Some people see you as a guru. Do you accept that?

Of course not.


Is it flattering?

No. It’s totally out of reality.


Are you a political writer?

Everybody is a political person, whether you say something or you are silent. A political attitude is not whether you go to parliament, it’s how you deal with your life, with your surroundings. I am at least giving the readers the sense they are not alone. But instead of trying to answer the question, “What is the meaning of life?” I try to give some meaning to my life.


When you were 17 your parents had you committed to an asylum.

Yes, three times, and also I was in jail three times, but I never saw myself as a victim. This is part of my journey. My parents wanted me to follow their dreams, not my dreams, and the simple fact that I didn’t accept that does not make me a criminal or an outcast. I thought, “One day I will write about it,” and I did. I wrote Veronica Decides to Die, and the book was about this: accept your differences and this is how you make a difference.


You can listen 3 minutes of the interview:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/audio/20...

Or you can read the whole interview by clicking here.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/mar...

Loved the metaphor of the dog and the lamp post.

Well said Señor Coelho. I think that it's interesting that when people dare to speak about religion freely or in a different light it becomes political. Religion isn't us versus them. Like Harvey Milk (see the recent movie on him, it's inpiring) said, it's about all the us's.