Inspirations: Selections from Classic Literature (Penguin Classics) - Softcover

'Anthology' comes from the Greek word that stands for garlands - a bouquet of flowers. An anthology then, should be a small token of something much larger. In the case of flowers, they bring to mind the colour & fragrance of the fields, of a season. Coelho's anthology, therefore, is not only a collection of texts or poems, but a gift, something arranged according to his sensitivities, to give to others. The selection of books presented in this volume have been chosen as if from a vast field of flowers, stretching infinitely into time's horizon. Coelho's selection is ordered in to the four elements, symbolizing both our world on all its directions, and the way we dwell in it, the way we say it. In 'Earth' we find writers as diverse as Oscar Wilde and D H Lawrence; in 'Air' Nelson Mandela and Gabriel Garcia Marques; in 'Fire' Rumi and Mary Shelley; in 'Water' Hans Christian Anderson and Machiavelli.

One of the most influential writers of our time, Paulo Coelho is the author of many international best sellers, including Adultery, The Alchemist, Aleph, Eleven Minutes and Manuscript Found in Accra. Translated into eighty languages, his books have sold more than 195 million copies in more than 170 countries. He is a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters and has received the Chevalier de l'Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur. In 2007, he was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace.