June Book Review : The Alchemist

I am happy to report that I have managed to get somewhat back on track by finishing Paulo Coelho's "The Alchemist" within this month. I must be honest with you I thought I would have finished the book much quicker due to the length of the novel but looks can be deceiving and I really had to work to finish the book.

Don't get me wrong, it's not that the book is difficult to read but I do think you need to be prepared for the mental task. As I mentioned in my previous post the Alchemist was not the sort of book I was intending on reading this month and there was little to no light-heartedness which was my intention for the June book.

The plot of the book is that a boy, although I have no idea how old he is, has a dream - a literal sleeping dream - about him going in search of treasure. The book takes you through his journey and his emotional growth.

While I will not give you a run down of the book and spoil the surprise for you, I will admit that this is a book that all people should read. The themes throughout it can teach any person, young or old, that you can only benefit in forging your own path in life. 

Yes, it is difficult to make decisions but in retrospect, your hardest decisions have more than likely shaped you to be the person you are and if you have in fact chosen to not make a decision, that in itself is a decision.  Everything that we do, every step that we take leads us to where we need to be, at the right time. We have to take responsibility for the decisions we make, even if our options are unattractive - we should pursue our destiny.

While we may continue on a path in life that our parents or teachers or spiritual leaders have taken us to... it is essentially our own mind (or soul) that shapes us to be who we were meant to be.

I found an article which you should read if you have time to expand the themes I have mentioned.

Have you read this book? If you have, tell me what you thought about it? I'm intrigued to hear different people's opinions.