★★★★★ 5
One Of The Most Important Books Ever Written
Format: Paperback
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho is in my opinion, one of the most important books ever written. It's no wonder that it's one of the best-selling books of all time with more than 150 million copies sold. Those numbers are in spite of and defiance to the author's encouragement to file share his now legendary novel.
But sales statistics are not the criterion on which I stake this claim. It is the impact on the lives of those that have read it, and the impact on the lives that have not yet been born, that I boldly state the above.
The simplicity of its unfoldment may at first belie the depth of its wisdom. But the simplicity is part of the profundity that allows the reader to assimilate the messages without resistance.
The first time I read The Alchemist;, I read it cover to cover in one sitting. No bathroom break, no cup of water pause, no telephone distractions. I read it from the first word to the last in what seemed like a single breath.
I simply couldn't put it down.
I was swept, swung, and swallowed up by this extraordinary narrative. The result was transformation. I was not the same man that began reading the novel by the time I finished it.
I would thereafter read it again and again. The messages are so layered that with every new pass comes new understanding and enlightenment.
At the core of the novel is the fulfillment of one’s destiny. There is a force in the Soul of the World that wants us all to live out our personal legend. When we truly desire something, the entire Universe conspires to help us achieve it. With love, all things are possible. With love, we can perform miracles.
These themes are artfully integrated and clothed within a modern day fable. They come in varying iterations from a string of colorful characters that propel the protagonist towards a profound and satisfying ending.
The Alchemist is the story of Santiago, a shepherd boy from Spain that crosses the desert of Africa in search of a hidden treasure. It was revealed to him in a reoccurring dream that the treasure is buried by the Ancient Pyramids in Egypt.
What he naively believes will take three weeks to complete becomes a journey that expands nearly three years. After miles of traveling through the desert, the boy arrives at an oasis where he falls in love with a beautiful desert woman named Fatima. The boy is willing to abandon his dream of finding his treasure for the procurement of her love.
But one night, beneath the light of a full moon, he meets a man straddled upon a mighty horse. This elusive man is known in legend and folklore as The Alchemist.
The Alchemist is a man imbued with profound wisdom and mystical powers. He is reportedly over 300-years-old and can turn lead into gold.
He reminds the boy that his destiny is to find the treasure. That he must continue. If it is true love, Fatima will be waiting for him after his destiny is fulfilled.
Reluctantly, the boy continues his journey deeper into the desert accompanied by The Alchemist. But the desert is at war, and they are soon captured by Bedouin sentinels and accused of spying for the enemy.
For this crime, they are sentenced to death.
The Alchemist saves them temporarily by proclaiming that the boy is an Alchemist. He tells the general that if he wanted to, the boy could turn himself into the wind and destroy their entire camp. The general is intrigued! He wants to see this happen. He promises to spare their lives if it is done. He grants them three days.
But how does a shepherd boy from Spain turn himself into the wind?
Paulo Coelho says that he wrote “The Alchemist” in two weeks. It is almost hard to imagine that something so far-reaching could have been conjured up in two weeks time. He said it was his own journey that he was writing down, parabolically speaking.
The impact of “The Alchemist” comes from the realization that Santiago’s journey is Everyman’s journey. His story is our story. If we tap into the Soul of the World and dare to live out our destiny, we will discover that within us all is The Alchemist.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2017
