“Once upon a time there was a prostitute named María …” that’s the start of the novel that moved the world.
Eleven Minutes tells the story of Maria, a young girl from a Brazilian village, whose first innocent brushes with love leave her heartbroken. At a tender age, she becomes convinced that she will never find true love, instead believing that “love is a terrible thing that will make you suffer.” A chance meeting in Rio takes her to Geneva, where she dreams of finding fame and fortune, yet ends up working as a prostitute.
In Geneva, Maria’s despairing view of love is put to the test when she meets a handsome young painter. In this odyssey of self-discovery, Maria must choose between pursuing a path of darkness, sexual pleasure for its own sake or risking everything to find her own “inner light”. The teaching she extracts from her harsh experiences forever modify her attitude on life, love and herself.
In this gripping and daring novel, Paulo Coelho sensitively explores the spiritual nature of sex and love, the harsh and intense relation between the soul and the body, and how to achieve the perfect union between them. Eleven Minutes offers readers an unparalleled experience of reflection and insight.
YEAR OF PUBLICATION:
2003
PAGES:
288
RIGHTS SOLD:
51 languages
“It took me a long time to learn that the coming together of two bodies is more than just a response to certain physical stimuli or to the survival instinct of the species. The truth is that it carries within it all the cultural baggage of mankind and humanity.”
- Paulo Coelho
The strongest love is the love that can demonstrate its fragility.
Really important meetings are planned by the souls long before the bodies see each other.
“Eleven Minutes was the planet’s top-selling fiction title for 2003, with Harry Potter a distant second.”
- The Times
“Eleven minutes is a book that can change people’s lives.
A fantastic and simple story, completely free from unnecessary twists and turns.”
- Stefan Sauk, Swedish actor
“Sacred sex. A paradoxical, utopian impossibility or a lifesustaining, attainable goal? While Coelho comes down firmly in the end for the reality of a holy carnality, the path he takes to that affirmation acknowledges completely the snares and labyrinths awaiting any explorer of the fusion of body and soul.”
- The Washington Post
“A truthful, frank and provocative piece of writing that is not culture or territory specific but talks of a universal experience.”
- The Tribune
“It is one of the best books the author has written.”
- Journal Du Dimanche
“Eleven Minutes is a must in your private library.”
- Herald
“An important and brave book about sexuality and love, the crucial and unsolved problem of contemporary culture, everyone’s problem.”
- Zwierciadlo
“A gripping exploration of the potentially sacred nature of sex within the context of love, this may well become Coelho’s next international best-seller.”
- Booklist
“In his novels Coelho develops universal dramas, valid anywhere and for everybody. This is the explanation of the huge enthusiasm Eleven Minutes is receiving worldwide.”
- Tabu
“In opposition to sex trivialized by modernity, Coelho commits himself to the sublime act which leads to love as a pending revolution.”
- ABC
“As in The Alchemist, Coelho remains true to himself in Eleven Minutes –as the master of the allegorical narration of a journey.”
- Focus
One million copies sold in Italy in its first year.
Russian edition illustrated by Elena Lazareva