The Alchemist - Paul Coelho

Advantages: Thought-provoking, some nice concepts, easy reading
Disadvantages: A fairly pedestrian story, weak characters

...book is published that changes the lives of its readers forever." That's a pretty impressive claim, and one that is echoed by the rest of the gushing praise on the back cover of The Alchemist. Coehlo's work is much-adored, and such was the level of esteem directed its way, I felt it would be tantamount to criminal neglect not to give it a go. After all, it's only a slim little fellow, so wasn't going to be heavy going, and anything that can condense ...
...something special. The tale acquaints us with Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd-boy who travels with his sheep around the country, and, as we meet him, is currently looking forward to returning to the village where he met a merchant's daughter a year ago, hoping no-one else has since asked for her hand. However, stopping at Tarifa, he meets a Gyspy woman who reads dreams, and imparts that which has been running through his head: A child is playing ... Read review

Advantages: Better than expected
Disadvantages: Still not that amazing

...mine recently. I recognised the title instantly - it’s one of those books that everyone seems to talk about, but not that many have read. He was given a copy by a friend of his, recommended it to his girlfriend, who went out and bought a copy, loaned a copy to another friend, who loved it, and then passed the copy on to me. Despite all those recommendations, I still wasn’t that attracted to it. I'm a heavy SciFi, fantasy and horror reader. Mainstream ...
...Still, I trusted the word of a fellow Douglas Adams fan and took a suspicious look at the back. The copyright date on this copy was 1988. The book is touted by The Express as being a story ‘that changes the lives of its readers forever’ - apparently over 20 million copies have been sold worldwide and it has been translated into 42 million languages. My first impression was that it wasn’t just a contemporary piece of rubbish, it was a pretentious, ... Read review

Advantages: None
Disadvantages: Absolute tripe of the lowest calibre

The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho, is billed as a modern classic, yet I find it difficult to discern why. It has the feel of a fable; from a time as hazy as the desert in which it is set, and carries the lessons on life one would expect from such a parable. The feelings of distant memory that it creates, however, fashion a gap between the book and the reader. It begins with Santiago, a shepherd boy, who gives up his customs to follow a dream he has, ...
...the way he meets a king, a crystal merchant, an Englishman, and an alchemist; all of whom, with their passing involvement, provide him with a piece of the spiritual jigsaw that is his life. Finally, when he arrives at the Egyptian pyramids, he learns a lesson in life that brings him happiness. The novel is short, and, while it gets its message across, a number of other things suffer. The characterisation is lean; everyone is faceless, ageless, and ... Read review

Advantages: There are a few lessons of life within this easy to read story.
Disadvantages: It's a very short book and is perhaps a little too simplistic.

...was guided by omens along the way. He eventually found what he was looking for and lived happily ever after. OK, so that's the plot of the book, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, taken care of. All I have to do now is give my opinion on whether I liked it or not. Easy peasy! Well did I? No, not really. The End. Wish everything in life was as simple as this. Must say the book has a nice orange cover, hmmm, what's this blurb on the back? 'Every few ...
...forever'. Really? And The Alchemist is one of them? 'Over 20 million copies have been sold worldwide' and it has 'already achieved the status of a modern classic'. Strewth! I hadn't noticed my life being changed. Mind you I did get my hair cut and styled on Saturday, so have a bit of a new look. Bother! Wonder what I missed when I read it? There I was thinking I was a good little reader. I'll soon flick through it again - there are only 177 pages ... Read review

Advantages: Inspirational, encouraging, delightful
Disadvantages: Don't expect a novel as such

...as a manual for life, The Alchemist has become a modern classic since it was first published in 1988. The genius of the story is in its simplicity and its relevance to everybody – it is so reminiscent of a legend that it’s easy to lose track of the fact that it was actually written just 2 decades or so ago. The tale follows the adventures of Santiago, a Spanish shepherd boy who is content with his life but intrigued when a gypsy woman tells him that ...
...will discover his destiny at the pyramids. After much thinking, Santiago decides to pursue his destiny. As he is travelling across the desert, he meets an Englishman who is searching for a mysterious person who knows the secrets of the universe: The Alchemist. The Alchemist is rumoured to be able to turn base metal into gold and to produce the elixir of life, both using the legendary Philosophers Stone (very familiar to those of us who read Harry ... Read review