Veronika Decides to Die

Summary: Veronika has a life that resembles every 24 year old girl's dream: she's intelligent, attractive, lives in New York City, has a loving family and has a steady job at a powerful bank. But for Veronika, her existence harbors no excitement or thrill of the unknown, and one night, these feelings of apathy drive her to find "freedom" in an overdose of sleeping pills. However, Veronika does not succeed in ending her life, and instead awakes in Villete, an asylum in upstate New York, where she is told by the head of institution, Dr. Blake, that her suicide attempt has severely weakened her heart leaving her with only days to live. In a sedative-induced haze, Veronika finds companionship in the comical Claire and the rehabilitated Mari, and finds something even greater in a relationship with Edward, the son of a powerful politician who has been diagnosed as schizophrenic and left at Villete to save his family from embarrassment. With these new friendships and a burgeoning appreciation for existence, Veronika starts to question the definition of insanity. She reacquires a renewed faith in life and love, culminating in an upbeat ending with the message that each day we live is a miracle.