Title The Alchemist
Author Paulo Coelho
Year Published 1992
Kind of Book Fiction/Spiritual
How strongly I recommend it 8/10
My Impressions This book is definitely Oprah Winfreyish and new wave spiritual, but in a good way. Some of the prose is cheesy, but overall the writing is genuine and moving. A story about the pursuit of one's purpose written as a tale of shepherd boy in search of his "Personal Legend".
Date Read circa 2016, July 2020
Questions Author is Trying to Answer
Should you answer the call to adventure?
Should you stop following your dream to be with a woman or man?
Where is it that you will find what it is you are looking for?
How do we learn the things we need to learn?
Practical Takeaways
Always have a dream A: "It's the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting"
Travel now (while you're young)
Choose what you want to have over what you have become accustomed to
Follow your personal legend through to its conclusion
Go for what your heart yearns for A: you can always go back to doing what you are doing now "I can always go back to being a shepherd"
(writing tip) Instead of telling the reader what to do, have a wise old man tell another character what to do in your book A: the reader will do what you say without thinking you are telling them what to do
Don't abandon your quest for a girl
Don't think about what you've left behind
Keep listening to what your heart has to say
Don't give in to your fears
Go to the girl after you've received your personal legend
Favorite Quotes
Every blessing ignored becomes a curse.
Men dream more about coming home than about leaving.
Big Ideas
The Alchemist's Father Never went out on an adventure and learned to bury the regret
God can be found in nature easier than in Church
Having a dream that might come true is what makes life interesting and worthwhile
It is easier to see what others need to do than what we need to do ourselves
As people age they doubt that they can achieve their purpose in life
Story of a man who wanted to travel when he was young, so he became a banker and got so caught up in his career that he never left his hometown
Some people prefer just dreaming about something to actually attaining it
Because
They are afraid that actually attaining their goal will be a disapointment
And
They feel that if they achieve their dream, then they'll have nothing to motivate them
Some search for their personal legend in books, others in experiencing the world via travel
Things are hardest right before you succeed
Everything can be seen in everything
The Man is the woman's personal legend, but the woman can not be the mans
If you sacrifice your purpose for a woman, you'll be happy for a year, then you will be haunted by not pursuing your purpose and become restless
Every search begins with beginner's luck and end's with the victor being severely tested
The darkest hour of night comes right before the dawn
Even though the Journey ends where it began, the hero must leave. It is not the same if he never leaves
Life is generous to those who pursue their personal legend
In order to achieve a dream you cannot be afraid of failure
The fear of the thing is often times worse than the thing itself (in this case fear of suffering is worse than suffering)
We have to choose between something we have grown accustomed to and something we want to have
You can always go back to what you're doing now, so you might as well take a chance on what it is you really want to do
When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he had never dreamed of when he first made the decision
If you love someone let them get, and if they come back then its how you know
Fear of failure keeps people from starting
Women will ultimately be unhappy if the man abandons his mission for her
Real love from a woman will never keep a man from pursuing his purpose