A must read . Review on The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho

''The Alchemist'' is a fine literary piece by the author ?Paulo Coelho?. In this book Coelho has wonderfully described the story of a boy called Santiago, who has a dream and the courage to follow it.

Dreams, symbols, signs, and adventure follow the reader like echoes of ancient wise voices in ''The Alchemist'', a novel that combines an atmosphere of medieval mysticism with the song of the desert. With this symbolic masterpiece Coelho states that we should not avoid our destinies, and urges people to follow their dreams, because to find our ''Personal Myth'' and our mission on Earth is the way to find ''God'', meaning happiness, fulfillment, and the ultimate purpose of creation.

After following ?the signs? the boy ventures into his personal Odysseus, a journey of exploration and self-discovery, symbolically searching for a hidden treasure located somewhere near the Pyramids of Egypt.

In the book, when Santiago decides to leave his place, the only advice his father has for him is ?Travel the world until you see that our castle is the greatest, and our women the most beautiful?. In his journey, Santiago sees the greatness of the world, and meets all kinds of exciting people like kings and alchemists. However, by the end of the novel, he discovers that ''treasure lies where your heart belongs'', and that the treasure was the journey itself, the discoveries he made, and the wisdom he acquired.

I can?t deal with the story because I don?t think I have the capacity to do it. It?s so beautifully written that it forces to think about our destiny and what we are heading. Are we brave enough like the shepherd or would we end up as one of the millions.

The story seems to tell us that life always gives us an option. We always end up choosing up the easiest and the safest option. Do we take life too seriously? I remember reading somewhere ?life without purpose is like a boat without destination?. I think it is worse than that. It does not reach anywhere. So maybe the story is about being truthful to one-self.

The Alchemist is a lovely novel full of optimism, hope, vision; It is a kind of novel that tells you that everything is possible in this world as long as you really want it to happen. That may sound like an oversimplified version of new-age philosophy and mysticism, but as Coelho states ''simple things are the most valuable and only wise people appreciate them''.

In the novel, the Alchemist himself states to Santiago when he appears before him in the form of an old kind that ?When you really want something, the whole universe conspires so that your wish comes true?. This is the core of the novel's philosophy and a motif that echoes behind Coelho's writing all through ''The Alchemist''. And isn?t it very true that the whole of the mankind wants to believe the lines said by the old kind to Santiago that ?the greatest lie in the world is that at some point we lose the ability to control our lives, and become the pawns of fate?. Perhaps, this is the secret of Coelho?s success: that he tells people what they wish to hear or that he tells them what they wish to achieve but never thought that possible could even be probable.

The novel also tells you that those who do not have enough courage to follow there dreams or the so called ?Personal Myth? are doomed to a life of emptiness, unfullfillment and misery. Fear of failure is the greatest obstacle to happiness.

It is interesting to see that Coelho presents the person who denies following his dream as the person who denies to see God, and that ''every happy person carries God within him''. However, only few people choose to follow the road that has been made for them, and find God while searching for their destiny, and their mission on earth.

It is also symbolic that Santiago finds his soul-mate, and the secrets of wisdom in the wilderness of the desert. The ''wilderness'' is a symbol that has been used by many great writers e.g.. Austen in ''Mansfield Park'', and Shakespeare in ''King Lear''. In the desert, Santiago meets his ''twin-soul'' and discovers that love is the core of existence and creation. As Coelho explains, when we love, we always try to improve ourselves, and that's when everything is possible. The subject of love inspires a beautiful lyricism in Coelho's writing: ?I love you because the whole universe conspired for me to come close to you.''

''The Alchemist'' is a novel that may appeal to everybody, because we can all identify with Santiago: all of us have dreams, and are dying for somebody to tell us that they may come true. The novel skillfully combines words of wisdom, philosophy, and simplicity of meaning and language, which makes it particularly readable and accounts for its bestselling status.

In the end I would say that reading this book is like sailing on a placid sea yet experiencing a strange turbulence in the heart. It?s a classic without being boring like most other classics and is a must buy for all who revere and adore quality written words. Don?t avert your eyes if you see this book anywhere, its an omen telling you, and your heart urging on ?Buy Me?.Buy M? Buy?Bu??.