The Alchemist

I'm almost caught up blogging about the books I've read (of course, just when I'm "almost" caught up I finish another book which puts me further behind)! This was our book club book for May, and it was a nice, light book to start the summer with. In fact, it was a book I've read before, and based on some of the notes I made in the margins, I was able to determine that I read it sometime around my junior year of college (I won't specify how long ago that was, but let's just say it's been awhile). The other thing I was able to determine from the notes I left in the margins? This is a great book to be read and re-read because you can find meaning in it for all times in your life. Some of the things I had noted when I initially read it were far less meaningful this time around (in fact, there were some that I was shocked I had ever found significant), and there were plenty more things that I was surprised to find I hadn't commented on the first time through.

In short, the book is about pursuing your dreams and fulfilling your own Personal Legend. The path may not always be easy and the direction may not always be clear, but with faith and trust anything can be accomplished. Coelho shares this message by telling the story of a shepherd named Santiago who abandons the "comfortable" lifestyle he has to pursue his Personal Legend.

I would be remiss if I didn't address the one point of contention some of the members of my book club had with this book. They felt that rather just "story-telling", Coelho was using the book as a means to share a belief system--and at times it seemed that he was "pushing" the beliefs rather than just sharing them. While I can certainly see how one could get that impression, it didn't bother me terribly. Many of the messages in the book, although presented under the belief system used by Coelho, could easily be translated into whatever belief system you follow.

This time through, the message that stood out to me most was that even though there may be a short or easy route to your "treasure", the longer path, although more difficult, will carry some scenery to make the journey worthwhile. I'm curious what message will stick me the next time I read it!