Book Wednesday

The Alchemist
Paulo Coelho  (1988)

I first discovered The Alchemist while spending a summer in Bangladesh. I was staying with a family of doctors who worked at a Christian Mission Hospital in one of the cities. It was a wonderful experience, and I was exposed to many new sights and insights. Since we did not have constant access to all the modern distractions of  TVs, computers, and video games; we took advantage of the time to read. The doctors had quite an extensive collection of books at their home and they recommended I try out this book. I am very glad that they did.

This book is very difficult to describe. Its tag-line reads, "A Fable about Following your Dream." I would say that is a pretty accurate summation of the book's essence. The basic plot revolves around the conversations between a young shepherd and the enigmatic sage he meets while out in the desert. It is a pretty philosophical book that also dabbles in mysticism. I did not consider it too cheesy and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the story and characters. It is a relatively short novel, and I suggest you take a day or two to read it.

Paulo Coelho wrote The Alchemist in Portuguese and it was his second published book. Since its initial publication it has been translated into 67 languages (netting it the Guinness World Record for most translated book by a living author) and sold more than 65 million copies. I have read a few of his other books, but this is the only one I actually enjoyed. His other books veer too far into New Agey cheesiness for my tastes. Coelho is a very intriguing author and it sounds like he has experienced life to its fullest. He has a unique outlook on the world and he is not afraid to express his views. He appears to be very tech savvy and his website has a multitude of multimedia offerings. You can even follow him on Twitter and Facebook. I suggest reading The Alchemist, but if you enjoy it, read his other books with caution.