A Review: Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist

My wife recently returned from a whirlwind trip to Thailand. She was only there for a little more than 3 days. The entire trip took 6 days (there and back again) and during the way there she read Paulo Coelho's "The Alchemist." When we had a chance to settle down, she gave the book to me and asked me to read it. Really read it--like now. My wife impressed on me the importance of reading the book, but she backed off and gave me the book and said that she thought I would really enjoy it. As I was nearly finished C. S. Lewis' "The Screwtape Letters," I finished that book and shot "The Alchemist" right up to the top of my reading list. I think it took me maybe three days to finish it. The book is very short (only about 170 pages), but on the way to work last Thursday I read the introduction by Coelho and knew his book would be the type of work that would mean a lot to me.

All my life I have studied the hero's journey and in my Masters of Arts thesis I student the female protagonists in Alice Walker's and Margaret Atwood's novel, showing how they struggled to find self-actualization and healing through telling their stories. Storytelling and its power is a central theme throughout my life. No matter it's the crazy fantasy stories I wrote when I was in grade school or my novel "Dorthea's Song." The power of a story and its importance is central to me as it's the realization that we have power as people. Myth and the power of our individual stories can catapult us to the top of finding healing and peace in our lives. Without our stories and collectively sharing them, humanity would wither and die (or so I believe).

So it's no wonder that I picked up "The Alchemist" and read the fable with a bright heart and eager mind. All of us, who choose to be awake, want to better ourselves. We want to be happy, to love and be loved and we want to find a way to deal with heartache and pain so that we can live happily and be free. Sounds simple right? In "The Alchemist," the shepherd, Santiago, renounces his life after he's had a vision of a great treasure he will find in Egypt. The boy, as he's known throughout the novel, goes on his hero's journey to find his treasure. Along the way he encounters much adversity, but he chooses never to give up, fighting and listening to the Language of the World along the way. The poetical feel of the novel is light and airy, like a magical fable, in which we're sitting around the fire, hearing Coelho tell us a story to pass the time. Whether we want to listen to the story, is up to us. At its core, the book is about each person struggling to find your own Personal Legend so that we can break on through to find our treasure and then realize that our inner self (our soul) is actually one with the Soul of the World.

Each of us has a path to walk in life and how often do we give up on our dreams because we have been told that it's impossible, that we're afraid that those who love us will be hurt if we abandon them, the fear of defeat and falling is too much for us and, finally (and most importantly) we self-sabotage our own attainment of our dreams because we're afraid of success. What would we do if we actually succeeded? Better to stay back and not reach our goal.

If you're looking for an uplifting read that will cause you to question the path you're taking in life and find some hope in the world, then read this book. My wife was right: It was good that I put everything aside and read it as quickly as I did. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and with the road I have been on, it's "an omen" for me that I am not alone. There are many voices in the world and mine is one of them. I am struggling on my journey to become the hero within (as sappy as that sounds in our jaded and modern world), but maybe it's good to believe in becoming a hero and in quests for we will blossom along the way.

Comments

[Vibram Five Fingers]

Hi,What a great post! Thanks for article. Everytime like to read you.Have a nice day!

[Vibram Five Fingers]

Hi,What a great post! Thanks for article. Everytime like to read you.Have a nice day!

[Vibram Five Fingers]

Hi,What a great post! Thanks for article. Everytime like to read you.Have a nice day!