on, which meant she went all out with her affair and didn't feel the least bit guilty about it. She felt like it's her way of getting out of depression and boredom of her daily routine, because she was gradually losing touch with herself. When she finally decided to end things with Jacob, she was broken hearted. Until she went paragliding with her husband, and magically found her inner self which she had previously lost, She realized she had learnt to love better, in spite of all the mistakes she had done that has caused sufferings to the people she dearly loves. At the end of the day, all of her acts of infidelity are worth it. Everything is back to normal, but everything has changed. She's happier, her husband is happier, and she lives happily ever after. What the F-? 

I'm terribly sorry to tell you, my dear readers, I'm not impressed with this book. I'm utterly disappointed with so many things, it's hard to pinpoint just one thing I found the most repulsive. Or maybe I can: it's the way modern people over-glorify sex, the way sex is hugely exploited everywhere, the way it becomes a widely loved commodity that can bring fortunes and wealth. The more you put sex, the more you gain: popularity and fame from best-selling books, or best-selling movies. All of which disgust me, make me think we have regressed so far to primordial age, when we were still half-apes with little humane conscience. What's wrong with society these days? I wish Paulo was here to answer my questions. I feel like he could have done a better job with such controversial issue. I wish he taught me more about love that I never know, instead of making me lose my mind. I know he's no saint, I know his thoughts are very different from mind: as deep as the ocean and as wide as the sea, I just wish I could get an opportunity to dive into that beautiful mind. Maybe then I'll learn to appreciate Adultery a lot more. 

On the last note, although Adultery is now officially a book I love the least from Paulo Coelho, my respect for him stays the same. He's still my favorite author, he's still the warrior of light I admire and fell in love with the moment I read By The River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept (which was my first encounter with him), and fell even more in love when I found The Alchemist. Apart from all the downsides and disappointment I expressed above, I still gain one thing or two: to love is to feel pain. Live life passionately, it's more interesting than being happy, which is dangerous because you never know what might happen next.

Putting the adultery that I poorly understand aside, I'm still able to devour the spirituality lessons Coelho has put in -- the only traces of him I'm glad I still found in Adultery. 

And one more thing: learn to love. This should be our goal in life, to learn to love better each day. A celebration of love is a celebration of life. Adultery at the very least manages to tell me this. 

PS: I'm more than willing to give Adultery another try. A second read might change my mind. Who knows. 

* this paragraph is an extract taken from the back cover of Adultery book, published by Alfred A. Knopf Publisher, New York, with few modifications.