There are books that inspire and make you
want to do something, and there are books that instil in you a spirit of
doing and racing with life. The Alchemist is such a book. Although
written over two decades ago, its approach is still fresh and the reader
gets a chance to connect with the protagonist. The Alchemist details
the journey of a young Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago. Santiago,
believing a recurring dream to be prophetic, decides to travel to the
pyramids of Egypt to find treasure. On the way, he encounters love,
danger, opportunity and disaster. One of the significant characters that
he meets is an old king who tells him that “When you want something,
all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” And this is
the core philosophy and motif of the book.
