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    The Winner Stands Alone
    The Winner Stands Alone
    The Winner Stands Alone
    Audiobook12 hours

    The Winner Stands Alone

    Written by Paulo Coelho

    Narrated by Paul Boehmer

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    “[Coelho’s] special talent seems to be his ability to speak to everyone at once. The kind of spirituality he espouses is to all comers. . . . His readers often say that they see their own lives in his own books.”
    —New Yorker

    From the bestselling author of The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho, comes an absorbing new novel that holds a mirror up to our culture’s obsession with fame, glamour, and celebrity.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateApr 7, 2009
    ISBN9780061806209
    The Winner Stands Alone
    Author

    Paulo Coelho

    One of the most influential writers of our time, Paulo Coelho is the author of thirty international bestsellers, including The Alchemist, Warrior of the Light, Brida, Veronika Decides to Die, and Eleven Minutes. He is a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters and a United Nations Messenger of Peace. Paulo is the recipient of 115 international prizes and awards, among them, the Chevalier de l'Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur (Legion of Honor). Born in Rio de Janeiro in 1947, he soon discovered his vocation for writing. He worked as a director, theater actor, songwriter, and journalist. In 1986, a special meeting led him to make the pilgrimage to Saint James Compostela (in Spain). The Road to Santiago was not only a common pilgrimage but a turning point in his existence. A year later, he wrote The Pilgrimage, an autobiographical novel that is considered the beginning of his literary career. He lives in Geneva, Switzerland.

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    Reviews for The Winner Stands Alone

    4/5

    54 ratings20 reviews

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    • 2/5
      This audio book was very poorly Recorded. Kept skipping.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 2/5
      For an author whose books I normally find uplifting this one left me feeling disappointed. He used the thin "murder" plot as a soapbox to vent his views on a host of issues. Whilst many of his observations may be valid, the overall effect was exceedingly negative and depressing.
    • 2/5
      I'm so disappointed. I was such a fan and defender of Coelho's work! But this book is just cliché! Its the best word for it. I think he managed to say all the cliches about showbiz that he can muster in a mid sized novel. I was hoping that the serial killer angle would carry the book but it did´n't it just seemed pointless.I feel that all of Paulo Coelho's books are mocking me on the shelf...
    • 3/5
      There's one major flaw about this book, that it's tough to try to say anything profound about an intrinsically shallow subject without sounding trite.For all the research he's done, Coehlo simply reinforces the simple prejudices those of us who aren't rich, famous or powerful might have against those who are. I always felt as if I was being beaten over the head with that lecture on how spiritually unsatisfying power, money and fame are. Everyone in this novel who pursues a slice of Mammon either ends up dead or with their dreams dashed, those who reject the shallow temptations of fame and fortune and act from motives of love survive. Cannes, as a microcosm of the film and fashion industries, is shown to be endemically corrupt, no more than a front for organised crime. This isn't anything like as spiritually profound as we seem to be supposed to think it is. That attempt to make something so shallow look deep and wise is offset a little by the author creditably not suggesting religion (specifically Christianity) as the alternative answer, but it's still offputting to be blatantly preached to.And the other major problem is the dialogue. I don't know if it's a problem with the original text or the translation but it's simply unconvincing to have the characters all talking and thinking in purple prose, having the same voice regardless of experience or nationality. People from Russia and Swansea don't generally talk or think this similarly. Every thought is fully articulated, all motives thoroughly explained. Therefore there's little intriguing about these characters, no hidden shallows, let alone depths, to make them interesting or ring true. Indeed, ti's more a sign that the author's trying to distract from how hollow and unreal all these characters are. That might be less of a problem if the plot was interesting or complex but it isn't - it's extremely straightforward with no real twists. Igor, the spurned lover, simply works his way through an ascendingly important array of characters, culminating in offing his ex and her lover. Igor's almost as pure a force as you'll find even in Greek drama, a moral Nimrod before whom the hype and falsity of Cannes is powerless. Come to think of it, this book really does have something of an Old Testament morality at times, striking down what Coelho seems to see as a modern day Sodom and Gomorrah.There are some nice touches though - I was fond of the conceit of the male star being called the Star, a neat way of letting the reader picture whoever they want and reinforcing the power of his fame at the same time. The equivalent use of Superclass as a collective noun grated after a while although, again, it's a neat way of conveying the self imposed importance of that collective.If you're after the literary equivalent of a summer blockbuster then this will do perfectly, even if you have to keep your brain in gear to battle the preachy writing, but if you're looking for anything that might make you think then you'll have to look elsewhere. It's as guilty of the sin of shallowness as the world it seeks to criticise.
    • 3/5
      Didn't really understand this book. I couldn't understand Igor, the main character. The other characters were very easy to understand almost being cliches - but Igor didn't make much sense to me. The book targets movies and fashion - both are easy targets for cynics. The murder mystery side of the story also left me wondering what was it in for. Maybe I missed something but this book seemed disjointed.
    • 2/5
      This book is so frustrating to read! The chapter headings helped me get through the torturous 400 pages. Each chapter is a time of day and I kept thinking to myself that the day was nearly done and the book would be over. Phew, what a relief when it was!The reader follows a Russian businessman called Igor, who wants his love back. Actually, it felt more like a case of “if I can’t have her then no-one else can”. His wife is with a new man called Hamid and his story and Igor’s story is told intermittently throughout the novel. In order to get his wife back, Igor uses the Cannes film festival as a back drop for a killing frenzy.I feel that although the book lacked any emotion, this was the author’s way of getting across the insincerity of the stars and celebrities involved in the Cannes festival. Yet for some reason it didn’t work. It felt too academic and became a chore very early on. This is my fifth read of Coelho’s and is one I won’t recommend to friends. I can’t even describe who this book would appeal to. It reads like it should be a thriller, but it isn’t. I’ve given it two stars instead of one star, simply because once I made the decision to read it in as short a time frame as possible I actually got into the characters a bit more. In hindsight, this isn’t actually a selling point and maybe it should join the one star reviews.
    • 4/5
      It is painful and depressing as a mirror to our society's values have been, nonetheless it is interesting and wakes up to reality of superficial and errored values part of humanity has attained.
    • 4/5
      Reason for Reading: I have never read a Paulo Coelho book before and honestly really had no interest in them when I read descriptions of the plots. But bloggers continue to wax eloquent about how wonderful his books are that I knew I would have to give in a read one some day. So when I saw he had a new one coming out, the plot actually piqued my interest so I thought I'd give it a go.Comments: I'll start off by saying this is a difficult book to summarize as there are many different layers a reviewer may want to concentrate on. On the surface the plot concerns Igor,a wealthy Russian man, who is obsessed with his ex-wife; it is actually this obsession along with other things that drove her to run off with another man. He promised her once that if she ever left him he would "destroy worlds" to get her back. Now two years later, he follows her and her new husband to the Cannes Festival and starts to randomly serial kill for her sending her text messages that he has "destroyed another world" for her each time. The book also then, is set in the glamorous world of over excess inhabited by the rich, famous, celebrity, hangers-on and wannabes. It is this world that is examined ,through the characters, that show how vapid and meaningless, on the inside, is this life of grandiose over indulgences on the outside. The narrative is often from the point of view of Igor but alternates with other characters who have been affected in some form whether small or dramatically by his actions of murder. We follow the lives of actresses trying to make it, models, street jewelry sellers, actors, directors, producers, models, haute couteur designers, Igor's ex wife, people related to the deceased and those who have not yet been affected but will soon be.The writing is absolutely beautiful. Descriptions and details are a joy to read, the characters are deep and multi-layered, even those of minor importance. Not having read any other Coelho, I can't compare this to his other work but from plot descriptions I feel this may be somewhat a different kind of story than what he usually tells. I was amazed by the religiousness of the writing. I had no idea. It was beautiful. Coelho writes of a world where it is simply assumed God exists and his characters are naturally Believers. I have a slew of quotes from this book that hit me hard and made me think. If Paulo Coelho's other books are also like this I most certainly will be reading them in the future. I leave this review with such a quote:"Someone's spirit, however, has no name; it is pure truth and inhabits a particular body for a certain period of time, and will, one day, leave it, and God won't bother asking, "What's your name?" when the soul arrives at the final judgement. God will only ask: "Did you love while you were alive?" For that is the essence of life: the ability to love, not the name we carry around on our passport, business card, and identity card. The great mystics changed their names, and sometimes abandoned them altogether. When John the Baptist was asked who he was, he said only, "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness." When Jesus found the man on whom he would build his church, he ignored the fact that the man in question has spent his entire life answering to the name of Simon and called him Peter. When Moses asked God his name, back came the reply: "I am who I am.""
    • 5/5
      Great Book, with unmatching characters
    • 3/5
      The most provacative of all Coelho's books that I've read, but not in a warming way. It niggles into fears we all habor about how seemingly sane people can be completely and murderously insane. I also am starting to dislike how he writes . . . not naming people, but calling them by his "description" i.e. the "Superclass", or the "Star." It becomes a lecture as often as it is a story. I know he is doing this to write about a group as a whole and its particular character, but often it's too simplistic and it was annoying this time. Still, Coelho is interesting as always in that he makes me think beyond the brainwashing of our societal standards, yet if asked if you should read this book, I'd say, no. It's too disturbing and lacks story or characters to care about.
    • 3/5
      Paulo Coelho is one of my favorite authors. His metaphysical character development is always outstanding. That said, I did not enjoy this book as much as his other ones. While the commentary on social elites, the movie and jewelry industries, and high society in general was good reading, the murderous plot left me with a hollower feeling. He usually keeps himself out of that fray. Nonetheless, his insights make a poor topic very readable.
    • 2/5
      I found this book slow going, it did get interesting around the murder scenes and the way in which they were written gave a good sense of the scene but I found the other parts which make up most of the story boring to read and it didn't hold my interest at all well. Half way through the book I just wanted to put it down, it is written more like a narrative than character based which was the biggest let down for me. I won't be reading anything else from this author unless it gets a glowing review somewhere and then I may give it a go. I wouldn't recommend it, it's a good story concept but not very well written.
    • 3/5
      I received this 2 days ago from Early Reviewers and finished it yesterday! It was a very compelling read, although a bit superficial, I found. It is about Igor, a Russian man, who plans several murders during the Cannes Film Festival to try and win back his ex-wife. Punctuating the action are a series of commentaries about various aspects of the fashion and film industries and I thought these a bit too much like authorial comment without being integrated into the story very well. The story might have been better if these issues had arisen naturally from the actions, thoughts of and dialogue between the characters - as it was, I didn't think any of the characters were particularly well developed, apart, maybe, from Igor himself. This is the first Paul Coelho book I've read so I don't know if this is his usual style. I'd certainly read at least one more to find out.
    • 3/5
      This is an average book, perfect for those days when you want something entertaining to read.While the story is not that imaginative (see other reviews for details of it) ... it is well written and is a quick read. The perfect summer blockbuster of a novel.
    • 4/5
      Kept me turning the pages - overlapping characters stories interwoven - ending left a lot of unresolved issues - a great read nevertheless
    • 2/5
      I really thought Paulo Coelho to be one of my favourite authors, but I actually haven't enjoyed many of his books apart from The Alchemist and Veronika Decides to Die. I think he's a bit too philosophical for my taste.
    • 3/5
      pretty good but I don't agree with coelhos philosophy mostly.
    • 3/5
      It is hard to enjoy the experience of a narrative from the point of view of a serial killer, but that is what Paulo Coelho expects of his readers with this book. The serial killer is one of several unsympathetic characters variously obsessed with fame and celebrity in the fashion and movie industries. This book is a rant against the so-called 'Superclass', the high-consuming, vain and vapid elite powerbrokers of the world. However the Coelho's clear and simple language, so effective in the fable of 'The Alchemist', comes across here as rather simplistic. For one thing, lumping all of the super-rich into this category is quite a generalisation.The story itself is mostly about the activities (well, the murders) of the serial killer, but it is (in Coelho's own words) 'not a thriller'. It isn't a thriller because there is no suspense about who killed who, or any real likelihood that the killer will be caught. It is hard to empathise with either the killer or his victims. The clear style got me through the book but it was a disheartening read.
    • 4/5
      I liked this book. It is a successful attempt by Paulo Cohello to expose the dark sides of the human nature by going deep into the human mind. In fact the main character Igor may personify every person who was hurt by love. Yet the character went too far in an attempt to regain his love. In most of Coello's books he emphasized the freedom of love. Yet in this book Igor is trapped by his love and in his attempt to regain it he goes into a series of murders sending messages to Ewa to convince her that he is doing this for her so that she returns to him. In other words he is trapping her not letting her loose. This book is in fact a lesson for all those who are hurt by love just to let go of their past and continue with their lives since being trapped by love will only bring loss. The latter will not be a winner as the author suggests since he will have brought destruction to himself and all people around him.
    • 2/5
      I have read Paulo Coelho before, but this book starts out totally different from previous books. I thought it wasn't for me (opens with information about compact pistols) and took me awhile before I picked it up again. The story does unfold, but I wasn't interested enough in the characters and felt the author repeated himself about the evils of the fashion, movie industry one too many times.