The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide
4.5/5
()
About this ebook
This engaging summary presents an analysis of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, a charming philosophical novel which tells the story of Santiago, a young shepherd who decides to leave his native Andalusia after he has a dream about treasure that lies buried at the foot of the Pyramids. His journey through the desert leads to encounters with mysterious characters such as a fortune-teller, a king and, most importantly of all, an alchemist who helps him understand the secrets of the universe and fulfil his destiny. The Alchemist is the best-known work by Paulo Coelho, a Brazilian author whose writing is known for its spiritual and esoteric themes. It has been translated into more than 50 languages, and a film adaptation has been planned.
Find out everything you need to know about The Alchemist in a fraction of the time!
This in-depth and informative reading guide brings you:
• A complete plot summary
• Character studies
• Key themes and symbols
• Questions for further reflection
Why choose BrightSummaries.com?
Available in print and digital format, our publications are designed to accompany you in your reading journey. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time.
See the very best of literature in a whole new light with BrightSummaries.com!
Read more from Bright Summaries
Fifty Shades Trilogy by E.L. James (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Crucible by Arthur Miller (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Beloved by Toni Morrison (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Lord of the Flies by William Golding (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGiovanni's Room by James Baldwin (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTo Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAll the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRebecca by Daphne du Maurier (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOne Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Marquez (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLolita by Vladimir Nabokov (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Road by Cormac McCarthy (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (Book Analysis)
Related ebooks
Summary and Analysis of The Alchemist: Based on the Book by Paulo Coehlo Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsReady Reference Treatise: The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Study Guide for Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOne Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Marquez (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The Alchemist: by Paulo Coelho | Conversation Starters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOne Hundred Years of Solitude: A Novel by Gabriel Garcia Márquez | Conversation Starters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summary of 100 Years of Solitude: by Gabriel Garcia Marquez - A Comprehensive Summary Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings"The Five People You Meet In Heaven" Summarized and Analyzed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Catcher in the Rye: A Reader's Guide to the J.D. Salinger Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lord of the Flies by William Golding (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5To Kill a Mockingbird (MAXNotes Literature Guides) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMan's Search for Meaning: by Viktor E. Frankl | Conversation Starters Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Summary of A Little Life: by Hanya Yanagihara | Includes Analysis Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Man’s Search for Meaning - Summarized for Busy People: Based on the Book by Viktor Frankl Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary of The Warrior of the Light Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of War by Sun Tzu (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Four Agreements - Summarized for Busy People: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom (A Toltec Wisdom Book) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Pearl by John Steinbeck (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTo Kill a Mockingbird: A Novel by Harper Lee (Trivia-On-Books) Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Prophet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summary of Mitch Albom's Tuesdays with Morrie Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Literary Criticism For You
Killers of the Flower Moon: by David Grann | Conversation Starters Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Reader’s Companion to J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/512 Rules For Life: by Jordan Peterson | Conversation Starters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5As I Lay Dying Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Oscar Wilde: The Unrepentant Years Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 48 Laws of Power: by Robert Greene | Conversation Starters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of Seduction: by Robert Greene | Conversation Starters Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Man's Search for Meaning: by Viktor E. Frankl | Conversation Starters Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Great Alone: by Kristin Hannah | Conversation Starters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Letters to a Young Poet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Circe: by Madeline Miller | Conversation Starters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts.by Brené Brown | Conversation Starters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer | Conversation Starters Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Paperbacks from Hell: The Twisted History of '70s and '80s Horror Fiction Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Virtues Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Gulag Archipelago [Volume 1]: An Experiment in Literary Investigation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lincoln Lawyer: A Mysterious Profile Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Court of Thorns and Roses: A Novel by Sarah J. Maas | Conversation Starters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Western Canon: The Books and School of the Ages Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Moby Dick (Complete Unabridged Edition) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Just Kids: A National Book Award Winner Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (Book Analysis)
2 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (Book Analysis) - Bright Summaries
BRAZILIAN WRITER AND LYRICIST
Born in Rio de Janeiro in 1947.
Notable works:
The Pilgrimage (1987), novel
Veronika Decides to Die (1998), novel
The Devil and Miss Prym (2000), novel
Paulo Coelho was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1947. At the age of 23, he left Brazil to travel through South America (Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Chile), Europe and North Africa. He returned to Brazil two years later and began working in the music industry, first as a writer of pop songs, then as a journalist specialising in Brazilian music and eventually as an employee at the American music label PolyGram. However, the lure of travelling and his desire for spiritual fulfilment proved irresistible, and he set off again in 1982.
His first successful novel, The Pilgrimage (1987), was inspired by his own experience on the Camino de Santiago (a popular Christian pilgrimage route in Spain). Coelho has continued to publish regularly in the intervening years, and his work has been well received by the general public and the literary world alike: he won Elle magazine’s Reader’s Choice Award in 1995 and was elected to the Brazilian Academy of Letters in 2002.
A SPIRITUAL QUEST
Genre: philosophical novel
Reference edition: Coelho, P. (2012) The Alchemist. Trans. Clarke, A. R. London: HarperCollins.
1st edition: 1988
Themes: mysticism, journey, religion, identity, quest, coming-of-age
The Alchemist tells the story of Santiago, a young Andalusian shepherd who leaves his sheep and his homeland in search of the treasure he believes is buried at the foot of the Pyramids in Egypt. The young man has many encounters and experiences along the way, all of which lead him towards the treasure he seeks while also helping him to discover himself.