Rashique Uzzaman

Book Review : The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho I really don’t like reading books but due to this current situation I had to be in the house for 24 hours and due to this I had lots of free time so I did not know what to do.So,one of my friend asked to read this book so I started reading it.The book is lovely and an inspirational masterpiece.The theme is about finding one’s destiny or purpose in life. Plot: The story is about a Shepherd boy from Spain whose name is Santiago.He can read and wants to travel. He goes into town one day to sell some of his flock and encounters a tramp-king and a gypsy woman. They urge him to ‘follow his omens’ and leave the world he knows. The gypsy points him toward the pyramids of Egypt, where she says he will find a treasure. Crazily, he believes her, sells his flock and sets sail. A thief in Tangier robs him of his savings.But, strangely, Santiago is not devastated, apprehending a greater feeling of knowing that he is on the right path. He is now living a different life, in which every day is new and satisfying. He keeps reminding himself of what he was told in the market before he left: ‘When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.’ What I liked: This book left a big impression on me.It’s almost as if, while you’re reading it, you can imagine your grandfather telling it to you as if it’s a tale from his childhood. I always thought that novels were a waste of time because you never learn any “real life” lessons from them, but this book finally proved me wrong. The story itself is special.There were a few times where I seriously couldn’t sleep, reading impatiently in the middle of the night to find out what happened next it was as if I am watching web series like The Family Man to know what will happen next. Now you might ask, what is an alchemist? From what I understood, an alchemist is like a magician chemist who can turn any metal into gold. But throughout the story and the search for the alchemist, I felt like this was more a metaphor for life in general. If we follow our own “Personal Legends” we can perform the same magic – turn our ordinary lives into gold, as long as we believe in the journey and don’t give up on what we believe is our destiny. If you’re looking for inspiration, this story brings it in droves.