Title: The Zahir

by Paulo Coelho

Paperback: 336 pages

Publisher: Harper Perennial

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0060832819

ISBN-13: 978-0060832810

I was not meant to read The Zahir, by Paulo Coelho, first. In fact, my intention was to buy The Alchemist, also by the same author, as I had heard much about this book. However, the bookshop had run out of copies of The Alchemist and that is how I ended up reading The Zahir.

The Zahir is a work of literary fiction. In the tale, the narrator is a bestselling novelist who lives in France and enjoys all the privileges his money and celebrity bring. His wife of ten years, Esther, is a war correspondent who has disappeared along with a friend, Mikhail, who may or may not be her lover. The narrator does not know whether Esther has been kidnapped or murdered? Or, did she leave of her own accord? He has no answers but many questions, one of them being whether he wants her back at all. One day, Mikhail finds him and promises to reunite him with Esther. During this journey to find his wife, the narrator finds out something about himself.

What I understood about the main protagonist was that, in his professional capacity, he is extremely successful. However, this success did not obliterate the sadness and uncertainty in other aspects of his life. When his wife disappeared, he understood just how deep these sentiments went. For a long time, he struggled to understand what happened to him and his wife. And his journey to find her begins only when he understands that to find her, he needs to find himself. The manner in which the tale is written allows the reader to share in the characters’ sorrow, pain and even joy. At its simplest, The Zahir is a love story – a man loves, but not deeply, loses this love then sets out to find her again.

I have heard it said before that the success of a novel depends on whether the author is able to create his own language. Many successful authors seem to have done this and in The Zahir, I particularly enjoyed the author’s creation of the ‘Favor Bank’. And what, indeed, is this ‘Favor Bank’? Well, the author provides this answer:

“… Let me give you an example: I know that you’re an up-and-coming writer and that, one day, you’ll be very influential. I know this because, like you, I too was once ambitious, independent, honest. I no longer have the energy I once had, but I want to help you because I can’t or don’t want to grind to a halt just yet. I’m not dreaming about retirement, I’m still dreaming about the fascinating struggle that is life, power, and glory."

“I start making deposits in your account – not cash deposits, you understand, but contacts. I introduce you to such-and-such a person, I arrange certain deals, as long as they’re legal. You know that you owe me something, but I never ask you for anything.”

“And then one day…”

“Exactly. One day, I’ll ask you for a favour and you could, of course, say no, but you’re conscious of being in my debt. You do what I ask, I continue to help you, and other people see that you’re a decent, loyal sort of person and so they too make deposits in your account – always in the form of contacts, because this world is made up of contacts and nothing else. They too will one day ask you for a favor, and you will respect and help the people how have helped you, and, in time, you’ll have spread your net worldwide, you’ll know everyone you need to know and your influence will keep on growing."

“I could refuse to do what you ask me to do.”

“You could. The Favor Bank is a risky investment, just like any other bank. You refuse to grant the favor I asked you, in the belief that I helped you because you deserved to be helped, because you’re the best and everyone should automatically recognize your talent. Fine, I say thank you very much and ask someone else into whose account I’ve also made various deposits; but from then on, everyone knows, without me having to say a word, that you’re not to be trusted. …"

Some of the places the author has described in this novel are Paris and Kazakhstan: I have been to Paris once, very briefly, and never to Kazakhstan. Still, the detailed description of each place, from the cafés to the vastness of the steppes and the hint of the journey along the Silk Road make me wish I could visit them all.

There are three passages in this novel which display the author’s wonderful ability to make something that has the potential to be very complicated, sound very simple.

‘The most important thing in all human relationships is conversation, but people don’t talk anymore, they don’t sit down to talk and listen. They go to the theater, the cinema, watch television, listen to the radio, read books, but they almost never talk. If we want to change the world, we have to go back to a time when warriors would father around a fire and tell stories.’

 

'[People are sad because t]hey are the prisoners of their personal history. Everyone believes that the main aim in life is to follow a plan. They never ask if that plan is theirs or if it was created by another person. They accumulate experiences, memories, things, other people’s ideas, and it is more than they can possibly cope with. And that is why they forget their dreams.'

 

‘… Critics are extremely insecure, they don’t really know what’s going on, they’re democrats when it comes to politics, but fascists when it comes to culture. They believe that people are perfectly capable of choosing who governs them, but have no idea when it comes to choosing films, books, music.’

If there is to be a moral to this story, I would say that it is a lesson in hope and patience. It is best stated in the Esther’s words: “I’ve waited for you in so many ways,” she said when she saw that my tears were abating. “Like a desperate wife who knows that her husband has never understood her life, and that he will never come to her, and so she has no option but to get on a plane and go back, only to leave again after the next crisis, then go back and leave and go back …”

I was not entirely impressed with this book. Neither was I disappointed. In all, I have an ordinary sort of reaction to it. I would recommend it as an 'easy' read.

1st February 2008

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