Book Review : The Alchemist

After taking break from blogging I’m back again with something different that I always wanted to do, it’s a book review…

So I got to read a novel after a long time and I realized I could write a review on what I just experienced.

So here it is!

The book I’m gonna be reviewing is “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho.

About the Book

The book is titled as “The Alchemist” and as written on the cover, is a “A fable about following your dreams”.

The book has around 200 pages written in simple English.

The author of the book is Paulo Coelho and it’s published by HarperCollins in 1988.

The Story

The story revolves around the journey of a boy named Santiago. The book has a pretty cool beginning and the basic idea behind the story is the importance of following one’s dreams.

The author explains this idea well in many ways like the protagonist leaving his home and family to fulfill his dream of travelling.

There’s also these various characters who never thought of pursuing their dream and how their life is different than that of the boy.

He learns from everything and is also able to read. He has recurring dreams about some treasure, a gypsy woman tells him he can find it at the pyramids in Egypt.

This quote is repeated many times in the book, which says that, “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it”.

This is depicted by the repeating occurance of omens which they says is a sign from the universe.

The universe wants us to live our dreams.

The story is inspiring as there are many such quotes that make a person look into themselves and try to understand their dreams and goals.

Then there’s this old man who claims to be a king, tells him that he should go find the treasure he saw in his dream.

My favorite paragraph of the story is when this old king tells Santiago about a book:

“It ends up saying that everyone believes the world’s greatest lie.”

“What’s the world’s greatest lie?” the boy asked completely surprised.

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

The boy then finally sells his sheeps and leaves to find the treasure but the twist is when he gets robbed, felt like he won’t go ahead but he then he finds a job where he earns enough money to move ahead.

This again highlights the idea that when we really want to do something then the universe creates ways to make us achieve it.

The crystal merchant he works with also has a dream but he doesn’t wanna fulfill it as he says, “I’m afraid that if my dream is realized, I’ll have no reason to go on living.”

Which in some way we all think. Santiago then joins a caravan going to Egypt.

He finds a fellow traveller who’s an Englishman and wishes to meet an Alchemist.

At the oasis he finds a girl whom he falls in love with.

All this is described in a great way.

He even decides to leave his treasure for her, but he is told that:

“You must understand that love never keeps a man from pursuing his destiny. If he abandons that pursuit, it’s because it wasn’t true love … the love that speaks the Language of the World.”

Really liked this one.

He then does find his treasure but with a twist in the end. But the ending is amazing.

There is the constant use of the idea of “Soul of the World” and “Language of the World” which I think depicts the oneness of the universe. Some more inspiring quotes in the book are:

“To realize one’s destiny is a person’s only obligation.”

“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself.”

“People are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of.“

“When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.“

“Everything that happens once can never happen again. But everything that happens twice will surely happen a third time.”

About the Author

The author of “The Alchemist” Paulo Coelho was born in Brazil and is one of the most widely read and loved authors of the world.

He’s the author of some other famous books like “Eleven Minutes”, “The Valkyries”, “The Pilgrimage” etc.

My Thoughts

What’s my favorite part of the book?

There are many. I’ve mentioned one above.

What’s my least favorite part of the book?

The girl he likes once but when meets another there’s no thought of the first one. That is kinda not that cool.

Who’s my favourite character of the story?

I’d say, the Alchemist.

Did I like the book?

Yes, I sure did. It is worth reading.

Would I recommend this book? If yes, to whom?

I’d sure recommend this book for all those who have a dream and those who are looking for an inspiration.

There! That’s my review of the book “The Alchemist”.

Do tell me if you’ve read it and how you liked it. Or if you have any questions, suggestions etc.

I’d love to hear from you!

Thank You for reading!

Irene

Note: This is not a promotional or sponsored post I just wrote it out of my own interest.