Literature: Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist

“‘You don’t even have to understand the desert: all you have to do is contemplate a simple grain of sand, and you will see in it all the marvels of creation.’”-the alchemist to Santiago, in Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist (1993)

Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist was the book that packed for last week’s Utah trip.  In my tent at Arches National Park (and then in various sites near Moab), I bundled up at night in my down sleeping bag, flicked on my headlamp, and flipped pages with gloved hands. I haven’t read a more simply beautiful book in a long time.  The Alchemist is a little story about a shepherd boy named Santiago who sells his flock to pursue his Personal Legend.  That pursuit takes him on a journey from his home in Spain to Egypt, where he hopes to find a treasure buried near the Pyramids.  Along the way, he encounters a man who claims to be a king, a Gypsy woman, a merchant, an Englishman, and—finally—the alchemist.  These people each share lessons with Santiago that enable him to fulfill his quest.  Love, danger, and suspense keep readers wrapped up in Santiago’s story until its unexpected end. I am not surprised that this book has been translated into fifty-six languages and sold over twenty million copies.  It contains truths about love and about life that resonate with us:  the living.  In a way, this little story becomes the big story of us all.  Some of this book’s gems:

“It’s the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary; only wise men are able to understand them.” “…when you can’t go back, you have to worry only about the best way of moving forward.” “When you want something, all the universe conspires to help you achieve it.”  “The closer one gets to realizing his Personal Legend, the more that Personal Legend becomes his true reason for being.” “‘You must understand that love never keeps a man from pursuing his Personal Legend.’” “…our life stories and the history of the world were written by the same hand.” “Remember that wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure.”