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Paulo Coelho: The Alchemist

A

ALI

New Member
I have not long since finished reading this book, i thought it was a beautiful piece of storytelling. I cannot say if it is worthy of its position at the top of the BBC’s 100 best books poll (I have not read many of the other books from the list) but I can understand why it is loved by so many. I only wish I had read it sooner.

I paid a visit to Amazon to read the ‘customer reviews’ to find out what others had made of ‘The Alchemist’. I was surprised by what I found.
As I had anticipated there was plenty of five star reviews, but it was the content I found in many of the one star reviews that surprised me. Some of the words used to describe the book by reviewers were “Shallow – Clap Trap - Tedious – Half Baked – Dismally Written – Pathetic”. I fail to understand how this book managed to leave such a sour taste with some people.

I’m sure there are a few on here who have read ‘The Alchemist’, I am interested to hear what the forums members thought of this book, good or bad!
 
I'm sorry if I disappoint you, but I didn't like this book at all. I read it few years ago, so unfortunately I'm not able to comment on the details of the book. I'll try to write about my overall impression.

What annoys me most about the book is that Coelho is not one of the great writers. It's certainly not a drawback in itself - the problem is that he pretends to be one. I mean, that probably many readers who enjoy his prose are sure that they are reading a piece of literature from the highest level, while they are not.

Next matter: style of writing, which could be called by some people "magical", or "methaphorical". From what I remember, lots of the maxims made no sense to me, as a result of trying to be too sophisticated. It led to the point where the maxims became incomprehensible and empty. Besides, Coelho's way of writing sounds for me like an incompetent cliche of Saint-Exupery's style.

Not to mention the fact that many of Coehlo's pieces of advice and "golden thoughts" are so obvious and well-known. There was nothing surprising or catching my attention in his novel. No deeper message in an original form, which I expected.
 
The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho

Discussion started by Ali in another thread:

"I thought The Alchemist was a great read. I found it to be one of those rare books that i just could not put down. I see Coehlo's writing has come in for some criticism, and also the books ending. I have no complaints about either. The story ended exactly as it should have in my opinion. The last three lines of the book could bring a tear to a glass eye.

The Alchemist is definate'ly a book i will read again!

Have you read it Murphy? If so what did you make of it?
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I read it but was disappointed with it. Luckily it was only two hours out of my life. It wasn't absolutely terrible, but I think I was expecting more. I can't even pinpoint the parts of it that annoyed me, it was just the feeling I came away with at the end of the book and, instead of a 'soul changing' type of experience I had expected it to be I just shrugged and thought 'why didn't I just sit in Waterstones and read it?'

I can't see me ever wanting to read it again.

Mxx
 
The Alchemist is the first 'self-help' book i have read. Perhaps if i had read others of its kind before-hand i may not have taken to it as i did. But, it was all new to me, it was very different to anything i had read before.
To be truthful, the book could have had the opposite effect on me, i could easily have laughed of a lot of the 'wisdom' that it preached, but i choose to go with it. By the end of the book, i wanted to be that man, or should i say, ‘the boy'.


I have heard Life of Pi fits into the same 'self-help-book' category. I may be wrong about that though, I guess I will find out soon enough. If it is, it will be interesting to see how they compare!
 
Perhaps the simplicity was lost on me then. I have only read the first 15 pages of Pi but I already like it more than the Alchemist.
I can't stress enough that I didn't hate the Alchemist though, and gave it 3 out of 5 golden eggs when I rated it, it was just missing something that I can't put my finger on.

Mxx
 
If I may put a word in your Alchemist discussion - don't you think that Coehlo doesn't know himself what he wants to say? Think of the main plot:
the hero gets into a long journey to look for a hidden treasure, travels for a whole book only to find out that the treasure was all the time just where he lived...
So what is the conclusion? Should we be able to develop ourselves in given circumstances and notice the real treasures that can be acquired just where we live, or, on the contrary, should we leave our homeland to be able to understand ourselves and find happiness?

Unclear for me.
 
*note to self - must create alchemist topic and move posts*

By the time I got to the end of the book I thought the message was that you already have what it is you seek, but it is not until you show you are willing to make the effort and personal journey to seek it that you will find it.

However, why then did the Alchemist decide to talk with Santiago and not with the Englishman? Is it because you have to seek what you truely want for yourself with a little help from others, or is it because you only find what you truely want if you search areas that you did not seek in the first place?

I have more questions, and this book obviously invoked something in me...but was still lacking that certain...thing.

Mxx
 
Never give up hope, hold onto your dreams, everything is possible!



Murphy, this is what I make of it:

‘The Alchemist’ did speak to the Englishman, they were good friends, he attempted to help him as best he could!
The Englishman was a seeker with a one track mind, greed was his motivation, that appears to be the reason the Alchemist did not speak to him. Sure he was going after what he thought were his dreams, to turn metal into gold….. but was this really what he wanted, did he ever stop to listen to his heart?
Alchemy was not for him, not in his current state of mind, he was not ready. He did not truly understand what he wanted…….. he thought he wanted to be rich, from all the gold he would make if he ever figured out how. If he had stopped and listened to his heart, try to understand what it wanted, perhaps he would have realised that money cannot buy true happiness!

So what is the conclusion? Should we be able to develop ourselves in given circumstances and notice the real treasures that can be acquired just where we live, or, on the contrary, should we leave our homeland to be able to understand ourselves and find happiness?
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I don’t think the overall message is to travel, or to stay put. I think the message to us all is ‘listen to your heart!’, and let it be your guide!

That may sound cheesy, but I think that is the message. You only live once, so listen to your heart and live your life accordingly!……….. live your life, don’t sit back and live it out!
 
Originally posted by murphyz

By the time I got to the end of the book I thought the message was that you already have what it is you seek, but it is not until you show you are willing to make the effort and personal journey to seek it that you will find it.
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If you already have all what you need, what's the point in seeking it? It's then only a waste of time. Becoming aware of what you have and appreciating it would be a faster and wiser solution.

Some people believe that human's happiness is nearby (Confucjusz, for example). No seeking then - be able to live merrily just where you are, make most of the place and its possibilities, be aware that the grass in not greener on the other side. Others prefer seeking as a way of finding happiness, crossing the boudaries of their abilities, changes. To my mind, Coehlo shows both ideas, but doesn't state which one is the true one, which one is the key to achieving real happiness. The result: no message, but mess.
 
Ali's message makes me want to read this book. Murphy's and Idun's comments then make me think I shouldn't bother. Would anyone like to try and pull me one way or the other. I'm certainly interested in books about how to make the most of life; I also like to be entertained. I don't like books that begin with great promise, often in the form of a good idea, only to peter out half way through and ultimately reach a disappointing destination. Bearing those things in mind, am I likely to enjoy 'The Alchemist'?
 
I would suggest reading it, because there are very few books I would not ask people to read - especially as we all take something different away from it. When I came to the Alchemist I was expecting something more, something that would be profound and soul changing as many people before me had claimed it to be. Like many films that you see, the Alchemist, for me, did not live up to the hype that had surrounded it.

I prefer coming to a book that I know little about and don't know what I am meant to feel about it when I read it. If I am told how others have felt, especially on a mass scale. then I expect to feel the same and I am disappointed if I don't.

It's not a bad novel, and the chances are you will enjoy it, and look at it from a different perspective than I do.

Let us know if you do read it and what you think of it.

Mxx
 
Originally posted by murphyz
#I would suggest reading it, because there are very few books I would not ask people to read - especially as we all take something different away from it.

...I prefer coming to a book that I know little about and don't know what I am meant to feel about it when I read it. If I am told how others have felt, especially on a mass scale. then I expect to feel the same and I am disappointed if I don't.
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Thanks for the advice. I often find that books that have a deep effect on other leave me stone cold. If I do have a go, I'll let you know what I think.
 
David,
you may always read this book to know by yourself why you shouldn't have bothered to read it.;)

O.K., I'm a bit too critical towards the Alchemist. I've read numerous worse books than this one. My friend is literally in love with all Coelho's works (which leads to her underlining the most beautiful phrases in his books) so you truly may like it. In my opinion, it's good to read a piece of anyone's work, to be able to assess it by yourself.
 
Originally posted by murphyz
I prefer coming to a book that I know little about and don't know what I am meant to feel about it when I read it. If I am told how others have felt, especially on a mass scale. then I expect to feel the same and I am disappointed if I don't.
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Although not for me on this occassion, i do agree with what you are saying. I actually surprised myself by taking to The Alchemist. The jargon on the front and back covers should be enough to put anyone off..... lol

One thing that really annoys me is when the synopsis on the back cover reveals to much. Or where the inside pages of the book quotes praise from various newspapers etc and again reveals more information than you would have wished for. According to Quentin Crewe of the Daily Mail "The wild passion that is evoked in the first hundred pages of this amazing book (Birdsong) is among the most stirringly erotic he has read in years" I just started reading Birdsong yesterday, i am on page 48 at present and i could have done without reading that quote.

I have also found myself avoiding watching parts of the BBC's Big Read programmes. For example, i knew i was going to be reading Birdsong soon enough, so i did not tune in to hear what William Hague had to say about the book. I have been meaning to read Lord of the Flies also, but a comment i picked up on the BBC's Top 100 show has been putting me off. Apperently Piggy dies, and i got the impression that this is one of the pivotal moments of the book.
This works both ways though, i really enjoyed listening to what Ruby Wax (not one of my favourite people) had to say about Catcher in the Rye. I did enjoy the book, though i do not believe it has a place in the top 21, but it was hard not to be moved by the passion Ruby Wax showed for the novel.
 
I left the room when they were talking about His Dark Materials last week so, yes, I agree.

Mxx
 
I got a copy of the The Alchemist as a Christmas present. I'm about half way through. It reads easily. There seems to be a lot of symbolism in it, but so much so I rather get the feeling its one of those books you could read more into than the author ever intended.

I'll comment further when I reach the end. Assuming it is my destiny to read this to the end and that I am not tricked into exchanged it for something else first! (If you've read it, you'll get that.)
 
Finished. So, what do I think? I'm not really sure what I'm meant to conclude, except perhaps that there are no easy answers to achieving our destiny in life. I've been much more disappointed by the way in which other books have turned out. Perhaps this one was just too short to start annoying me? I'd probably be inclined to read more by Coelho. "Veronika Decides to Die" sounds promising, title notwithstanding.
 
see, after reading the Alchemist I have been reluctant to read more by him - although not sure why. I think it was more the story and not his writing style that I disliked, so I am being very prejudiced in my views. If you do read anymore, please let us know what it's like so I can perhaps reconsider my views :)

Mxx
 
i read the novel last year and.... i was disappointed. i think i was expecting too much.. but the plot was okay. i also made a book report for this, and i only got a 90%. lol i wasn't able to say much about the novel. that's why.
 
Originally posted by murphyz
see, after reading the Alchemist I have been reluctant to read more by him - although not sure why. I think it was more the story and not his writing style that I disliked, so I am being very prejudiced in my views. If you do read anymore, please let us know what it's like so I can perhaps reconsider my views :)

Mxx
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same here. a friend of mine has two books of his. maybe i should go ask her if they're way better than the alchemist. don't worry, i'll let you know. :)
 
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