BOOK REVIEW
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
If you’re searching for Hero’s Journey story, then this is a good one.
Summary
The Alchemist is a lovely story, a fable, about a boy, Santiago, on a quest to find a treasure. It can be read and enjoyed at the surface level or unpacked to reveal all the lessons along the way. There are some life lessons to be gleaned from the deeper meanings and symbolisms used.
There are other stories written in this style, the Hero’s Journey that you may recognize: Star Wars, the Harry Potter collection, and Moana to name just a few.
The Hero’s Journey is a writing tool that dates back to The Odyssey but wasn’t given a name until Joseph Campbell defined it his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces in 1949.
In The Alchemist, Santiago is called to adventure and at first refuses. He has a plan for his life and it doesn’t involve going on an adventure. No.
He meets his first mentor shortly after who plants some ideas of growth and prosperity that will come after the adventure and without meaning to start, Santiago is well on his way.
Along the way to his destination, Santiago meets allies and enemies, overcomes trials and ordeals, and reflects on how these are all…
