The Alchemist

by Paulo Coelho (Goodreads author!)

published	September 6th 1999 by HarperCollins
first published	1988
binding	Paperback
isbn	0722532938 (isbn13: 9780722532935)
ebook
pages	192
description	Like the one-time bestseller Jonathan Livingston Seagull, The Alchemist presents a simple fable, based on simple truths and places it...more [close] Like the one-time bestseller Jonathan Livingston Seagull, The Alchemist presents a simple fable, based on simple truths and places it in a highly unique situation. And though we may sense a bestselling formula, it is certainly not a new one: even the ancient tribal storytellers knew that this is the most successful method of entertaining an audience while slipping in a lesson or two. Brazilian storyteller Paulo Coehlo introduces Santiago, an Andalucian shepherd boy who one night dreams of a distant treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. And so he's off: leaving Spain to literally follow his dream. Along the way he meets many spiritual messengers, who come in unassuming forms such as a camel driver and a well-read Englishman. In one of the Englishman's books, Santiago first learns about the alchemists--men who believed that if a metal were heated for many years, it would free itself of all its individual properties, and what was left would be the "Soul of the World." Of course he does eventually meet an alchemist, and the ensuing student-teacher relationship clarifies much of the boy's misguided agenda, while also emboldening him to stay true to his dreams. "My heart is afraid that it will have to suffer," the boy confides to the alchemist one night as they look up at a moonless night. "Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself," the alchemist replies. "And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second's encounter with God and with eternity." [close]
date added	03-29-07 edit book

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Sithara rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

12/22/07

Read in June, 2007

I need to start this review by stating 1) I can't stand self-help books and 2) I'm a feminist (no, I don't hate men- some men are quite awesome, but I am very conscious of women and our place in the world.)

Short summary (mild spoilers): A boy named Santiago follows his 'Personal Legend' in traveling from Spain to the Pyramids in Egypt searching for treasure. Along the way, he learns 'the Language of the World' the 'Soul of the World' and discovers that the 'Soul of God' is 'his own soul.'
...more I need to start this review by stating 1) I can't stand self-help books and 2) I'm a feminist (no, I don't hate men- some men are quite awesome, but I am very conscious of women and our place in the world.)

Short summary (mild spoilers): A boy named Santiago follows his 'Personal Legend' in traveling from Spain to the Pyramids in Egypt searching for treasure. Along the way, he learns 'the Language of the World' the 'Soul of the World' and discovers that the 'Soul of God' is 'his own soul.'

If the statements in quotes above ('personal legend', etc) fascinate you, then you'll enjoy this book. If you think they are hokey and silly, then you'll think this is a terrible book. If you think statements such as "When you want something, all the universe conspires you to achieve it" and "All things are one" are moving and life-changing, you'll love this book. If such statements have you rolling your eyes, then this isn't your cup of tea.

Its not that I find anything wrong with these messages. They are important, but must be balanced with responsibility. In my experience, 'following your dreams' (or personal legend) is not the only way toward wisdom and strength. Is the person who struggles to put food on the table every day for his or her family, consciously realizing that he or she may not be following his or her 'personal legend' any less heroic than some traveler who leaves everything and everyone he or she is responsible for to go on a spiritual quest? Coelho comes close to labeling such people, as losers in life, which I find completely off the mark as some of these people have the most to offer in terms of wisdom.

The issue of responsibility is also part of this book's sexism. The main male characters in the novel have 'Personal Legends' - they are either seeking them, or have achieved them, or have failed to achieve them. But Coelho never mentions 'Personal Legend' with regard to women, other than to say that Fatima, Santiago's fiance, is 'a part of Santiago's Personal Legend." Thats fine, but what about her own Personal Legend? Instead of traveling to find her dreams, she is content to sit around, do chores, and stare everyday at the desert to wait for his return. This is her 'fate' as a desert women. The fact that women don't have Personal Legends is even more galling considering the fact that according to Coelho, even minerals such as lead and copper have Personal Legends, allowing them to 'evolve' to something better (ie, gold).

In the ideal world presented in THE ALCHEMIST, it seems that the job of men is to seek out their personal legends, leaving aside thoughts of family and responsibility, and its the job of women to let them, and pine for their return. Of course, someone has to do the unheroic, inconvenient work of taking care of the children, the animals, the elderly, the ill...If everyone simply goes off on spiritual quests, deciding they have no responsibility other than to seek their Personal Legends, no one would be taking responsibility for the unglamorous work that simply has to take place for the world to run.

On the other hand, what if both men and women are allowed to struggle towards their 'Personal Legends,' and help each other as best as they can towards them, but recognize that their responsibilities may force them to defer, compromise, or even 'sacrifice' their dreams? This may seem depressing, but it isn't necessarily. Coelho seems to think that Personal Legends are fixed at childhood (or at birth, or even before) and are not changeable: they have to be followed through to the end, no matter how silly. But in my experience, many people have chosen to adjust, compromise, and even 'give up' on their dreams, only to find that life grants them something better, or they have a new, better dream to follow, a path providing greater wisdom. For me, these people have a more realistic, more humble, more fair, and less cliched vision of the world than Paulo Coelho's vision in THE ALCHEMIST.

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Amit rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

06/07/08

Read in June, 2008

recommended to Amit by: i dont even know her name

There are too many things one can learn from “The Alchemist”. Its all about following your dream and about taking the risk of following your dreams, which is actually so difficult to do and there are very few people in this world who actually do, I mean risk it all, just to follow your heart and your dream. Beauty is, the author is so right in saying that when u decide to follow your dreams the entire universe conspires in your favour which he called as the “beginners luck” and we all ha...more There are too many things one can learn from “The Alchemist”. Its all about following your dream and about taking the risk of following your dreams, which is actually so difficult to do and there are very few people in this world who actually do, I mean risk it all, just to follow your heart and your dream. Beauty is, the author is so right in saying that when u decide to follow your dreams the entire universe conspires in your favour which he called as the “beginners luck” and we all have been witness to this beginners luck at one or other point in our lives. Also, he talks about a stage in our journey towards realizing our dreams, where everything just goes haywire and there is everything working against us and it almost takes us to the brink of abandoning everything and just getting back to what was so familiar and comfortable (i.e. our usual daily life which we get used to) this is actually the time when we are being tested for one last time and it means also that we are really close to our objective. The example given was really great and yes nothing new but we forget simple things in our life like "the darkest hour of the night is just before the dawn". It is actually true that so many of us just leave the struggle when it gets really tough and the chips are really low, whereas actually we were so close to the objective, if only we would have had a little more patience we would have been there. In one of the episodes he talks about death, yes the fact we always forget, the only reality about our life, it is a constant which is not going to change rest everything is uncertain. There are a lot of us who either think that it happens to others and then there are others, who are so busy running after the materials that they don’t have time to think about anything, leave alone death. Yes, and those who do think about death, mostly fear it, some fear death because of the physical pain attached to it (such people actually fear the pain rather than the death, I am one of them) and there are some who think they do not want to die because its not time yet for them to go. Ironically but true, this decision about timings has thankfully not been left to us. So, how do we get over the fear of death or make it our friend, a companion? And not waste our beautiful life worrying about dying all the time. One of the possible solutions lies in this book, it reads "if i have to fight, it will be just as good a day to die as any other". Yes very much right, one would never know when he or she wakes up in the morning that if it was the last day of his or her life and in fact, that day would not be any different from all the other days already spent. So, why not take everyday as the last day of our lives and live it up. Frankly speaking i really know what i am talking about, because I am in a profession which involves a lot of risk and death doesn’t have to look for reasons, it can just spring up from any bush in form of a small little piece of metal called a bullet coming out of the darkness of the night or just a deafening sound from under a culvert that I cross everyday. Here, everyday can be the last day of my life, every meal can be my last, every call to my wife can be the last time I would hear her sweet and loving voice and the kids… Anyways, so what I personally follow is, everyday when I wake up or every time when I move out on an operation, I say to myself "what a beautiful day to die" and there on, I just do what I have to and what I have been taught in all these years in the army and go through all the motions and concentrate on the job at hand rather than worrying about my death and I am really at peace with the fear of death. Another beautiful thought which I came across about death was in the novel by the author called "Confessions of a pilgrim". I derived from it that death can be visualized as a beautiful person who is always sitting besides us, so close to us that it travels with us wherever we go and it also accompanies us to our bed. Its a beautiful companion, a faithful companion, the only one who will never be unfaithful to us, rest all the companions are just lesser mortals and have been unfaithful at one point or other. Death always stays with us and actually speaking that’s the only companion who would accompany us all through our lives right from the moment we acquired some shape in our mother’s womb to the moment when we would get the vision of that white light and that feeling of lightness when we would finally leave this body also sometimes expressed as "VASTRA" (clothes) in the Indian mythology. As per the Indian mythology, the soul never dies, it is indestructible, it only changes a body just like we change clothes. Our soul is a part of God and it goes back to him. We can find the mention of the mighty soul of ours around the last portion of 'The Alchemist' where the shepherd realizes that ultimately it his own soul which is the “hand that wrote all” and his own soul was the part of soul of God. I firmly believe that there is no fiction involved in this story of the shepherd, but this is a true expression of mysteries and realities of our life, which we never pause to discover. There is massage that this book wants to convey to us!!! I have never been into writing anything ever in my life, yes not even a personal dairy, but since the time I actually started writing which was just a month back, I realized that if we just write our thoughts as they occur, the resultant has a touch of mystery, because what we wrote with all our heart and soul, sometimes tends to surprise us. We tend to learn from what we ourselves wrote. We never realized that we had so much inside us and we don’t know from where, it all came. “The hand that wrote all”, yes I think its our soul that speaks out, the soul we never recognized, the one we never knew, the one which is part of soul of God…. …All religions have over all the years have preached a man “Know thyself, you will find God”, “look within yourself u will find all the answers”, these words are so common but how many of us actually are ready to pause and give it a try. It may sound crazy, may be the book has a effect that may appear really crazy but I am sure there are some people who would identify with me. May be when Paulo Coelho wrote this book his soul was revealing itself and that’s why some of us can identify with it because our souls are the part of same soul of God, just like his is. May be these lines of his novel were written by the “Hand that wrote all……………”

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Nicholas rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

08/19/08

bookshelves: philosophy

Read in July, 2007

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

This is another one of those books. The ones that just lay it all out for you.

It's pretty simple. The story is just a series of characters portraying all of the things that will keep you from living the life you want.

Quotes:

"The problem is that they don't even realize that they';re walking a new road every day. They don't see that the fields are new and the seasons change. All they think about is food and water."

"It's the possibility of having a dream come true ...more

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Emily rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

12/03/07

bookshelves: 2008-journey-to-30, historical-fiction, i-own-it

Read in January, 2008

I decided, both in an effort to alleviate boredom at work and to keep me on task with the whole reading thing, to write reviews of all of the books that I finish. People tend to think that I read all these great books, so this is either an opportunity for people to realize that I read too much chick lit or to pass along some great titles.

The first book, cause it was the last one I finished, is The Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo.

I read this book for one reason only. I'm going to Spain, in ...more

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Nefik rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

09/28/07

bookshelves: philosophy, spirituality

recommends it for: optimists, cynics and dreamers

In her review, Ioana wrote:

...."The language is quite simple, which can be beautiful (read: Herman Hesse); however it comes off as quite redundant and sermonic. Every other sentence contains at least one reference to either "The Soul of the World", or "The Personal Legend", or "Follow Your Heart" with a big fat capital H. By the end of the novel I am skimming most passages.

The characters are flat (I didn't really "feel" them, what they were going through, and there was no character development), and the storyline resembled that of a children's folktale (I like folktales).

Overall, it was a worthwhile read given that it only took a couple hours, presented some interesting ideas (albeit, without illustrating any of them satisfactorily), and removed me to the Spanish countryside/Arabian desert for a bit (I am a sucker for folktales, and if this book is nothing else, it would make a lovely illustrated children's book)." ...more

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nanto rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

04/20/08

bookshelves: a-must-read-book-for-me, langut-bersama-secangkir-kopi, nant-s-book, novel

Selesai membacanya buku yang saya punya sepertinya akan memiliki bentuk baru. Di tiap lembarnya ada lipatan. Teknik penanda jejak baca yang memudahkan untuk merefer ke halaman yang menarik tetapi dengan resiko menurunkan penampilan buku. Thx to Mr. Dj untuk tips ini.

Garis merah dari pembacaan saya atas buku Coelho yang satu ini adalah kekuatan hati sebagai salah satu fakultas pengetahuan manusia. Namun kali ini, hati bukanlah semata sebuah bentuk filsafat verbal atau analitik yang kerap munc...more Selesai membacanya buku yang saya punya sepertinya akan memiliki bentuk baru. Di tiap lembarnya ada lipatan. Teknik penanda jejak baca yang memudahkan untuk merefer ke halaman yang menarik tetapi dengan resiko menurunkan penampilan buku. Thx to Mr. Dj untuk tips ini.

Garis merah dari pembacaan saya atas buku Coelho yang satu ini adalah kekuatan hati sebagai salah satu fakultas pengetahuan manusia. Namun kali ini, hati bukanlah semata sebuah bentuk filsafat verbal atau analitik yang kerap muncul dalam filsafat Barat. Yang menjadi modal utama bukan lagi rasio, yang ingin menganalisis segalanya karena "ada hal-hal yang tidak perlu dipertanyakan supaya kau tidak melarikan diri dari takdirmu" (hal. 55, edisi Indonesia). Hati yang memperkenalkan pada "Bahasa Antusiasme, bahasa orang yang berhasil dalam pekerjaannya yang dia lakukan dengan penuh cinta dan tujuan, juga sebagai bagian dari pencarian akan sesuatu yang diyakininnya dan dihasratinya" (hal. 81). Hati pulalah yang membuat kita peka akan firasat, yang selama ini dikenal oleh rasio sebagai keberuntungan dan kebetulan.

Gambaran filsafat analitik dan pengguna hati ada dalam karakter si orang Inggris yang dominan membaca buku dan si anak lelaki yang berkembang dengan pengalaman dan kepekaan atas firasatnya dan kebetulan yang ada di sekitarnya. Saya teringat akan ungkapan yang konon diungkapkan oleh T.S. Eliot menyatakan, "You have to read much, but not just many books." Selain juga ucapan yang konon dinyatakan oleh al Ghozali kepada filusuf, "filusuf adalah kaum yang melihat bintang dan membicarakannya, sementara kaum sufi adalah kaum yang melihat bintang dan kemudian membangun alat untuk mencapainya." (sumber lupa karena bacanya pas jaman kuliah euy!) Pada ungkapan T.S Eliot ditekankan peluasan bacaan dari sekedar teks menjadi juga alam luas. Sedangkan al Ghozali menekankan pada aksi dari pada sekedar berkutat pada analisa.

Aih aih jadi malu...

Pencarian si anak lelaki belum-belum sudah dihadapkan pada kemalangan. Sesampainya di Tangier, si anak lelaki hanyalah seperti orang-orang pada umumnya, matanya hanya melihat apa yang hendak dilihat, bukan apa yang sebenarnya terjadi. Begitulah yang ia katakan pada dirinya sendiri setelah tidak bisa membedakan mana pencuri dan mana orang yang memberi peringatan. Sehingga ketika si anak lelaki tengah bingung seusai kemalangan karena uangnya dicuri, ia dihadapkan pada pilihan: menganggap dirinya anak malang korban pencuri, atau petualang yang hendak mencari harta karun (hal. 56). Pilihannya jatuh pada yang terakhir yang kemudian memperkenalkan dirinya kepada pedagang kristal, luasnya padang pasir, oasis dan piramida. Kemalangan yang kemudian mampu dialihkan menjadi keberuntngan. Begitulah yang dilakukan si anak lelaki, menikmati setiap keberuntungannya. Karena bila tidak, "setiap berkah yang tidak kita hiraukan, berubah menjadi kutukan" (hal. 75).

Begitulah latihan si anak lelaki dengan hatinya, karena hatipun dapat berkhianat. Di tengah pencariannya dia terus menerka harta karun apa yang bakal didapatkannya, karena "Setiap pencarian dimulai dengan keberuntungan bagi si pemula. Dan setiap pencarian diakhiri dengan ujian berat bagi si pemenang" (hal. 170).

Meski tidak sepenuhnya sepakat dan mudeng dengan spiritualisme dan "bahasa universal" (terkesan seperti chaos theory gak sih?) yang dikemukakan dalam buku Coelho ini, saya menyukainya dan sepakat juga dengan review lain yang mengatakan pesan Coelho mirip dengan pesan buku The Secret. Pesan besar itu memang kembali kepada pesan Raja Salem kepadanya, "kalau kau sungguh-sungguh menginginkan sesuatu, seisi jagat raya akan bersatu padu untuk membantumu."...less

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Lola rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

05/20/08

bookshelves: fiction

Read in May, 2008

I have mixed feelings about this one. Throughout my reading i kept trying to read between the lines, kept trying to analyze the many obstacles in my life that keep me from perusing my "Personal Legend" with the guidelines worked into the plot of the story, kept trying to understand what the "Soul of the world" and "Universal Language" would translate into in reality, kept waiting for a revelation.

But i couldn't escape the fact that Santiago's desert world seeme...more I have mixed feelings about this one. Throughout my reading i kept trying to read between the lines, kept trying to analyze the many obstacles in my life that keep me from perusing my "Personal Legend" with the guidelines worked into the plot of the story, kept trying to understand what the "Soul of the world" and "Universal Language" would translate into in reality, kept waiting for a revelation.

But i couldn't escape the fact that Santiago's desert world seemed too contrived, it can not be compared to actual reality. Maybe the reason i did not enjoy the book as much is that i was reading it, so closely, looking for a revelation that i forgot to enjoy the story as a simple fable. The Alchemist has a lot of wisdom to offer but it was so easy to ignore it in my initial reading because all the hype about the book changing lives and motivating people, got so deep into my head that somehow i expected a literary miracle, and i think alot of people will miss its simple message due to this fact as well. Reflecting on the story a day later i started to discover its true message.

I believe wholeheartedly the importance of the message Coelho is trying to convey which i interpreted as - discover what it is in your life that brings you true purpose and pursue it against all odds, the journey to it will bring great wisdom, but be conscious of the world around you it gives signs, good and bad, ahead of time that we often overlook. Also, never settle for what seems like the next best thing, strive to purse your goals to completion, even in the face of failure.

I guess my overall disappointment is that the execution of the message is not terribly convincing. Coelho creates this ideal world where there is a cast of mysterious characters, who just happen to have insight into the future and can assure Santiago that the treasures of his life, not only exist, but can be found and precisely where and how to find it. I'm sure achieving your personal legend is more than possible, even when there is major trouble, when you already know the outcome. Who wouldn't trade an arm, a leg, an eye, and some toes for that certainty? In my reality, there are no mysterious soothsayers that appear out of the blue, and give details to the direct location or path to pursue towards happiness. In addition I'm plagued with responsibilities harder to abandon than just a bunch of dumb sheep that can depend on anyone for their survival. I guess what I'm trying to say is that if Santiago had discovered the path on his own, the story would have had a more significant impact on me.

I did fall in love with the many parables woven into the story, especially the one about the spoon of oil which reveals the secret of happiness. I like the overall optimistic message of the book; that our dreams and hearts desires can lead us back to where we started, but had no idea was significant or that finding happiness through wisdom is really as simple as following your heart.

I also love the idea of interpreting the language of omens. Its strange, i actually discovered a personal omen from a single word in the book that triggered a forgotten memory, and in my state of skepticism it was so unexpected it freaked me out for hours and gave me peace of mind all at the same time. Don't ask. Anyway my conclusion is that i guess everyone has to draw their own wisdom from the book, there are plenty of things to love about the story, read it and enjoy it. Then dig deeper for the other stuff. Don't expect so much from the proclamation on the cover that it will "change the lives of the reader forever," but be open minded, it just might change the way you think about your goals.

PS: If nothing else, read the interviews and insights included in the plus edition, Coelho speaks so beautifully, i wish this book was as inspiring as his interview answers. ...less

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Brian rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

07/08/08

Read in July, 2008

recommends it for: children, anyone who likes to read an enjoyable light hearted story.

Ok, so this book has been probably one of the most recommended books of the past few years, even residing on the New York Times best seller list for quite some time.

What did I think about it?

Well, I think sometimes one must finish a book and let it stew, to digest it, to mull it over, to think about it for a little while before forming their own educated opinions on it.

My first reaction was that this was a very readable, reading pretty much like a children's book, enjoyable read. T...more Ok, so this book has been probably one of the most recommended books of the past few years, even residing on the New York Times best seller list for quite some time.

What did I think about it?

Well, I think sometimes one must finish a book and let it stew, to digest it, to mull it over, to think about it for a little while before forming their own educated opinions on it.

My first reaction was that this was a very readable, reading pretty much like a children's book, enjoyable read. The story was enjoyable and the message was a good one. That everyone has a "personal legend" or dreams and that not too many actually follow them, but that we should, and that when we do, we will find that the majority of the time, our personal legends reside right in our own back yards,within ourselves, not somewhere else, that's it not over the rainbow, but right here.

Very good and well meaning message. I'm just not so sure how profound it is. I mean, I read somewhere that this is one of Madonna's favorite books of all time. Makes me wonder how many books she has ever read. I'm willing to bet she has never read The Brother's Karamazov.

Don't get me wrong. I liked this book. I thought it was very simple and quite enjoyable. I just think it was marketed to the wrong audience, that it should have been marketed as a children's book, and not adult fare. That's not to say that adults can't get anything out of the book. There's just nothing truly profound or eye opening here.

I also think sometimes it is a good idea to read other reviews, before writing your own, not so much to form your own opinions, but to put your opinions in perspective, to temper them.

Sithara's review below did that for me. Being a white male, I never even noticed the blatant sexism of the book. I don't think this was intentional on the author's part though, I just think, as other's have said, that the book was not fleshed out, that it did not tread in deep waters. Like the children's part of the pool, it never ventured out to the deep end, it stayed in the shallow end, never going more than 3 feet deep.

She also mentioned the millions of equally heroic people who stay home to raise a family, giving up on their dreams in the process and how they are equally heroic. I think though that this was part of the message of the book. That one can search the entire world for their "personal legend" only to find that it truly resides at home and that's where it has been all along. It's true that dreams change and morph over time, so if someone decides to change one dream in order to raise a family, well that IS their personal legend now right?

I just think fault is being layed on the book for not being deep enough when it was never intended to be profound. I think it was meant to be a light hearted and whimsical story with a good message. And the message is that we should all follow our dreams, no matter where it leads, even if it leads us right back home.

This book also showed me though that it is not always the most profound or the most verbose authors who are best remembered, but instead it's usually the ones who are the greatest story tellers. I love a good story and this was a good story. I think many authors could learn something from that. You can be as verbose and profound and intelligent as anyone out there, but if you are not telling a good story, then you might as well not even write. The trick is to learn how to do both, to both tell a good story and be profound at the same time. This book only succeeds at the former. ...less

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Maggie rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

03/31/08

Santiago, a shepherd boy from the Andalusian Mountains with a yearning to travel, seems perfectly content with limiting his exploration to his native Spanish countryside until a reoccurring dream - one which foretells of a great fortune that lies in wait for him near the Egyptian Pyramids - sets in motion a much larger journey, that of his Personal Legend. Accepting it as an omen, the shepherd boy makes the courageous decision to sell all of his belongings and leave home to heed the dream's call...more Santiago, a shepherd boy from the Andalusian Mountains with a yearning to travel, seems perfectly content with limiting his exploration to his native Spanish countryside until a reoccurring dream - one which foretells of a great fortune that lies in wait for him near the Egyptian Pyramids - sets in motion a much larger journey, that of his Personal Legend. Accepting it as an omen, the shepherd boy makes the courageous decision to sell all of his belongings and leave home to heed the dream's call. Along the way, he encounters a mysterious King who teaches him to decipher omens, thieves who rob him blind, a European mystic who is seeking the secrets of alchemy, an Arabian woman who is to become the love of his life, dangerous nomadic tribes who wage war in the desert he must cross, and The Alchemist - the one who teaches him to control his fears, listen to his heart, and become one with the universal Language of the World so that he too can become an alchemist and fulfill his life's purpose.

On the surface, The Alchemist is a simple fable - an easily digestible fairy tale that can be polished off in a matter of a few hours. But just like any other "simple" fable, Coelho uses Santiago's personal journey to make much larger statements about life. Namely, that we all have dreams, however most of us never achieve our dreams due to obstacles of fear - fear of changing our comfortable lives, fear of leaving the people we love, fear of defeat, fear that we may not truly deserve for our dreams to come true, and fear that once we reach our dreams we will no longer have a reason to live or that the dream will ultimately disappoint. And since we are often the forces that hold ourselves back, courage becomes the most valuable trait a person can have. Coelho's message is one of supreme comfort and optimism, arguing that "fate is the world's greatest lie," that we are the ones in control of our lives, that we have the power to chose how we view the world, that the attitude we assume in difficult situations is enough to turn scary or painful moments into adventures, and that "to realize one's destiny is a person's only real obligation."

And although I have no idea whether or not any of these things are actually true, I sure do like the prospect that they just might be.

I can definitely see how more cynical readers would roll their eyes at Coelho's story, especially when he describes concepts like "The Soul of the World" and statements like "...when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it." And although it does feel awful close to the sort of overly sentimental self-help drivel that I typically hate, something about The Alchemist forced me to love it, despite the parts that struck me as hokey and sexist.* But despite these debatable turn-offs, The Alchemist is perfect for young readers whose dreams and aspirations may be newly forming, although I can't think of anyone who couldn't take something away from it.

*While on his journey, Santiago falls in love with a woman named Fatima, and like Odysseus' Penelope, Fatima's only destiny is to discover and wait patiently for her man to return from his adventures. Although Coelho never comes out and says as much, the implication is that these sorts of epic Personal Journeys are reserved for men. I found this terrifically irritating....less

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Wendy rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

06/27/08

Read in September, 1999

This book really did change my life - and that's not a cliche. Given to me at a very low point in my life it inspired me to follow a childhood dream and visit the pyramids. This lead to me quitting my job and becoming a contract temp so I could travel to other places I'd always wanted to visit....then to signing onto an internet dating site and eventually meeting my husband!
Follow your dream.

This book is a modern fable about following your dreams and a book that has had a profound effect o...more This book really did change my life - and that's not a cliche. Given to me at a very low point in my life it inspired me to follow a childhood dream and visit the pyramids. This lead to me quitting my job and becoming a contract temp so I could travel to other places I'd always wanted to visit....then to signing onto an internet dating site and eventually meeting my husband!
Follow your dream.

This book is a modern fable about following your dreams and a book that has had a profound effect on my life. And if that sounds pretentious I apologise and perhaps you should stop reading now or maybe you should read the book and then come back.
I was lent the book by my closest friend when I was at a very low point in my life with very little self-esteem and when I was fumbling about with no real direction in my life. And reading the book enabled me to start looking at things differently and to take charge of my life.
The story is about a young Spanish sheepherder who has a dream one night about a treasure buried under the pyramids. He is guided by many people and omens but takes the decision to give up his easy life and travel to the pyramids and find the treasure. Along the way, which is long and hard, he learns many things and eventually meets the Alchemist and becomes his apprentice before returning home.
The message that the story teaches us is that we should all follow our dreams even though we may be afraid that we won't achieve our goal or that we will be disappointed when we do. It shows that what we learn along the way is as important as reaching the end of the journey and that sometimes the simplest things are of greater value than the most wonderful treasure. Finally it showed me that we are all in control of our own destinies and make our own decisions.
When I read the book I was completely amazed, it made me realize I had to take charge of my own life, and the immediate effect was to make my own trip to the pyramids, something I had dreamed of for many years (see my article Egypt - Day 1 The Pyramids). The long-term effect has been to make me much more proactive in my own life. Whereas I had previously drifted along the current of my life since reading The Alchemist I have made some positive decisions about the direction I wanted to go. I quit my nice safe job and now I work as a temporary contractor, which suits me much better as I get to meet new people every few months and meet new challenges, which is something I need to do. I then began answering personal ads and going out on blind dates and am now engaged to be married in September (to another Themestream contributor Jonathan Beckett). I redecorated my house going from nice safe neutral tones to bright contemporary colours. And I bought the leather trousers I had been dithering about for almost 2 years.
I would probably have made a lot of these changes without reading the book but it was definitely a factor in giving me the courage to start making those changes.
I urge everyone to read The Alchemist and then follow your own dream, whatever it is and even if you don't achieve it you won't regret trying and you might regret not trying. And surely that is everyone's worst nightmare, to think that you will look back on your life and wonder "What would have happened if I had tried that?"
...less

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Lara rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

02/25/08

Read in February, 2008

recommended to Lara by: Alexana
recommends it for: anyone

I really loved this book! I need to go back and re-read it very soon, so that I can mark all of the nuggets of wisdom that stood out to me.

The book wasn't really outwardly religious, but reading it as a religious person, I still felt that so much of the wisdom contained in the book was right on. You just have to substitute "the Universe" with God, and the universal language with the Spirit perhaps. Read it like a parable...there is much to be gleaned from this book.

Some of t...more I really loved this book! I need to go back and re-read it very soon, so that I can mark all of the nuggets of wisdom that stood out to me.

The book wasn't really outwardly religious, but reading it as a religious person, I still felt that so much of the wisdom contained in the book was right on. You just have to substitute "the Universe" with God, and the universal language with the Spirit perhaps. Read it like a parable...there is much to be gleaned from this book.

Some of the things I learned (or re-learned) from off the top of my head:

Live in the present, but strive to understand how the present is helping you to follow your dreams (or personal legend, as it were).

When you are on the right path, all of your experiences will somehow come together and help you achieve your goals. I have to say I have definitely found this to be true in my life, so this did resonate with me. I don't know that I agree that we only have ONE personal legend: I think it applies to any goal we may have that happens to be right for us. Not all of our goals/hopes/dreams will be realized...perhaps because it really wasn't God's plan for us, or maybe because we didn't do what it took to realize that dream.

Do not settle. If, in working towards your goal, you come to a moment where you are stopped, or where things seem like they're okay...that life wouldn't be so horrible if you just decided to stay in that situation...don't! Look at the experience as a stepping stone toward your goal, but don't stop pursuing it. (Santiago feeling like maybe he should just stay and work in the crystal shop, or marry Fatima in the desert.) This in particular really resonated with me because of the situation my husband and I are in. It is a stepping stone along the way in his career. In many ways it would be easy to give up right now and just stay where we are. It would be a good enough life. But, his (and by default, mine) full happiness really hasn't been achieved...at least not career-wise. Therefore we need to keep pressing forward--still learning from the experiences we're currently having--toward the end goal.

Finally, many of the reviews I read about this book struggled with the actions of Fatima. That it didn't seem right that, just because she is a woman, her personal legend should be to wait for Santiago's return and blow kisses to him as he pursued his own dreams.

I didn't feel this way. I honestly related with her, because some of my dreams are on hold right now while I wait for Joel to achieve his goals. And that has become my main goal: to help him. And I am totally okay with that. I will have a chance later to pursue some of those things that are on hold. Meanwhile, I am doing other things...pursuing some of my less important dreams, maybe. Also, I feel that raising my children is my ultimate personal legend, and of course I am on that path now, and that certainly isn't on hold.

Anyway...wonderful book. One that makes you really think and learn. I absolutely enjoyed it....less

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Sarah rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

08/22/07

Read in July, 2007

recommends it for: people trying to find themselves

I feel like everyone LOVES this book, but I was kind of underwhelmed. I know that translation affects the quality of writing, but I could not get into this writing style. At all. I felt like it was totally affected and contrived. He was going for this "fable/parable" style, but it seemed to fail miserably. The parable-like quality was totally contrived, and I thought the "moral" was pretty stupid.

Moral: everything you want and need is close to home. Take chances. ...more

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Richard rated it:

(review of isbn 0061122416)

07/05/08

A simple allegorical type of fiction that has the theme “Don’t go wandering around the world for your treasure. Look in your own backyard.” Or “Don’t worry about the past or the future, improve today and the future will improve and the past will be less important.” An easy book to read, but you have to keep in mind that it is allegorical and not literal. Following are some quotes that I liked:

“What’s the world’s greatest lie?” The boy asked.
“It is this: that a...more A simple allegorical type of fiction that has the theme “Don’t go wandering around the world for your treasure. Look in your own backyard.” Or “Don’t worry about the past or the future, improve today and the future will improve and the past will be less important.” An easy book to read, but you have to keep in mind that it is allegorical and not literal. Following are some quotes that I liked:

“What’s the world’s greatest lie?” The boy asked.
“It is this: that at a certain point in our lives, we lose control of what’s happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate. That’s the world’s greatest lie.” P.18

But the sheep had taught him something even more important: that there was a language in the world that everyone understood, a language the boy had used throughout the time that he was trying to improve things at the shop. It was the language of enthusiasm, of things accomplished with love and purpose, and as part of a search for something believed in and desired.
“When you want something, all the universe conspires to help you achieve it.” the old king said. P. 62

He still had some doubts about the decision he had made. But he was able to understand one thing: making a decision was only the beginning of things. When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he had never dreamed of when he first made the decision. P. 68

“Because I don’t live in either my past or my future, I’m interested only in the present. If you can concentrate always on the present, you’ll be a happy man. You’ll see that there is life in the desert, that there are stars in the heavens, and that tribesmen fight because they are part of the human race. Life will be a party for you, a grand festival, because life is the moment we’re living right now.” P. 85

“When people consult me, it’s not that I’m reading the future: I am guessing at the future. The future belongs to God, and it is only he who reveals it, under extraordinary circumstances. How do I guess at the future? Based on the omens of the present. The secret is here in the present. If you pay attention to the present, you can improve upon it. And, if you improve on the present, what comes later will also be better. Forget about the future, and live each day according to the teachin