I’ve been reading a lot of European history lately. For research. So it’s been a bit of a relief to switch to something lighter. Perhaps that’s why it took less than three days to work my way through The Pilgrimage.
By Paulo Coelho, it’s the story of his journey on the road to Santiago de Compostela. Having been there last month, and read two other books about the same trip in quick succession, I was keen to see what he had to say about it. I can safely say that he brought out things that I’d never seen in the other books. Or indeed any book at all, come to that.
This is a story of demonic possession, of exorcisms and speaking in tongues. Of harnessing an energy field that flows around the whole world, and of summoning up your personal spiritual guide for company, advice and inspiration. In short, it’s a story with so many more levels than anything else you’re likely to read, going beyond the realms of this world and borrowing unashamedly from the next. It’s also far less about his physical journey from one location to another, and more about his journey of personal discovery.
Of the three books I’ve read on the subject, this is the only one I’ve picked up after riding the train from Irun to Compostela myself, so it was interesting to read of the places I could remember passing through. I could recognise some of the locations, as I recalled them vividly from my own journey; particularly the old railway junk yard at Ponferrada where the old steam trains had been left, piled up on a piece of buckled track to rust and decompose over time. That very spot had been the location of a key event in the book, and was made all the more real by my own memories and, coincidentally, the notes I’d scribbled down in my notebook as I passed through.
I’d not read any Coelho before, so I took this one on faith after it was name-dropped by a casual acquaintance who, it turned out, hadn’t read it anyway. I wish I’d known that before I started: I got to the end needing someone with whom I could discuss it. But, alas, it looks like I’m alone on this one.
Most definitely a recommended read.
Probably moreso than any other book I can immediately call to mind.
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Thanks for the book recommendation Nik. I’ve tried a few of yours in the past and you’ve always recommended good books.