Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Brida

by Paulo Coelho (Goodreads Author)

3.45 of 5 stars 3.45 · rating details · 24,916 ratings · 1,449 reviews

Brida, a young Irish girl, and her quest for knowledge. She has long been interested in various aspects of magic but is searching for something more. Her search leads her to people of great wisdom, who begin to teach Brida about the spiritual world. She meets a wise man who dwells in a forest, who teaches her about overcoming her fears and trusting in the goodness of the w...more

Paperback, 263 pages

Published by Planeta (first published January 1st 1990)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

Favorite Magical Realist Novels

184th out of 680 books — 2,758 voters

The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

Wicca and other Pagan-based Fiction

35th out of 201 books — 443 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

May 31, 2011 Ebrahim Abdulla rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

حكمة الشمس، حكمة القمر، ليل الظلمة، الأسطورة الشخصية .. الكثير من المفردات التي لم تسمع فيها من قبل، ولا أعلم حقيقة وجودها .. لكن بشكل لا يمكن إنكاره؛ قد تلامس هذه الكلمات حياتك !

تحكي الرواية قصة بريدا الباحثة عن أسرار الكون التي تتعلم من قبل اثنان من معلمي حكمة الشمس و القمر .

بعض المشاهد قد تشعرك بالملل، والبعض الآخر قد يلهمك، والبعض الآخر لا يمكن سوى أن ترفع القبعة تقديراً لخيال باولو ( مشهد لوني و تالبو، مشهد من الصعب نسيانه .. رائع ! ) ا

رغم تشبع الرواية بأمور الصوفية المسيحية ( كعادة روايات...more حكمة الشمس، حكمة القمر، ليل الظلمة، الأسطورة الشخصية .. الكثير من المفردات التي لم تسمع فيها من قبل، ولا أعلم حقيقة وجودها .. لكن بشكل لا يمكن إنكاره؛ قد تلامس هذه الكلمات حياتك !

تحكي الرواية قصة بريدا الباحثة عن أسرار الكون التي تتعلم من قبل اثنان من معلمي حكمة الشمس و القمر .

بعض المشاهد قد تشعرك بالملل، والبعض الآخر قد يلهمك، والبعض الآخر لا يمكن سوى أن ترفع القبعة تقديراً لخيال باولو ( مشهد لوني و تالبو، مشهد من الصعب نسيانه .. رائع ! ) ا

رغم تشبع الرواية بأمور الصوفية المسيحية ( كعادة روايات باولو ) بيد أنه كثيراً ما تشعل كلمات هذا العجوز طريقي في نواحي من الحياة .

لا أعتقد بأنها أفضل كتابات باولو، وجدتني مللت بعض الشيء في النصف الثاني من الرواية، لكنها تبقى جيدة
ينصح بها لمعجبين برواياته الأخرى .

بعض الإقتباسات التي أعجبتني :

ما من شيء في العالم خاطئ تماماً، فحتى الساعة المعطلة تشير إلى الوقت الصحيح مرتين في اليوم..

كل ما يحققه المرء يظل ناقصا إذا فشل في إيجاد نصفه الآخر ..

لا تحاولي تفسير عواطفك، عيشي كل تجربة بجوارحكِ كلها، واحتفظي بما شعرتِ بأنه هبة من الله

حين تجدين طريقك، عليكِ ألا تخافي . عليك التحلي بما يكفي من الشجاعة لارتكاب الأخطاء، الخيبة، الهزيمة، اليأس .. أدوات يستخدمها الله لإرشادنا إلى الطريق )

ملاحظة : يوجد العديد من الأخطاء في الترجمة التي ضايقتني حقيقة و أضطررت لإعادة قراءة الجمل مرارا لكي أصل للمعنى المقصود ولا أعرف كيف بهكذا أخطاء أن تقع، في النصف الثاني خصوصاَ .. مثل الخلط بين أسماء الشخصيات، رغم قلتها .(less)

21 likes · like · see review

Apr 15, 2012 Abdurrahman rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

تتحدث الرواية عن فتاة آيرلندية ..تحلم بتعلم السحر
فتذهب إلى رجل يعيش فالغابة -يسمى المجوسي- ومن أول لقاء له بها
يعرف أنها "توأم روحه" نظرا لمعرفته بــ"حكمة الشمس" والتي تجعله يرى بريقا
خاصا يشع من عيني "توأم روحه" إذا ما التقى به

تلتقي بــ"ويكا" -والتي ستصبح معلمتها- معلمة "حكمة القمر" والتي كانت تربطها بالمجوسي علاقة غريبة حيث أنهما وقعا في الحب رغم معرفتهما بأنهما لم يُخلقا لبعض أي ليسوا "توائم"

تساعد ويكا بريدا على السفر في أحلامها إلى عصور عاشت فيه "تجسدات أخرى" لها
لتكتشف بريدا أنها خلقت لتكون...more

14 likes · like · see review

May 28, 2008 Dusty rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Dusty by: Alma Salinas

Shelves: read-in-2008

Coelho's Alchemist is one of my favorite books. I've read it twice, and both times its simple story and straightforward Universal Truths have stirred me. Brida tells a similar story about a youth who feels herself tugged onto a unique path toward greatness. But lightning has not struck twice.

This is a book of only 200 pages, yet it took me almost a month to read, and not only because I was grading hundreds of research papers at the same time. It discusses a 21-year-old Irish girl (Brida) who is...more Coelho's Alchemist is one of my favorite books. I've read it twice, and both times its simple story and straightforward Universal Truths have stirred me. Brida tells a similar story about a youth who feels herself tugged onto a unique path toward greatness. But lightning has not struck twice.

This is a book of only 200 pages, yet it took me almost a month to read, and not only because I was grading hundreds of research papers at the same time. It discusses a 21-year-old Irish girl (Brida) who is strangely drawn to a local forest-living Magus who describes his profession as Teacher of the Tradition of the Sun, whatever that is. Brida goes to him for "lessons," and he leaves her alone on a rock in the middle of the forest. This annoys her, so she finds herself a different teacher, this one a middle-aged woman named Wicca, who is a Teacher of the Tradition of the Moon, whatever that is, and through a variety of mystic gizmos and hallucinations, she informs Brida that she is a witch. Brida has been a witch in all her previous lives, will be a witch again in future lives. Being a witch is her Gift.

Now, for some reason, I've read several books about witches this year, but Brida is certainly the first in which the witches are devout God-loving Christians. I mean, the witches do typical Pagan witch things -- they bemoan their ancestors who were burned at stakes, they dance naked around bonfires in the forest, etc. -- but they also talk incessantly about God and His plan for witches, who are His Gardeners of the Universe. This intrigued me for a while, but I decided I was ready to move onto another book about the time Wicca informs Brida that the only way to truly connect with God was to have an intense orgasm. This Brida accomplishes twice, with two different Soul Mates, and both times in the public outdoors. Oh brother.

Perhaps you've noticed how many times I've capitalized non-proper nouns in this review. Perhaps you've been distracted by the same. If so, Brida certainly isn't a book for you. In every paragraph Coelho introduces some kind of Universal Truth (that phrase itself is capitalized in the novel) that we as readers are apparently intended to take to heart. Some of these are legitimate life lessons (everyone has a Gift, but only a lucky few seem able to discover and utilize it), while others are silly (God allowed Adam and Eve to fall from Grace because He needed the "Universe" to be set in motion). He does the same in The Alchemist, but the strength of that book is its focus. Here, there were so many Truths that I was at first overwhelmed, later confused, and ultimately so annoyed that I found myself skipping over them. (less)

32 likes · like · see review

Aug 05, 2008 Chelsea rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: People who are obsessed with Wicca

Recommended to Chelsea by: Mary Cate

Ok, so this book came recommended to me by a freind, so I was pretty excited to read it. Once I got started, however, I was a bit disappointed (soory M.C.)

First off, the main charachter was niave and a bit juvenille. Everything that she thought of and said was almost infintile.

Secondly, She was supposed to be searching for a "Gift" and there was never really a solid confirmation as to what this gift was, even when she found it.

Thirdly, who ever heard of witches being Jesus loving Christians?...more

15 likes · like · see review

Jul 28, 2008 Namratha Kumar rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: journey-within

The only quotes that I liked and made sense in an otherwise rambling narrative:

"Nothing in the world is ever completely wrong. Even a stopped clock is right twice a day"
~ Brida's father (Pg.99)

"What is now proved was once only imagin'd"
~ William Blake (Pg.174)

"I learned that the search for God is a Dark Night, that Faith is a Dark Night. And that's hardly a surprise really, because for us each day is a dark night. None of us knows what might happen even the next minute, and yet we still go for...more

31 likes · like · see review

Jan 24, 2011 Venus rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: literature

معناى حقيقى عشق در گلها نهفته است
كسى كه سعى كند صاحب گلى شود ، پژمردن زيبايى اش را هم می بيند . اما اگر به همين بسنده كند كه گلى را در دشتى بنگرد ، همواره با او مى ماند

8 likes · like · see review

Mar 23, 2009 Karen rated it 3 of 5 stars

I liked this little story, but I enjoyed "The Witch of Portobello" (my first Coelho read) more. However, I think people are looking for a bit too much out of this book. It's a good little tale, and I enjoyed a few of the lines from it/quotes. I think Señor Coelho is simply asking us to reflect. Not every book is a wirlwind, instead a book can be a bit like looking out over a still lake with time to think. As a goodreads friend Harley pointed out, in the prologue Señor Coelho gives the reader pau...more

14 likes · like · see review

Jul 14, 2008 Aparna rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: wow, inspirational-thought-provoking

"How will I know who my Soulmate is?" Indeed, we are all looking for something. Someone to love, someone who loves us, something that adds meaning to our life, our existence. Some sign, to know we are not alone. Some indication to know that our thoughts, feelings, memories, will not die with us when our physical body perishes.

Brida addresses all this and much more. The story is presented as a young woman's quest to find answers - to questions that mean the world to her. Questions, which if we i...more "How will I know who my Soulmate is?" Indeed, we are all looking for something. Someone to love, someone who loves us, something that adds meaning to our life, our existence. Some sign, to know we are not alone. Some indication to know that our thoughts, feelings, memories, will not die with us when our physical body perishes.

Brida addresses all this and much more. The story is presented as a young woman's quest to find answers - to questions that mean the world to her. Questions, which if we introspect, come to us as well, albeit in different paraphrasing.

Its not the story in itself as much as its elements - the progression of the human soul, with all its elements (feelings, memories, experiences, people around us, thoughts, actions, choices) through time, is portrayed like a charcoal sketch - black and white, stark, with elements of the distinct unknown in various shades. The rituals and the steps culminating in a merry Sabbath party, the Tradition of the Sun and the Tradition of the moon, the four forms of expression of the self, and the ultimate epicenter of the book - The Gift (Yes, we all have one, even if we do not carry a 2 pronged dagger, or remember who we were in the 12th century).

There are no fancy characters and descriptions. Brida, Magus, Wicca and Lorens. There are vivid guest appearances, but the simplicity of the cast makes the book more profound. It does have a love story, even a love triangle (make that 2), the whole book is supported by a spine consisting of the Occult, and yet to me it was not a fantasy story.

This is definitely not a comparison, but if a certain JK Rowling makes the term "witch" seem innocent,cute and funny, the Coelho adds an ethereal beauty to the word.

I haven't been able to read any comments or feedback about the Portuguese version, but this translation does deserve an ovation.

Pick it up, if you believe in signs. Pick it up, if you think you are alone in finding that elusive something or someone that adds meaning to your life. Pick it up, if you simply want to believe that there is a bigger world waiting out for you when you die. that you are not alone in your journey through time, whether in your current physical body or out of it.

P.S: I also especially love the part where the women are standing naked, and do not feel ashamed of their bodies, irrespective of its flaws or perfections, because it is theirs as a facilitator to view this life through a physical form.

P.P.S. : One thing about this book, though, it has too many references to God. Being borderline Agnostic myself, it was slightly uncomfortable to digest, but it makes equal sense if viewed through a Spiritual perspective also, instead of a merely Relegious one.(less)

29 likes · like · see review

Jun 07, 2009 Malcolm rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a sweet little story. In some ways, it reminds me of the kinds of stories one finds in the Bible and the Zohar. Such stories aren't stories in terms of the classic ideas of plots, but serve to illustrate spiritual points. I see Brida in that way. The plot is a very thin scaffold on which to hang a series of philosophical and spiritual ideas. From the point of view of fiction, this is less than satisfactory. From the point of view of philosophy, the style is certainly one that's tried and...more

6 likes · like · see review

Jun 20, 2008 Jackie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: work-review-related-reading

I've never read anything by Paulo Coelho before, so I was rather surprised by the pagan spirituality of this little novel. It's the story of Brida, an Irish girl in training to become a witch. It is full of beautifully worded prose--I found myself making little tics and stars beside many paragraphs to go back and examine again (my apologies to those who get the ARC from me, lol). There is some seriously high minded spirituality folded into this simple book about a woman's quest to learn to use h...more

5 likes · like · see review

Oct 15, 2011 Angelica Watson (psst! amrutha) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My first Paulo - "The Alchemist" was very inspiring and motivating, but this book is very different.

First off, the story-line is brilliant - searching for a Soul-mate.
But, as the books progresses, it tends to go off track in certain places.
When Brida falls into her first trance, somehow she stops caring about finding her soulmate and for a time, The Magus is forgotten and then again the story goes back to him. It all seems very vaguely connected.

As a reader, you don't really experience the emot...more

3 likes · like · see review

Jun 03, 2008 Aart rated it 5 of 5 stars

Brida is a tale of love, passion, mystery, and spirituality from a master storyteller. Coelho wrote Brida right after The Alchemist, and it launched his career as an international novelist. It has never been published in English—until now. Brida will be in stores June 24th, but you can read a Sneak Peek excerpt by clicking here now:

http://browseinside.harpercollins.com...

3 likes · like · see review

Oct 29, 2011 Mira rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Mira by: Asma

Shelves: 2011, latin-america, magical-realism, paulo-coelho, philosophy, spiritual

The only expression that could describe my impression after reading this book is “complete disappointment”. From the very first pages, Magic is presented to the reader as the book’s main theme. However, I didn’t feel the least bit of magic in the story. Many issues are dealt with in Brida all at once, that the point was muffled and the novel lost its sparkle. Surprisingly, Coelho here seems confused, struggling to find a particular message to convey. It’s true that I enjoy Coelho’s writings, and...more

7 likes · like · see review

May 19, 2012 بسنت الصاوي rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

أحيانا أخسر أشياء فقط لإني أخاف أن أفقدها !

*~~*~~*

الكتاب جميل جدا في نظري

لكل شخص منا مكمل و رفيق لروحه
و لكن ماذا إن لم يكتب لنا الكمال
و إن وجد الشريك !!

5 likes · like · see review

May 10, 2013 Karlee rated it 5 of 5 stars

There are not words for how much I loved this book.
Brida was a girl, who in previous incarnations was a witch and in this incarnation felt a strong urge to relearn that part of her. She is helped by the Magus who is later found out to be her soul mate, and Wicca, a wise Wiccan who teaches her the Tradition of the Moon.
She goes through rituals she doesn't quite understand and follows Wicca and Magus' advice, and ultimately finds herself connected with herself from past incarnations and even with...more There are not words for how much I loved this book.
Brida was a girl, who in previous incarnations was a witch and in this incarnation felt a strong urge to relearn that part of her. She is helped by the Magus who is later found out to be her soul mate, and Wicca, a wise Wiccan who teaches her the Tradition of the Moon.
She goes through rituals she doesn't quite understand and follows Wicca and Magus' advice, and ultimately finds herself connected with herself from past incarnations and even with God. I find it interesting that Coelho related a pagan religion with Christianity in pages 172-174..."For a while, she sat waiting for a response from Him but heard not a sound and saw not a sign. The answer was there before her, in that man nailed to the cross. He had played His part, and shown to the world that, if everyone played their part, no one else would have to suffer, because He had suffered for all those who'd had the courage to fight for their dreams." "The hand of God always guides those who follow their path with faith."
Speechless.
Paulo Coelho writes with such wisdom and insight. Page 200..."You have found your path. Few people have the courage to do so. They prefer to follow a path not their own."
I have only read Brida and previously the Alchemist and both have a similar theme of following one's path.
Brida discovers the point of light above the Magus' left shoulder and knows he is her soul mate..."'At this moment, though, the bridge to the invisible is my Soul Mate.' Brida said. His eyes filled with tears. God was just." This part made my heart both ache and rejoice for Magus and the beauty of finding love...
She is torn between Magus and Lorens but she knows that Lorens is also her soul mate and that Magus was there to teach her, and Lorens was to love her.
After the ceremony, she and Magus have a touching conversation, and Magus in his wisdom and incomprehensible love tells Brida that he was cast into the forest in loneliness for breaking a rule of the Traditions but then she came, and he understood why. "You came to free me from the slavery I myself had created, to tell me that I was free to return to the world and to the things of the world...I will always remember now that love is liberty. That was the lesson it took me so many years to learn. That is the lesson that sent me into exile and now sets me free again...Go in peace, and dry those tears, or tell [Lorens] that the smoke from the fire got in your eyes. Never forget me.' He knew he didn't need to say this, but he said it anyway."
Incredible book.(less)

1 like · like · see review

Aug 05, 2011 Kristin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It broke my heart into a jillion pieces. I feel like crying. Love is when you'll be able to understand that at some point, you were never meant to be together. That, sometimes, even if you're just in time, it isn't still sufficient. It isn'r selfish. It allows you to grow and to go in search of your path, in search of your soul. It does not hinder you to become the person you wanted to be. It doesn't require you to give up all the important things you have just because...

Of all the Paulo Coelho...more

6 likes · like · see review

Oct 25, 2010 Joyzi rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Fans of Lolo(grandpa) Coelho

Recommended to Joyzi by: My classmates

Shelves: religion, borrowed, disappointing-books, adult, reviewed, author-latin-american, philosophy, inspirational, contemporary-fiction

My friends love Brida and obviously they are Coelho fans so when I've heard that Brida was so good I was really excited to read it. My friend really like it because of the witchcraft and my friends who've read it they talked about the soulmates and how would you find your soulmate and if they believe in the "light in the shoulder sign" or the "love at first sight" and actually two of them were saying that Paulo Coelho was right in that matter because they actually seen it in there ex-girlfriend...more

2 likes · like · see review

Sep 15, 2009 Will Byrnes rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: religion-and-sprituality

My first exposure to Coelho was many years ago. I read The Alchemist at a time in my life when I was experiencing some major changes and I found very real comfort and guidance there. I enjoyed several more of his novels but after a time there seemed to be a repetitiveness to them that left me unsatisfied.

Brida is yet another enlightenment quest story from Coelho. I enjoyed it for a while, but well before reaching the end, I found that I was getting bored. It seemed like I was reading Casteneda...more

2 likes · like · see review

Aug 26, 2008 Jamie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Apparently there are lots of other covers for this book, all of them more fun than the hard cover I purchased. This, despite being in another language, is the cover I have. I like the other two English versions I see better. Oh well.

I love how simplistic and concise Coehlo's books are. The word choice is always even, and, though they are "spiritual" and therefore, it suprises me that I allow myself to not only LOVE them, but really...use them out of context, in life and recommend them to others,...more Apparently there are lots of other covers for this book, all of them more fun than the hard cover I purchased. This, despite being in another language, is the cover I have. I like the other two English versions I see better. Oh well.

I love how simplistic and concise Coehlo's books are. The word choice is always even, and, though they are "spiritual" and therefore, it suprises me that I allow myself to not only LOVE them, but really...use them out of context, in life and recommend them to others, not to mention underline passages and sort of use it as a alternative religious text.

I finished The Witch of Portobello and found Bride was out shortly after and tore through it while I was at home visiting my mother for a week. I left it with her, despite the fact that she giggled when I read portions to her.

I suppose I ought to do some deep-rooted invistigation in to what this sort of writing means to me. I am sure the strong, sure-footed (because, though Cohelo's characters are searching, they are much more sure of them selves and special, with a spiritual "gift" which gets them started in the first place) and looking for something "bigger" and more meaningful than most people. What woman doesn't like that? What woman doesn't FEEL like that?

Not to mention the fact that I've always liked the notion of witches. Secretly. I grew up with a friend who's mother divorced and went a little nuts, became a self-proclaimed follower of "the goddess" and Wicca and bought a silver Toyota Rav 4 and covered it with stickers that said things like, "I'm a woman, I'm right--" for this reason, I have never outwardly felt comfortable admitting witches and nature and stuff appeal to me....

But Cohelo's witches are more on the path of transendentalism and self awareness. And, while some of the asides which take place in his books are really a bit "out there," even the most unlikely have some sort of merrit. Truthfully: if this is the only life we have, what's wrong with finding meaning and symbolism all over the place? If it keeps you getting up in the morning, I see only good in that. Symbolism means a lot to me. It's one of those priviate joys. Cohelo just gives that priviate joy a little umph.

Brida's overall predicament is this: the search for true love. She wants to find her soulmate. The ideas presented are hardly novel or revolutionary, but they are comforting. Cohelo takes all the random points of light in your life and gives them a focal point--independently they are little slashes of light that make you smile for a bit, but together they can light up a room.

Brida must decide to follow the moon or the sun, and endures "the dark night," a symbol for the unknown, and depending on yourself, and faith, to get you through it. Brida takes it upon herself to find spiritual guidance and role models, and, with integrity fully intact, she gets through some very difficult choices, using history, personal discovery, nature and all the relationships and love in her life to guide her.

With the same intensity, coupled with a very sparce, almost allegorical story line, Cohelo creates another truly winning story about a really wonderful person. Real or pretend, I like reading and knowing them. Good book. Makes you feel like a good yoga class.(less)

3 likes · like · see review

Sep 10, 2008 Chanelle rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Sarah, so you can explain it to me

Can somebody please tell me what this book was about?! I consider myself a pretty savvy reader, but I didn't get this at all. I loved the Alchemist and this has much of the same philosophical insights and phrases you want to savor . . . ("Nothing is wrong all the time, even a stopped clock is right twice a day"). But I couldn't tell you what the meaning of this book was. Girl is on spiritual path to find her Gift. Meets the Magus in the forest who is her soul mate but they don't end up together....more

11 likes · like · see review

view all 7 comments

Nicole I just finished reading the book and I understand it, I think, pretty well. So lets see if I can help you out here.

"Girl is on spiritual path to find...more
Oct 07, 2010 05:04pm

Kholsu totally agree with you Channelle
it was in my top 5 ‘to read’ books from Coelho’s collection. I was really looking forward to it but it was a major le...more
Aug 02, 2011 04:56pm

Dec 27, 2010 Rob Jeremiah Nuguid rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned

Brida is a rambling narrative with a few rhetorical and sensible dialogues - a genuine trademark of Paulo Coelho's books. It is rather lengthy and boring, especially in the initial pages. Any undetermined reader is likely to close the book for good on the grounds that the general ennui caused by this material is enough to put their time into oblivion. Needless to say, it is a bad book for first-time readers. However, hardcore philosophers (or even the pseudo-ones) may have the "resources" dissec...more

1 like · like · see review

Oct 20, 2008 Yaya rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-books, paulo-coelho

You just know that you've found your soulmate when you look into their eyes..you just know.

Brida actually is a typical girl who wanted to find her true love..

Brida is just like the rest of us who thought that the person claims to love us isn't the one meant for us...

Brida is maybe acted out of love when she found her soulmate but chose not to be with him..

Who wouldn't go that far to search for the one they love? That far..as in plunging herself into the magic world?

Who wouldn't ever question God...more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 21, 2013 Nicole rated it 1 of 5 stars

A colleague was passing around Brida. My boss read it and commented multiple times that it was a strange book. The jacket description sounded interesting to me, as I usually love books with magical themes. I wrongly presumed I would enjoy this read. Brida is a story about a young Irish girl, Brida who has a special gift. She is a witch. I only read to about page fifty as I became too frustrated with the bizarreness of the subject matter. In the few pages I read, Brida is drawn to a forest where,...more

like · see review

Apr 03, 2009 Mo rated it 2 of 5 stars

Paulo Coelho came highly recommended, so I'm going to give him another chance, but this book really didn't live up to my expectations. It's supposed to be spiritually enlightening, but I just found it annoying. For starters, the main character is too much of a Mary-Sue. She's beautiful, we're she's presented as critical (though we don't notice much of this), she has a gift, everyone thinks she's oh-so special. Although this book often states that a spiritual search is for everyone, at the same t...more

3 likes · like · see review

Feb 03, 2013 Haralambi Markov rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantastic-and-weird

Fantasy as a genre is a titan in literature, all encompassing and with multiple manifestations. Fans have encountered sword & sorcery, epic fantasy, historical fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal thrillers and romances. I for one always classify novels into some degree of fantasy if even one detail strays away from the pattern of logic and reality. Paulo Coelho is known for writing books about life, the type of titles that hit hard topics and problems, we have to face every day. However his a...more Fantasy as a genre is a titan in literature, all encompassing and with multiple manifestations. Fans have encountered sword & sorcery, epic fantasy, historical fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal thrillers and romances. I for one always classify novels into some degree of fantasy if even one detail strays away from the pattern of logic and reality. Paulo Coelho is known for writing books about life, the type of titles that hit hard topics and problems, we have to face every day. However his approach is always directed towards spirituality and among one of his techniques is the involvement of mysticism.

Paulo Coelho writes of alchemy, visions in dreams and ancient traditions and every tale he writes staggers the mind with truths about life and complicated themes taken directly from life and developed into brilliance. That is why I classify his work mostly as philosophical fantasy, because it makes you think, increase your sensitivity towards different nuances of life or simply broaden your horizons by a centimeter or two. Utilizing the veil of the unknown, paranormal, magical Coelho pierces the veil of the human mind and soul and always gets to the point what his characters think they want and they need; only to realize that later.

“Brida”, although I thought was a new title, is a reprint from 1990 and centers around Brida, a young Irish girl, who is determined to become a witch and since then experiments with different traditions to achieve her goal. I have always been interested about the etymology of names and seeing how everything in Coelho’s books means something, I searched the web for any meaning of the name Brida. As it turns out Brida is a long winded transformation from the Irish Brighid, a name borne by a popular Irish goddess of wisdom.

Written in third person point of view the novel shifts between four characters: Brida; her teacher in the tradition of the sun, mostly referred to as the Magus; her teacher in the tradition of the moon, Wicca and Brida’s lover, a clever physicist assistant named Lawrence. As every chapter brings a different point of view, the reader is left to put together a puzzle from the past and present relationships of the characters during Brida’s search for wisdom. Solving it brings an understanding of the two biggest themes involved, search for wisdom and search for love, which happen to be interconnected in the novel as well as in real life, since love is one of the most unexplainable forces that guides humanity.

“Brida” has a heavy accent on fantasy elements, mostly the magical traditions and their tools. The fact that Brida’s teacher is named after a neo-pagan religion with roots into ancient polytheistic rituals with affiliation towards nature, says it all. In the book we witness the power of the Dark Night; the Tarot cards, which relate visions; time travel to a past life and prayers to the spirits of forests and other places of nature. However the strength of the novel does not fall on the fantasy. “Brida” isn’t extraordinary, because the heroine could hop through time and hear voices in her head. These happenings are only a font, on which Brida gathers wisdom and finds her bridge between the real world and the one unseen, thus learning more about herself and soul after every page.

Another interesting point in the novel is the blend between the Pagan and Christianity. Paulo Coelho uses the mutual point of high spirituality, common in both religions to merge them into some kind of unity. The Magus teaches Brida to prey with her soul to the higher force above. Wicca uses Virgin Mary in her prayers as well and urges Brida to read the Bible in order to find what her own spiritual gift is.

Parallel to Brida’s spiritual growth, the reader notices another motif develop and here comes love again. I am not sure how Coelho thought it to work and interpreting authors is always a very subjective. Different people find a different truth for themselves. For me “Brida” teaches one thing about love and namely, it’s a force no one can control, understand or harness despite all the wisdom on Earth. In this world a lover can find his soul mate by a small dot of light hovering above their lovers left shoulder. This is the rule in order to find your true love. The Magus and Brida are destined to love each other, because they are parts of one bigger soul. However when Brida learns to see the dot over the Magus shoulder she knows Lawrence is the man of her life, despite the lack of dot. Even though Brida is the embodiment for the people searching for answers in the ether and Lawrence being the embodiment of the people searching for answers in matter and science, their bond breaks the rules of the world for love.
(less)

like · see review

Dec 03, 2012 Guilherme Martins rated it 1 of 5 stars

A colectânea dos livros de auto-ajuda aparecem numa época do desemprego estrutural está em crescente, em que uma quantidade significativa de desempregados não terão mais acesso ao trabalho porque tornaram-se supérfluos a serem substituídos pelas máquinas da revolução micro-electrónica. Estes livros são focados nos supérfluos do século XXI para que a esperança exista no fundo destas páginas, e o leitor consiga a alimentar a sua neurose de se voltar a uma vida saudável e realizável dentro do capit...more

like · see review

Nov 24, 2012 Marmor Owais rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Well it wasn't that good apart from some quotes which i found very inspiring, and maybe also the general idea about Soulmates and could
you have two soulmates at the same time or as he said at the same
incarnation or whatever ..

"No one could make a choice without feeling afraid.
That was the law of life. That was the Dark Night, and no one
could escape the Dark Night, even if they never made a decision,
even if they lacked the courage to change anything, because that in
itself was a decision, a chan...more

like · see review

Oct 09, 2012 José M. rated it 2 of 5 stars

33. BRIDA. EL DON QUE CADA UNO LLEVA DENTRO

Internet
120 Word
Julio/07
TH:contemporaneo
L: Dublin, Irlanda

Personajes: Brida (joven que se inicia en la magia, al parecer muy fácil de influenciar), El Mago (pertenece a la llamada Tradición del Sol), Wicca (maestra de la Tradición de la Luna), Lorens novio de Brida.
Es una novela que yo clasificaría como esotérica iniciática, sin embargo estoy, en la mayoría de las cosas que en ella aparecen, en total desacuerdo; maneja el camino de la magia, el ocultism...more 33. BRIDA. EL DON QUE CADA UNO LLEVA DENTRO

Internet
120 Word
Julio/07
TH:contemporaneo
L: Dublin, Irlanda

Personajes: Brida (joven que se inicia en la magia, al parecer muy fácil de influenciar), El Mago (pertenece a la llamada Tradición del Sol), Wicca (maestra de la Tradición de la Luna), Lorens novio de Brida.
Es una novela que yo clasificaría como esotérica iniciática, sin embargo estoy, en la mayoría de las cosas que en ella aparecen, en total desacuerdo; maneja el camino de la magia, el ocultismo, o lo esotérico, como practicado o revelado en los textos evangélicos, propiamente cristianos, cuando históricamente sabemos que tales creencias han estado en continuo choque, claro yo no pugnaría porque siguiese esta enemistad, pero si un respeto mutuo por las creencias, ya que en una parte, por ejemplo, menciona que los nueve dones de la magia son los referentes al Espíritu Santo; además trivializa el acto ritual, y a pesar de que supuestamente el camino es dual a través de la Tradición del Sol (meditación, contemplación, observación, etc) y de la Launa (práctica, ritual, rito, ejercicios, etc), siempre esta denostando a la segunda. Por otro lado las ideas de “La Otra Parte”, o las regresiones mágicas, o el acto sexual que produce visiones maravillosas, me parece que como elemento literario es bueno, pero como son libros que la juventud lee puede llegar a sugestionarse, al grado de creer en este tipo de cosas “sobrenaturales”. Por lo tanto yo considero que la obra de Coelho es un pastiche de cristianismo, paganismo, y new age, que lo único que hace es negar la diversidad de creencias, de modos de pensar y de sentir, pues pretende englobar en una sola cosa algo totalmente disímbolo, además de su pretendida búsqueda de universalismos, como el amor, o la compañía de las personas. Por último creo que si alguien deseara iniciarse en neopaganismo y lo propiamente Wicca, este libro no sería la mejor opción, pues lo que hace es pretender convencionalizar la magia con el sentido común de las demás personas, queriendo verlo como las mismas enseñanzas de cualquier otra religión pero con diferente método. La narración es en ocasiones pesada y aburrida, aunque cuando el personaje de Brida se traslada al pasado (época de los Cataros), es muy interesante la descripción y formas de vida, siendo como un cuento independiente dentro de la novela. REGULAR. INTERNET.
(less)

like · see review

Sep 19, 2012 Nidhi rated it 1 of 5 stars

Brida's search.. Our pain..

’Brida’ starts off with a hint of mystery and mirth of search of Soulmate.. but page after page, it turns into a confused affair. Clarity of thoughts is missing and it is replete with repeated rituals related to spiritual search.

The novel talks a lot about witches, tradition of sun, tradition of moon, out of body experiences, time travel with the help of 4 main characters which are also not completely sketched..

At times, Magus is shown as a character of strong will....more

like · see review

Aug 04, 2012 Kristen rated it 1 of 5 stars

I hate to have to say this, because I absolutely loved Coelho's "The Alchemist", but unfortunately this book was a big disappointment for me.

The description sounded like the book would be right up my alley - a young Irish girl on a quest for knowledge, which leads her to mystical sages who teach her about magic. The description is an accurate represenation of the story, but the feeling of the book was a miss for me.

The entire atmoshpere of the book felt heavy, and saddened, sort of like someone...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Paulo Coelho Group	5	139	Feb 14, 2013 06:44am
Brida tell about what! Love! search of a soulmate or a ceaseless life	2	46	Jan 07, 2013 04:29am

combine
Other Editions (101)

More editions...

Genres

Novels

52 users

Spirituality

47 users

Romance

42 users

Fantasy

37 users

Philosophy

36 users

Inspirational

35 users

Magical Realism

18 users

Fantasy > Magic

15 users

Literature

14 users

Book Club

12 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Paulo Coelho

The Brazilian author PAULO COELHO was born in 1947 in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Before dedicating his life completely to literature, he worked as theatre director and actor, lyricist and journalist. In 1986, PAULO COELHO did the pilgrimage to Saint James of Compostella, an experience later to be documented in his book The Pilgrimage. In the following year, COELHO published The Alchemist. Slow in...more The Brazilian author PAULO COELHO was born in 1947 in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Before dedicating his life completely to literature, he worked as theatre director and actor, lyricist and journalist. In 1986, PAULO COELHO did the pilgrimage to Saint James of Compostella, an experience later to be documented in his book The Pilgrimage. In the following year, COELHO published The Alchemist. Slow initial sales convinced his first publisher to drop the novel, but it went on to become one of the best selling Brazilian books of all time. Other titles include Brida (1990), The Valkyries (1992), By the river Piedra I sat Down and Wept (1994), the collection of his best columns published in the Brazilian newspaper Folha de São Paulo entitle Maktub (1994), the compilation of texts Phrases (1995), The Fifth Mountain (1996), Manual of a Warrior of Light (1997), Veronika decides to die (1998), The Devil and Miss Prym (2000), the compilation of traditional tales in Stories for parents, children and grandchildren (2001), Eleven Minutes (2003), The Zahir (2005), The Witch of Portobello (2006) and Winner Stands Alone (to be released in 2009). During the months of March, April, May and June 2006, Paulo Coelho traveled to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his pilgrimage to Saint James of Compostella in 1986. He also held surprise book signings - announced one day in advance - in some cities along the way, to have a chance to meet his readers. In ninety days of pilgrimage the author traveled around the globe and took the famous Transiberrian train that took him to Vladivostok. During this experience Paulo Coelho launched his blog Walking the Path - The Pilgrimage in order to share with his readers his impressions. Since this first blog Paulo Coelho has expanded his presence in the internet with his daily blogs in Wordpress, Myspace & Facebook. He is equally present in media sharing sites such as Youtube and Flickr, offering on a regular basis not only texts but also videos and pictures to his readers. From this intensive interest and use of the Internet sprang his bold new project: The Experimental Witch where he invites his readers to adapt to the screen his book The Witch of Portobello. Indeed Paulo Coelho is a firm believer of Internet as a new media and is the first Best-selling author to actively support online free distribution of his work. (less)

More about Paulo Coelho...

Books by Paulo Coelho

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About بريدا

13 trivia questions

More quizzes & trivia...

Quotes from Brida

“When you find your path, you must not be afraid. You need to have sufficient courage to make mistakes. Disappointment, defeat, and despair are the tools God uses to show us the way.” — 1,738 people liked it

“Nothing in the world is ever completely wrong. Even a stopped clock is right twice a day.” — 1,523 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: Brida
avg rating	preview: Brida Goodreads rating: 3.45 (24916 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68591.Brida?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1170693819l/68591.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68591.Brida?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Brida by Paulo Coelho[/url]

Brida

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website