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3.5 AVERAGE
3.5 AVERAGE
krysshera's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Complicated
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jesscause's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Although there’s no real plot, which many dislike this book for, I enjoyed reading it. I don’t think there always has to be a big plot. In a way, there was a plot. Regardless, it was nice to read a glimpse into another life, a life that is very different from my own, yet has similarities in values and ideas. Connection is key.
js2313's review against another edition
1.0
When I was seventeen, I read "The Alchemist" in order to impress a girl. Much to my surprise, I found myself enraptured with Coelho's most famous offering and summarily pronounced him the greatest living author in any language. This sent me on a binge, and over the course of the next three or four years, I read approximately a dozen of his books, immersing myself in the Brazilian scribe's metaphysical narratives and attempting very sincerely to adopt his deep and meaningful worldview.
But over that same stretch of time, I also did some living - went to college, traveled a bit, exposed myself to challenging writing of all sorts - and by the time I finished "Love" sometime in 2011, I had seen enough of him for a lifetime. His writing no longer grabbed me the way it had. It felt cheap and easy - a mixture of tired cliches and pretentious characters.
But there is a still a nostalgia that comes with falling in love with a writer and their work, and when I came across "Hippie" this year, I thought he might be worth revisiting. Perhaps I'd become jaded in college and gave his work an unfair shake. As it turns out, that was not the case. "Hippie" is every bit as unambitious, pompous, and shallow as I had feared. Coelho (who I am sure is a fine person) leans on the language of vague mysticism to prop up a semi-autobiographical retelling of a mediocre story. The dust jacket promises a story of an adventure, set against the turbulent backdrop of the hippie movement. Instead, we get endlessly pedantic discussions about the nature of the universe and love, none of which would seem out of place in a freshman dorm room. Add to this the fact that Coelho can't write dialogue to save his life (every character speaks in stilted, melodramatic tones which conveniently underscore his philosophy) and you've got a book that just isn't worth your time.
The ending is a fitting punchline to this half-baked attempt at a memoir. In spite of the lovingly hand-drawn map in the opening pages, which shoes the winding journey all the way to Kathmandu, Coelho doesn't even make it halfway to Nepal before abandoning his journey. His trip peters out in Instanbul, more than 3,000 miles from his destination. And thank God for that, because I seriously doubt I would have survived the Asian continent with Coelho as my guide.
But over that same stretch of time, I also did some living - went to college, traveled a bit, exposed myself to challenging writing of all sorts - and by the time I finished "Love" sometime in 2011, I had seen enough of him for a lifetime. His writing no longer grabbed me the way it had. It felt cheap and easy - a mixture of tired cliches and pretentious characters.
But there is a still a nostalgia that comes with falling in love with a writer and their work, and when I came across "Hippie" this year, I thought he might be worth revisiting. Perhaps I'd become jaded in college and gave his work an unfair shake. As it turns out, that was not the case. "Hippie" is every bit as unambitious, pompous, and shallow as I had feared. Coelho (who I am sure is a fine person) leans on the language of vague mysticism to prop up a semi-autobiographical retelling of a mediocre story. The dust jacket promises a story of an adventure, set against the turbulent backdrop of the hippie movement. Instead, we get endlessly pedantic discussions about the nature of the universe and love, none of which would seem out of place in a freshman dorm room. Add to this the fact that Coelho can't write dialogue to save his life (every character speaks in stilted, melodramatic tones which conveniently underscore his philosophy) and you've got a book that just isn't worth your time.
The ending is a fitting punchline to this half-baked attempt at a memoir. In spite of the lovingly hand-drawn map in the opening pages, which shoes the winding journey all the way to Kathmandu, Coelho doesn't even make it halfway to Nepal before abandoning his journey. His trip peters out in Instanbul, more than 3,000 miles from his destination. And thank God for that, because I seriously doubt I would have survived the Asian continent with Coelho as my guide.
adatormo's review against another edition
4.0
Un libro simple, bonito y espiritual. Un viaje por el mundo y por el alma. Una mezcla de conocimientos espirituales, culturales y enfrentamientos sociales, traumas y finamente paz. Se lee con musicalidad ya que esta escrito de forma poética. Entretenido y agradable. Esperaba encontrarme con el momento culminante de iluminación en la india y resultó ser en Estambul mezclado con el encuentro con el amor la belleza y el ser. Lleno de imagenes que inspiran hacia la practica de la contemplacion del ser, el universo y el infinito, tambien las ganas de embarcar en un viaje, tanto exterior como interior, ambos fusionandose en uno. Recomiendo la lectura, es facil y te deja con una tranquilidad si estas en un momento de descubrimiento de tu ser.
mbsmith93's review against another edition
2.0
After The Alchemist I found this book disappointing. It was pretty much auto-biographical and as such was simply uninteresting. I mean I guess I read it to the end so it was ok-ish but...
brughiera's review against another edition
3.0
The description of Hippie as "his most autobographical novel to date" is apt but also misleading. This is hardly a novel as there is no plot, but neither is it an autobiography as it is written in the third person and although the character and main narrator, Paulo, is clearly a version of the author, the time slice covered is limited. The book is rather an exposé of the hippie movement, seen from the inside by participants in the culture. As such it is of historical interest as a rather personal record which aims to capture the spirit of the time. Coelho is ideally situated to do this, not only because he did participate in the movement but also because that spirit of freedom and quest for personal meaning has been central to his own life.
The main story starts in the notorious Dam Square in Amsterdam, where Paulo meets a Dutch girl, Karla. After some incidents with Hare Krishna and drug dealers, Paulo is enticed to join Karla on a trip on a 'magic bus' to Kathmandu. The other travellers on the bus have their own stories which are gradually revealed in the course of the journey. The one which resonated most with me was that of the French businessman who, still bewildered by the student demonstrations in Paris in 1968 in which his daughter had been involved, resolved to leave behind his successful career to find meaning in his life. But all the stories involve personal quests and the journey on the magic bus is a means to those ends. Paulo himself does not get as far as Kathmandu but stops in Istanbul where he finds a Sufi whose disciple he wishes to become. The book ends when he leaves his travelling companions who are continuing their journey. Not a very satisfactory ending but perhaps necessary due to the autobiographical sources used.
The main story starts in the notorious Dam Square in Amsterdam, where Paulo meets a Dutch girl, Karla. After some incidents with Hare Krishna and drug dealers, Paulo is enticed to join Karla on a trip on a 'magic bus' to Kathmandu. The other travellers on the bus have their own stories which are gradually revealed in the course of the journey. The one which resonated most with me was that of the French businessman who, still bewildered by the student demonstrations in Paris in 1968 in which his daughter had been involved, resolved to leave behind his successful career to find meaning in his life. But all the stories involve personal quests and the journey on the magic bus is a means to those ends. Paulo himself does not get as far as Kathmandu but stops in Istanbul where he finds a Sufi whose disciple he wishes to become. The book ends when he leaves his travelling companions who are continuing their journey. Not a very satisfactory ending but perhaps necessary due to the autobiographical sources used.