.
Santiago is a young, adventurous shepherd who wanders the plains of Andalusia with his sheep in search of something
that is at first unclear to him. But it will take a series of grand events to explain to him his destiny; that and the emergence of the figures that light the way to the treasure that Santiago seeks.
Chief among these are the old King of Salem, who directs young Santiago on his way, a thief who tests his faith in his destiny to find his treasure, a crystal merchant who is a living reminder of what becomes to those who know their destinies and yet do not fulfill them and an Englishman who is seeking the figure after which Paulo Coelho''s book is named - The Alchemist. It is this last figure that may yet teach Santiago the most of all, namely that there are treasures worth more than gold and the Philosopher''s Stone put together.
In his journies, Santiago is put to the test as he travels from the plains of Andalusia through Africa and to the very pyramids of Egypt only to discover something that he could never have guessed. As the Arabs would say, his destiny is written. But there are things waiting for Santiago that he could never have imagined. Along the way he will learn to read the omens and speak the Language of the World, he will help win a battle, speak to the sun, become the wind and fall in love. Coelho''s young narrator is tested time and again as he is made to lose possessions in his search for his treasure and waylaid by what seem like detours on the path to his destiny but which may very well be something else as well, for there is a thread that links all the figures in Santiago''s voyage together and he knows only that it has something to do with the Alchemist.
Published: November 23, 2007
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