★★★★★ 3
Good book, but I think the ending is a betrayal
Format: Kindle
As I write this I realize that I am talking about a modern classic, one that I must admit I did enjoy reading overall. But that said, I simply didn’t find this book to be as moving a book as I thought I would.
The novel tells a simple though interesting tale about a boy’s attempts to search for a treasure revealed to him in multiple dreams. Along the way he encounters many people and situations that enable him to learn and grow spiritually, aided by either his clever and inquisitive mind or the guidance of others who effectively serve as mentors.
For the most part, I did like THE ALCHEMIST. I enjoyed the simple style of writing and the stripped-down nature of the tale. We don’t get into the “five senses” kind of environmental description – Coelho’s tale is more of a parable at its heart, and in fact is a story OF the heart and of the mind. I also admired the central character as well: Santiago is not only aptly named, but he is a likable boy full of pleasant good will and a gentle disposition, ready to work and clever when it comes to the things one must do to succeed. He is also brave, and remains positive whether things are going well or they are not, choosing to do the best he can at whatever hand he is dealt by life.
Here, however, comes the problem. While I felt that the book worked for a good deal of the story, it weakened a bit toward the end. Part of it was the story’s mumbo-jumbo manner of religiosity; while I understood the author’s decision to tackle his subject in this simple, unadorned manner, it didn’t hold up at times. Certainly, the notion that there is a hidden one-ness at the heart of all matter is a notion that works well through a simplistic style, a la the clean, stripped-down beliefs at the heart of innocents or the way we conceptualize the purity of, say, the Native Americans culture when it came to nature. But when the boy began addressing the wind and other elements (a point I’ll get to further in a moment), it really broke down for me. It stretched credulity, reducing Nature to a kind of repertory theater. I will speak further on this scene in a second.
HERE I ONE ASPECT THAT WOULD BE CONSIDERED A SPOILER – SKIP THIS PARAGRAPH.
What I particularly disliked about THE ALCHEMIST is that I felt it broke its own rules. Again, I’m discussing the ending here, so beware. It bothered me that the ending should have been a point when the boy’s budding spirituality took its hold upon the lad. I ask: why would a person who is in essence learning so much about what really matters about life still keep seeking money? His interest in gold is not the same as the alchemist’s interest in it: the elder character is a man who can manipulate the elements in a near-magical manner, a process he leaves the boy to discover for himself (like when he fact almost comically abandons him to magically “make like the wind” for men who will otherwise kill him – comical because once the alchemist places the boy IN the situation, he simply goes off to play with his birds. And one more thing: while the twist at the end was clever, it disappointed me for two reasons: the first, for point I made above, but the second is trickier. The boy learns that the truth the material treasure HE sought is NOT there; it is, he learns, where the OTHER character says it is. Clever, sure… but is the author telling us the other character’s “information” is more true? Why is that? Was it that the other boy was favored? OR, which is probably more true, is it because whatever force it is that imparts such “wisdom” does so knowing that one boy WILL follow his heart and the other won’t. Think: if the other boy does follow his quest then Santiago’s info is going to be wrong. But IF things are meant to work out the way they actually do, then is Coelho indeed telling us that these actions were predetermined? This sends, I think, the opposite message the author wants to send.
THE ALCHEMIST is a book that people will enjoy for its simple values, and the tale of this young boy’s spiritual quest has satisfied many. While I too enjoyed it and liked the boy, I ultimately felt a bit disappointed in what I felt to be a contrived ending. Though I initially liked the twist at the end, the story could have ended on that exact moment and left me happier. As it is, I felt the final portion of the boy’s quest betrayed his AND the author’s intentions, which hurt the novel for me.
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Reviewed in the United States on October 4, 2016
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