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jaimelesmots's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
megath92's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
pascalibrary's review against another edition
3.0
This book was entertaining enough, but it definitely feels pretty stupid at a lot of points.
I'm not sure what to make of all the psuedo-philosophy here. If I take it literally, then its completely meaningless for anyone who isn't an incredibly spiritual person. If I take it metaphorically, then this book is advocating for you to just live in the moment, trust your gut that everything will fall into place, and find your destiny. This is still highly unrealistic and a little too optimistic. I'm not against hope, obviously, but hope without caution seems ridiculous.
Coelho's writing is simple, short, and sometimes repetitive. He is good at giving an illusion of depth, but thats really it is, an illusion. The only thing I somewhat liked was the omen stuff. Most of the time, I'm pretty sure he was using omens to tell people to be observant. You really can learn a lot from keeping an eye out for things, even if its not magic omens that predict the future.
Every line of dialogue here was supposed to be a snappy, deep one liner, but most of the time it failed at this. I feel like this book is just supposed to seem way smarter than it actually is. That said, its still pretty entertaining and its super short. I finished it in under a day.
If you are religious/spiritual and you want some quick philosophy, then you might like this book. If you want something short and entertaining, you also might like this book. Other than those, I can't think of any other reasons to read this. Its really overrated.
I'm not sure what to make of all the psuedo-philosophy here. If I take it literally, then its completely meaningless for anyone who isn't an incredibly spiritual person. If I take it metaphorically, then this book is advocating for you to just live in the moment, trust your gut that everything will fall into place, and find your destiny. This is still highly unrealistic and a little too optimistic. I'm not against hope, obviously, but hope without caution seems ridiculous.
Coelho's writing is simple, short, and sometimes repetitive. He is good at giving an illusion of depth, but thats really it is, an illusion. The only thing I somewhat liked was the omen stuff. Most of the time, I'm pretty sure he was using omens to tell people to be observant. You really can learn a lot from keeping an eye out for things, even if its not magic omens that predict the future.
Every line of dialogue here was supposed to be a snappy, deep one liner, but most of the time it failed at this. I feel like this book is just supposed to seem way smarter than it actually is. That said, its still pretty entertaining and its super short. I finished it in under a day.
If you are religious/spiritual and you want some quick philosophy, then you might like this book. If you want something short and entertaining, you also might like this book. Other than those, I can't think of any other reasons to read this. Its really overrated.
havanaxo's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
brookeoliver07's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
jules__'s review against another edition
It does not fit with my interests. I am not very spiritual and I do not feel inspired by it.
emotional_bedding's review against another edition
yes life has a purpose but you can't just leave everything behind
kaydunkz's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
apm1998's review against another edition
5.0
If you ever want to doubt your life choices this is the book to read. After reading this book I was ready to quit my job and spend my life savings on travelling. Unfortunately, i'll have to leave that up to influencers lol. However I could definitely take the lessons I learned from this novel and apply it to my everyday life. The Alchemist captured my heart since the beginning of the book. Everything about this book just hit every box for the perfect book. The overall story line kept me so hooked and the metaphors and lessons were not obvious enough to feel corny but not too difficult that it became a bore. The biggest lesson I took from this book is that there is a time for everything and that worrying about your problems is more damaging the problem itself. Paulo Coelho did an incredible job keeping the reader captured and displayed so much emotion. For the first time in a long time there was a romantic plot that did not want to make me rip my eyeballs out! In fact, I believe this had the best romantic encounter i have ever read. It was so simple yet so touching. It hurt to hear the line about finding the one person who makes you want to never leave. Throughout the whole book all i could think about was the song "Turn, Turn, Turn" by Pete Seeger. I read a lot of the reviews on this novel and people were saying it was basic and overrated. I think it's lame to hate something just because it's popular. With that being said it definitely deserves the popularity.