O Aleph by Paulo Coelho, published as Aleph in English, a journey on the Trans-Siberian Railway.
Posts Tagged ‘O Aleph’
O Aleph
November 28, 2011Paulo Coelho unknown author
August 17, 2011
Aleph - Paulo Coelho: A spiritual journey on the Trans-Siberian Railway
Paulo Coelho
In 2006 I was called to my 3rd sacred pilgrimage. … I went to several countries, but the epiphany happened while crossing Asia in the Transiberian train ( 15 days, 7 different time zones, 9.2528 km from Moscow to Vladivostok). I was travelling with a Turkish girl, Hilal (not her real name), for reasons that you are going to discover in the book. This point where time and space converge is called ‘The Aleph’ (J.L.Borges has a wonderful short story about this point). Therefore, this is the title of my new book: ‘The Aleph’. … Why did I take so long to write about this pilgrimage? Because it took me three full years to understand it. — Paulo Coelho
We are a business that has not satisfied its customers for some time and is paying the price for that. — James Daunt, boss Waterstone’s
We need much, much better bookshops. — James Daunt, boss Waterstone’s
I was in Waterstone’s bookshop in Guildford yesterday. Behind the counter was chalked up on a big board latest releases. No mention of Aleph by Paulo Coelho due out in September.
Curious as to this noticeable ommission, I asked.
The staffer behinder the counter looked at me blankly.
He must be an unknown author, I was told, or not very popular.
Unknown author! Not very popular!
I explained that since publication of O Aleph in Brazil last summer, publication in English was eagerly awaited, that in the first six countries of publication it had jumped straight to No One.
I added that Paulo Coelho had over 2 million followers on twitter, more than five million on facebook!
I could have added that The Alechemist had been in the New York Times best seller list for a continuous 188 weeks. Not bad for a book that was published over twenty years ago!
It will probably come as a surprise to readers in Latin America, Middle East or Europe, especially Eastern Europe and Russia, that Paulo Coelho is not well known in England. I once put this to the test.
I asked a friend in Cyprus, receptionist at a hotel, did she know who Paulo Coelho was? Of course I do, she replied, in a tone that implied I was questioning her intelligence. When I explained why I had asked, that he was not well known in England, she did not believe me. We then asked guests at the hotel. None of the English knew who he was, all the others did!
Not that this can be any excuse in a bookshop. It is not that I expect the staff to know every single writer, I do not, but in this case Waterstone’s was running a promotion of a free trip on the Trans-Siberian Railway to coincide with publication of Aleph on 1 September 2011. Not that anyone walking into Waterstone’s would know this as no mention in the store, or at least not obvious.
The irony was that the only reason I was in Waterstone’s was to obtain a Waterstone’s card as it was required to participate in this promotion.
If bookshops are to compete with on-line retailers they need two things: Physical presence off books, to handle and look at. Staff that actually know about writers and their books.
Waterstone’s Guildford used to have staff with who one could chat about books, but then it was Ottakar’s flagship store. Against strong public opposition the Ottakar’s chain founded by James Heneage was taken over by Waterstone’s. Staff who chatted with customers were told off!
Earlier in the week, James Daunt, boss of Waterstone’s said the stores were in much need of improvement. Not a truer word said.
To be fair to Waterstone’s they do help new writers. Stuart Olds has been booksigning in Waterstone’s and shifting 50 books at a time. The record 68 copies of Hope’s Truth
Guildford Book Festival 13-22 October 2011. Hopefully this year will be a better book festival than last year which was very poor compared with previous years. [see Guildford Book Festival 2010]
Top story The Writer’s Cafe Daily Friday 19 August 2011.
– Paulo Coelho announces details about next book release
– Tears are words that need to be written
– Aleph in Farsi
Aleph the video – finalists
July 26, 2011In May 2011, when Paulo Coelho passed 5 million friends on Facebook, he asked everyone what we should do to celebrate.
One of the suggestions was to work together on a project. Out of this was born Aleph the video. The idea was to capture the essense of his latest book O Aleph in a short video.
O Aleph (or Elif in Turkey) is the story of a journey undertaken by Paulo Coelho on the trans-Siberian railway from Moscow to Vladivostok.
Aleph is a point in time and space.
Released in Brazil in August 2010, it will not be available in English until September 2011.
The Aleph Video
May 4, 2011
O Aleph (or Elif in Turkey) is the story of a journey undertaken by Paulo Coelho on the trans-Siberian railway from Moscow to Vladivostok.
I am reminded of a Mandelbrot Set. There is also an allusion to Alice. But please do not let this be the book cover. Of the three possible book covers in English, the middle cover is by far the best, the disappearing into the mist in the distance gives a hint of mysticism. [see Which one is the best?]
Aleph is a point in time and space.
Released in Brazil in August 2010, it will not be available in English until September 2011.
– Aleph
Aleph
April 9, 2011O Aleph by Paulo Coelho. Music by J S Bach.
O Aleph published in Brazil August 2010, shot straight to No One.
O Aleph published in Portutugal in February 2011, shot straight to No One.
Published as Elif in Turkey March 2011, shot straight to No One.
Available in English, September 2011.
In The Eight, which Elaine kindly gave me when I was in Istanbul for Paulo’s St Joseph Day party, we have a cameo appearance by J S Bach, where he speaks of music capturing space and time. To learn more, read The Eight, a semi-mystical novel by Katherine Neville.
Aleph, a point in space and time. Jorge Luis Borges describes it:
The Aleph was about two to three centimetres in diameter, but all of cosmic space was there, with no diminution in size. Each thing was infinite, because I could clearly see it from every point on the universe.
Paulo Coelho Press Conference at Pera Palace Hotel
March 19, 2011
Paulo Coelho at press conference
Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. — 1 John 4:8, NIV
Paulo Coelho died at birth, strangled by his umbilical cord. His mother prayed and he survived. The hospital was called Saint Joseph. His mother made a promise to Saint Joseph. Paulo Coelho upholds that promise and one way he does so is to hold a party each year on St Joseph’s Day with his friends to celebrate.
Last year it was at Melk Abbey. This year it is at the Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul. And that ıs why this afternoon he held this press conference. Not, as some may think, to promote his new book Elif as he did not need to.
Elif (O Aleph in Portugal and Brazil) was released ın Turkey last week. It has already reached Number One in Turkey without any help or promotion by Paulo Coelho. His books do not need it, they sell by word of mouth.
To date almost 150 million books sold. If we assume at least three people read each book, then we are approaching half a billion readers.
Why do people read the books? Ask the readers. All Paulo Coelho does is write them.
Why does he write? We all have stories to tell. That is how we retain our culture. Some of us follow our dreams.
Joseph, a simple carpenter, followed his dreams. He worked with with love.
That is the question we should all ask ourselves: Do we work with love, do we put love into our work? That is the the question God will ask us, not did we sin, but did we put love into our work?
Jesus told stories. The Koran tells us to tell stories and reflect on those stories. The Hindu classics are stories.
People are rising up, they are demanding change, they will no longer accept the old order.
Elif, released in Turkey last week, is the story of a journey. A journey that starts in Moscow on the Trans-Siberian railway. It is a spiritual journey. It is the story of a Turkish woman called Elif.
Elif or Aleph is a point in space and time.
It is rare for Paulo Coelho to hold a press conference, which explains the massed TV cameras. I was told even CNN was there. On the platform with Paulo Coelho was his publisher in Turkey and the Brazilian Ambassador to Turkey.
This evening Paulo Coelho will be hosting a party for his friends at the Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul.
On leaving Pera Palace I wandered to Istiklal Avenue where I found copies of Elif on display in a bookshop. I had hoped to see the historic tram which Orhan Pamuk writes of in one of his books but I was out of luck. The street was blocked by a massive anti-nuclear demonstration.
Pera Palace Hotel has been recently renovated. It was built for passengers on the Orient Express. Many famous guests including Ernest Hemmingway, Greta Garbo, Agatha Christie, who wrote Murder on the Orient Express whilst staying at the Pera Palace Hotel. In the entrance foyer is an old sedan chair. Chairs such as this were used to carry guests from the station, across the river and up the hill to the Pera Palace Hotel. The electric lift inside the hotel was the second only installed in Europe. The first was the Eiffel Tower. Pera Palace is listed in 1000 Places to See Before You Die, with a copy opened at the relevant pages in a display cabinet in the hotel foyer.
– Paulo Coelho in Turkey
– Paulo Coelho meets readers in Istanbul
– Paulo Coelho İstanbul’da “Elif”i anlattı
– Coelho ‘Elif’ ile İstanbul’da
– Paulo Coelho: Paylaşmazsanız insan değilsiniz
– Paulo Coelho İstanbul’da
– Brezilyalı Yazar Paulo Coelho İstanbul’da
– Coelho, İstanbul’da
Booktrailer de O Aleph
February 9, 2011O Aleph, published in Brazil summer 2010, rest of the world 2011.
O Aleph
November 26, 2010O Aleph by Paulo Coelho was released in Brazil during the summer. It is not due for worldwide release until January 2011.
Also see
the fire of friendship
November 4, 2010
Ferrovia Transiberiana, 2006, onde se passa o livro
Once upon a time there was a poor but very brave man called Ali. He worked for Ammar, a rich old merchant.
One winter’s night Ammar said: “nobody can spend a night like this on top of the mountain without a blanket or food. But you need money, and if you can manage to do that you will receive a great reward. If you don’t, you will work for thirty days without pay”.
Ali answered: “tomorrow I shall do this test”.
But when he left the shop, he saw that a really icy wind was blowing and became scared, so he decided to ask his best friend, Aydi, if it was crazy of him to accept that bet.
After reflecting a while, Aydi answered: “I shall help you. Tomorrow, when you are at the top of the mountain, look ahead. I will be on the top of the mountain next to yours, where I will spend the whole night with a bonfire lit for you. You look at the fire and think about our friendship – that will keep you warm. You will manage, and later on I shall ask you something in return.”
Ali won the test, got the money, and went to his friend’s house: “You told me you wanted some payment.”
Aydi answered: ”Yes, but it isn’t money. Promise that if at any time a cold wind passes through my life, you will light the fire of friendship for me.”
O Aleph is Paulo Coelho’s hugely anticipated new book, releasing worldwide in 2011. It has already been published in Portuguese in Brazil and since its release in July 2010 has stayed firmly in the top 10 bestseller lists. Readers of the book include the Brazilian President Lula Da Silva.
O Aleph is a journey into Paulo Coelho’s soul; past, present and future. In his blog he writes:
The 3rd sacred road is called Road to Jerusalem. Again, you don’t need to go to Jerusalem, but you have to travel in space and time. The only task I was given was: stay away from home for the next 4 months. I went to several countries, but the epiphany happened while crossing Asia in the Transiberian train (15 days, 7 different time zones, 9.2528 kms from Moscow to Vladivostok). I was traveling with a Turkish girl, Hilal (not her real name), for reasons that you are going to discover in the book. This point where time and space converge is called “The Aleph” (J.L.Borges has a wonderful short story about this point). Therefore, this is the title of my new book: O Aleph.’
Adapted from a post by Priya Sher on her blog. Also posted by Paulo Coelho on his blog.
For my lovely friend Sian for whom the the fire of friendship will always burn no matter how chill the wind blows.
Also see
O Aleph
July 22, 2010
O Aleph by Paulo Coelho
O Aleph, the latest novel from Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho, is due to be released in Brazil on Saturday. It will not be available in the rest of the world until 2011.
Priya Sher has put together on her blog some thoughts on O Aleph from Paulo Coelho.
On 29th July 2010 Paulo Coelho’s new book ‘O Aleph’ will release in all bookstores in Brasil.
‘Waiting for my new book “O Aleph” to hit the bookstores on Saturday, I can assure you: pregnancy is not confined to women.’ Paulo Coelho (on twitter)
The following extract has been written by Paulo Coelho announcing his new book ‘O Aleph’ and has been taken from his blog.
This is the first time I wrote a book in public (I mean, I wrote it in private, but it was like many eyes were on me, because I was doing daily updates on Twitter about my emotional state while writing). I finished it this Thursday, 11 March, at 2:00 AM.
In 2006 I was called to my 3rd sacred pilgrimage.
The first one, the Road to Santiago (1986) takes place in space, meaning that you have to cover a physical distance between two points. In my case, I walked from the border of France to O Cebreiro (Galicia), close to 600 kms. I wrote a book about it, “The pilgrimage”.
The second was in 1989, called Road to Rome, takes place in time. It is not a journey to Rome, but I needed to choose a place (in this case, the French Pyrenees) to stay for 70 days. I had to dream and follow the dream the next day, regardless how absurd it was (I remember dreaming of bus stations, and I spent 3 hrs the next day in a bus station). It deals with the Feminine Energy, and I wrote “Brida” and “By the river Piedra I sat down and wept” while seeing my feminine side manifesting itself.
Paulo Coelho studying the route
The 3rd sacred road is called Road to Jerusalem. Again, you don’t need to go to Jerusalem, but you have to travel in space and time. The only task I was given was: stay away from home for the next 4 months. I went to several countries, but the epiphany happened while crossing Asia in the Transiberian train (15 days, 7 different time zones, 9.2528 kms from Moscow to Vladivostok). I was traveling with a Turkish girl, Hilal (not her real name), for reasons that you are going to discover in the book. This point where time and space converge is called “The Aleph”(J.L.Borges has a wonderful short story about this point). Therefore, this is the title of my new book: “The Aleph”.
Why did I take so long to write about this pilgrimage? Because it took me three full years to understand it. It is not a travel guide. Of course I describe what it means to have such a long trip in a train, but the main goal is the long trip to my soul, past, present and future.
My friends on Facebook and Twitter are the first to know, besides a note today in Radar (Veja magazine). The book will be released in Brasil very soon, and in the rest of the world in 2011. I wish it could be this year (a writer wants to see his/her soul unveiled the next day), but the publishing houses have a different schedule.
Synchronicity: Publication coincides with my re-reading The Pilgrimage, attending two talks the last two weeks on the Pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela and thinking of re-reading By the River Piedra I sat Down and Wept.
Also see
The History of the Pilgrimage to Compostela
Keithpp's Blog 