Silke sent me a copy of The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho, in a very nice package of presents recently, and I have just finished reading it. If I didn't write so many sonnets all the time, I would have read all 167 pages at one go; it was that fascinating. But I had a lot of writing to do, so I broke it up into several parts, always looking forward to reading it.

It's a beautiful tale, sort of like a legend or a fable, yet it is rich in texture and detail. It really is a very fast read, very compelling. It would be a good book for reading on the beach or in a park now that the weather is getting nice in Europe and America. There is a certain refreshing, restorative quality to the book, probably because of its archetypal character, its sense of mythos. There is much philosophical truth to be gleaned, too; I have taken many good things from the pleasant experience of reading it into the rest of my life. In my case, I already believed these things, but the book helped crystallize and focus those beliefs, those precepts which it so kindly teaches. The book is wise, warm, and suffused with love.

I highly recommend The Alchemist; I know our Mind-Brain members and friends would enjoy it. I read it in English, but you can read it in other tongues as well.

More (good) books written by:Paulo Coelho.


~Eleven Minutes


~Warrior of the Light


~The Fifth Mountain

Hi again! As a follow-up to my earlier post, I'd like to mention that, after I finished The Alchemist, I recommended it to my eighteen year-old son, and he is enjoying it every bit as much as I did. This was also the case with Life of Pi. Both are really wonderful books, and very gratifying to read.

Happy reading, everyone!

FIAT LUX

To tell you the truth The Alchemist is a really hot book.
It depends on the mind to interpret what you read, and that book is so simple but so amazing written that
I couldnt put it down until I finished it.

it is a good read.. i found many fascinating things. hmm i was wondering, what kind of ethics does the alchemist by paulo coelho focus on and is sort of an issue in todays society?