readivine's reviews
653 reviews

This is just the second flash fiction of the Nevertheless, she persisted tag originally meant to celebrate International Women's Day. Although I'm long overdue starting these series I can't help but feel awe and gratitude for these words. This is the kind of relevant metaphor induced stories I need in my life right now. And this one just pricked my heart in all the right spots huhuhuh.
And wait, what. I just realized that Hurley was also the author of one of my all time fave short story [b:Elephants and Corpses|25348613|Elephants and Corpses|Kameron Hurley|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1431540323s/25348613.jpg|45088462] huhuhuhu w/c is also amazing btw. PLEASE READ IT

Rewriting this review just because I can (hahah)

My aunt had first introduced me to this masterpiece when I was still a freshman unfortunately, it was only then that I managed to finish this book after a lot of failed attempts. I originally read this the last few days to get a feel for the upcoming holiday season *insert papercut snowflakes on the background* but frankly it has more to do with the burden of finally finishing something that I should have done years ago.

Well to start off, The Alchemist revolves around a shepherd named Santiago that had a vision of finding a treasure near the Pyramids of Egypt in the form of a dream but was only hindered by his personal beliefs, doubts, and present situation. As he carries out his daily duties, he encounters surprising omens that turn out to be more significant in his journey towards the treasure he originally tried to evade.

Santiago was one of those exceptional resilient characters that you find sketchy at first but you'll soon turn to love. His actions and decisions simply reflect mundane realizations that the lot of us take for granted most of the time. I liked how his vulnerabilities were displayed in the book and how he digests all the lessons he's acquired in his journey and use it in the end. He was one of those fictional characters that exhibit a lot of humanity and personally that was one of the values that I loved the most.

I was taken aback at first by how simple and easy Coelho's writing style was contrary to the usual books that I've read, but it's actually one of the main reasons why I loved this in the first place. Compressing the significant values he wants to convey in a number of 190 pages more or less in a simplified manner was really refreshing and I get to ponder more on the various themes it evokes particularly in the field of religion. These are some of my favorite excerpts:

1.)...the leader had to repeat himself several times for everyone to understand what he was saying. "There are a lot of different people here, and each has his own God. But the only God I serve is Allah, and in his name, I swear that I will do everything possible once again to win out over the desert. But I want each and every one of you to swear by the God you believe in that you will follow my orders no matter what. In the desert, disobedience means death"


2.) "It's not what enters men's mouths that's evil," said the alchemist. "It's what comes out of their mouths that is."

Simple words yet they echo profound meaning that leaves you wondering more about life. Coelho reiterates these quintessential thoughts that have long been realized by men but were simply forgotten as life progressed, now I know why this was called one of the most influential books of the century. I recommend this to all readers out there who liked The Timekeeper and The Little Prince or if you still haven't read the latter this is still a must-read! You can't continue living without submerging in this brilliant work of art (sighs).

Heart warming and simple.

I had anticipated that turn but nevertheless, it was still worth it. I am in love with Bardugo's writing and I was never disappointed. Given that I already read one of her best works (The Six of Crows Duology), this one proves to be as poignant and consistent as her other works are.