What's the secret of The Secret, the biggest publishing phenomenon since The Da Vinci Code? Published last November, the new age self- help guide, boosted by promotion from Oprah Winfrey, has become an astonishing phenomenon, especially among affluent, middle-class women in cities like LA.
The book, written in just a month by 55-year-old Australian TV producer Rhonda Byrne (right), is now the best-selling title on amazon.com, topping advance orders for the next and last Harry Potter book. More than 3.75m copies are in print in the US alone. A four-CD audio book has sold 400,000 copies, while the DVD movie on which The Secret was based has sold more than 1.5m copies on the internet alone.
According to the publisher, "The Secret contains wisdom from
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modern-day teachers: men and women who have used it to achieve health, wealth, and happiness. By applying the knowledge of The Secret, they bring to light compelling stories of eradicating disease, acquiring massive wealth, overcoming obstacles and achieving what many would regard as impossible."
The core of The Secret's message is what Byrne calls 'intention-manifestation'; that we can influence and change our destinies, and even mundane events, by properly channelling our thoughts and emotions. Using what it claims is the ancient secret of the 'law of attraction' known to people such as Beethoven, The Secret's key enjoinder is: 'Ask. Believe. Receive.' Being American, The Secret focuses on the obsessions of the country's tens of millions of affluent, unhappy women: wealth and weight.  |
