The Alchemist
Written by Paulo Coelho
Illustrated by Dina Chandra
Reviewed by Ali A. (age 15)
"The Alchemist” was initially written in Portuguese but since has been translated into 56 different languages; therefore it won a Guinness World Record for the most translated book by a living author. It sold more than 65 million copies in more than 150 countries making it one of the bestselling books in history.
"The Alchemist” is a story about a Spanish shepherd, Santiago, who went on a journey to fulfill his personal legend and find treasures. Santiago passes through difficulties on his way, falls in love and makes many friends.
Being a novel written in philosophical language, it has a great affect on readers. The book includes many deep and meaningful quotes which can be easily memorized and be used as a way of living your life. For people who have fallen into a depression and need to find a way out, this book can be a compass and a reliable guide.
This book made a great impact on me. Not only because of the plot but because of the quotes the author used. The quotes in this book were ones that everyone can understand in their own way. For example, “And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”
This book really gets you hooked. When I started to read it the book seemed really weird. The plot was too complicated and sounded meaningless. After reading some chapters I realized I couldn't stop reading it.
The Alchemist, in my opinion, is really easy to be read. It can be read during holidays, trips, airplane flights. It can be read really fast without getting tired.
I really recommend this book to readers over the age of 14. This book is a bit complicated. Even if children younger than 14 will be able to read it they won't really understand the message that the author is sharing.