Alchemist, The 25th Anniversary

by Paulo Coelho

• ISBN10: 0062390627
• ISBN13: 9780062390622
• Publish Date: 9 September 2014 (first published 18 August 1993)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Inc
• Imprint: HarperCollins
• Edition: 25th Anniversary ed.
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 208
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.com.au/9780062390622

Reviews

[neddieb]

Damn I can’t believe I read this whole book in one sitting. It was an easy read and a very uplifting one. It just talks about a boy who dreams of going to the pyramids of Egypt to find a hidden treasure that he dreamt of.

I think this is a great story that explains how anyone who wants to reach their goals, will, if they don’t give up. The story speaks off sacrifices, challenges, obstacles, and paths that you may cross and have to overcome, but no matter what life brings you, you deal with it, move on and reach your dream/goal.

I think the story was very entertaining and fluid. I liked the characters the main character dealt with. It was a cute story in a way.

[MurderByDeath]

I bought this book while in Amsterdam for a couple of reasons:  The title first caught my attention, and the friend I was with said he'd read it and thought it was... ok.  But mostly because of the title.    Since buying it I've read a lot of reviews that say it's... ok.  Which is why it sat on my TBR for so long.   Now that I've read it, I understand why a lot of people might think it's just ok.  Reading it, I'm left with comparisons that include fairy tales and Pilgrim's Progress; allegory plays a big part in this tale, although the message isn't all that hidden.  And the author doesn't even try to hide his, or his characters', faiths or spirituality; it's not preachy, but God and Allah are at the root of the plot.   Still, it's beautifully written, and well translated.  The allegorical nature of the story and the third person POV kept me from really being invested in what happened to anyone, but I did appreciate the truly omnipotent and omnipresent role the author gave to God.  He never tried to restrict the deity's role to just a traditional Christian or a traditional Islamic one; when he claims God is everywhere, he doesn't go about contradicting himself.  My appreciation for this refreshing lack of hypocrisy went a long way to overcoming my ambivalence about the fate of the characters, and elevated my appreciation of the book to a notch above 'ok'.     If you prefer your spiritualism to be deity free, you're not going to like this book.  If that's less important to you and you're intrigued by the question of "why are we here?", this might be worth a look.

[journalingirl]

I enjoyed this book a lot, the bits about exploring and reading omens and that sort of thing. That really spoke to me. The bits about god weren't as appealing to me, but that's what the author wanted to express so it was there.

[Bianca]

Because I don’t live in either my past or my future. I’m interested only in the present. If you can concentrate always on the present, you’ll be a happy man. You’ll see that there is life in the desert, that there are stars in the heavens, and that tribesmen fight because they are part of the human race. Life will be a party for you, a grand festival, because life is the moment we’re living right now.

[Hillary]

http://www.adventuresinneverneverland.com/2013/02/13/the-alchemist/

[ibeforem]

I thought this was a sweet fable, but not exactly life-changing, as so many other reviews would have you believe. Maybe it’s because the lesson you’re supposed to take from it, essentially “Pay attention and follow your heart”, is nothing new. It really isn’t any more complicated than that.

I did think it was well-written, if repetitive at times, and I was interested in Santiago’s journey. But all-in-all, nothing about it surprised me. I’m glad I finally read it.

"I’m like everyone else–I see the world in terms of what I would like to see happen, not what actually does."

[Michael @ Knowledge Lost]

I would consider Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist a light read as the language in the book is simple and easy to read. I’m not saying this is a bad thing and I understand that because it was translated from Portuguese it may have lost some of the elements. I know Paulo Coelho likes to write in a simple way, he does this so well that you don’t often notice as you are too busy wrapped up in the spirit of the book. The story is quite simply about love, opportunity and chasing your dreams, done in an inspirational way. Well worth reading when you need something light.

What did you think of this book? What did you get out of it?

[inlibrisveritas]

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho can be described as inspirational fiction. Also others have called it a life-changer and an eye-opener. Overall the book is very short and very quick in pace, so it's not surprising that you may finish it in one sitting. The length does not detract from the story however as everything is answer and there are no plot holes. The story reads some what along the lines of a fairy tale type of novel but I doubt that the younger readers would really enjoy it all that much (ages 15 and younger I mean). The over all plot is one of a religious and spiritual experience for a young boy who wishes to seek out his of his life's treasure and so he sets out from his home country to those foreign to him. Of course as typical with fairy tales there are trails to over come, love that is found, bad guys to fear, and the treasure to find; and also as typical with modern fairy tales it ends happily.

I gave this book a 3 out of 5. I'm not sure what made me pick up this book really except that the cover nagged me in the back of my mind. I'm not really a religious person and can be what is consider a pessimistic so you can see why it gets only a 3 from me where as many people will give it 5's for it's message. I do agree that the book is very good and well written, and that the message is one that people should take to heart even if they are not all that spiritual. However I guess you can say I was disappointed in it, i suppose I was expecting something different. I think this is the kind of book where you either love it or it is just another okay book. If you do give it a try I'd suggest borrowing it from the library instead of buying it seeing as how short it is, unless you just like to have you're own personal copy.

[jamiereadthis]

Oy, ouch, awful.

[Eve1972]

Very good read!