Books : The Alchemist

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by: Paulo Coelho

: The Alchemist

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Binding: Audio CD
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780007175253
Format: Audiobook
ISBN: 0007175256
Label: Thorsons
Manufacturer: Thorsons
Number Of Items: 3
Publication Date: July 12, 2004
Publisher: Thorsons
Sales Rank: 353340
Studio: Thorsons



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Editorial Review:

Product Description:
Every few decades a book is published that changes the lives of its readers forever. This is such a book -- a magical fable about learning to listen to your heart, read the omens strewn along life's path and, above all, follow your dreams. Released on CD for the first time to celebrate the 10th anniversary of this modern classic. This is the magical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who dreams of travelling the world in search of a worldly treasure as fabulous as any ever found. From his home in Spain he journeys to the markets of Tangiers, and from there into the Egyptian desert, where a fateful encounter with the alchemist awaits himWith Paulo's visionary blend of spirituality, magical realism and folklore, The Alchemist is a story with the power to inspire nations and change people's lives. At last this charming tale of discovery, meaning and personal growth is available on CD. The audio enhances the fairy-tale quality of the story and is suitable for listeners of all ages. It is as much a motivational/personal development book as it is a great story.

Amazon.com Review:
Like the one-time bestseller Jonathan Livingston Seagull, The Alchemist presents a simple fable, based on simple truths and places it in a highly unique situation. And though we may sniff a bestselling formula, it is certainly not a new one: even the ancient tribal storytellers knew that this is the most successful method of entertaining an audience while slipping in a lesson or two. Brazilian storyteller Paulo Coehlo introduces Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who one night dreams of a distant treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. And so he's off: leaving Spain to literally follow his dream.

Along the way he meets many spiritual messengers, who come in unassuming forms such as a camel driver and a well-read Englishman. In one of the Englishman's books, Santiago first learns about the alchemists--men who believed that if a metal were heated for many years, it would free itself of all its individual properties, and what was left would be the "Soul of the World." Of course he does eventually meet an alchemist, and the ensuing student-teacher relationship clarifies much of the boy's misguided agenda, while also emboldening him to stay true to his dreams. "My heart is afraid that it will have to suffer," the boy confides to the alchemist one night as they look up at a moonless night.

"Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself," the alchemist replies. "And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second's encounter with God and with eternity." --Gail Hudson



Customer Reviews
Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars - Very Interesting Read
I don't read many books but i found this one very interesting to read. Enjoy.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - comes to just one word. 'yourself'
I loved this book. It took months to actually get into the book, i heard about it, and tried reading it, but gave up. But with a free afternoon, i sat down and opened up something deep down inside. Beautiful book, beautiful story. Where someone actually got to write down the words of feeling deep within someone it can take a life time to understand. A book for life..


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Probably the best Story ever Written.........
I love Paolo Coelho's narrative style........
his writing is not just simple but it also has some humor........
this book is such a nice book.....
and GOD BLESS for such a SUPERB Ending!!!!!!!
probably one of the best ENDINGS a BOOK can EVER HAVE!!!!!!!!!!!!


Rating: 3 out of 5 stars - Personal believes does not make universal truths!
The main theme--'Everyone has a Personal Legend, when one wants it badly enough, the universe will conspire to help one achieve it.' It's insprational reading. But according to the book, that was not just an idea, but a law. That--is very hard for most readers to agree to.


Rating: 1 out of 5 stars - New-agey, self-help twaddle
There isn't anything in this book that you couldn't get from the output of any number of self-help "gurus". First, the author couldn't even just have a plot being about following one's dream, calling, etc; it had to be one's "Personal Legend" (complete with initial caps). Second, the metaphysics doesn't have anything that one couldn't get from Obi-Wan Kenobi's take on the Force. Third, the characters are one-dimensional. One doesn't get the sense of the shepherd being driven by something, despite the fact that his leaving the seminary in order to herd sheep is motivated by wanderlust. Finally, the plot itself is contrived at many points. For example, the idea of a former seminary student and shepherd making a success of himself as a merchant.

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