At different points of our life, we all seek inspiration from various things. Whether it is from visiting a new country or place, or from engaging in a performance to touch our heart. The feeling of being inspired is unparalleled to any other and makes you feel invincible. Setting goals and achieving them becomes a small feat when you are inspired because the inner energy of your body is controlled and positive, pushing you to conquer whatever you desire. Such is a feeling that I was in search of when I was recommended to read Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist.
Being unfamiliar with self-help and awe-inspiring books, The Alc
hemist was a completely different genre of novel that I had previously been used to. My usual taste in books is extreme, either chick-lit or completely Austen-Dickens genre. As you can imagine, when I started reading The Alchemist, I had psyched and geared myself for a completely new experience – which is what I had, however it was not what I had imagined.
For individuals going through a difficult period in their life, a novel like the The Alchemist can help them feel like everything is possible. That destiny is unchangeable and every individual will achieve their’s when they realize what their calling is. Coehlo writes an inspirational quotes and juxtaposes the desert life to different aspects to help individuals relate to the story.
However, I was mildly disappointed as I had built some strange and unachievable expectations from this book – an expectation to change my life. Nothing is specifically wrong with my life but I was seeking to gain perspective and inspiration, both of which I did not achieve as this is definitely not my genre. Facts and figures, proper story line and hard hitting text is what drives me to read, and this text lacked a strong storyline. I did enjoy this novel, surprisingly enough. I love Coehlo’s writing and admire him as an author who reached out to millions with his words – giving people hope and faith in something bigger and better in life.
My advice to anyone reading The Alchemist: it will change your life, but in a way that you least expected it to. For me, I realised that I do have hope, faith and direction in my life already therefore I did not have to read a text to find it. I was looking for something I already had and this book helped me realise that.
will definitely read it and I’ve rented your film recommendation Silver Linings for the weekend, so am looking forward to it
It’s a really good book about finding yourself, I really did enjoy it a lot.
I am so happy to hear that you rented it
I am pretty sure that you will like it, its an amazing film. Let me know what you think.
I am a huge Coelho fan. And Alchemist is one of the many best books by him. I love the way he succeeds in leaving hints about the reality without going overboard with it. x
He is one of the wisest authors around. You feel empowered and strong after reading his books – something you don’t get with many these days.
I totally agree with you. I’m looking forward to reading Aleph. Everyone said the book is fantastic!