DÜNYANIN EN ÇOK ABARTILAN KİTABI

Neden Simyacı dünyanın en çok abartılan kitabı?:
https://youtu.be/lFYm2W7uV0o

Goodreads'de inceleme yapması içimden gelmeyen nadir kitaplardandır Simyacı.

"Ha şimdi sen bu kadar popüler ve beğenilmiş bir kitabı eleştiriyorsan kesin prim yapmak için yapıyorsundur bunu." mantığıyla gelinebilir bunu anlarım fakat zaten dünyada büyük etki bırakmış bu tür eserleri böyle eleştirmek, kötülemek vs. biraz ilginç ve hadsiz hissettirmiyor da değil. Keza bu durumun tersi olarak, bu zamana kadar epey popülerleşmiş 1984 ve Kürk Mantolu Madonna gibi eserleri de çok sevmiştim mesela. Bu incelemeyi de sadece kitabı okuyup bitirdikten sonra oluşan duygularımı dürüstçe açıklamak istediğim için yazıyorum, zaten bu sitede de yaptığım puanlamaları elimden geldiğince gerçek okuma deneyimime dayanarak vermeye çalışıyorum.

Kitabı okuyanlar için spoiler entry'si : https://eksisozluk.com/entry/24419002
Kitabın konusu aslında birebir Takkeci İbrahim Ağa hikayesinden alıntıdır diyebiliriz. Okumadan önce haberim yoktu bu hikayeden fakat kitapla birleşemememin sebebi de bu değil zaten. Basit bir kişisel gelişim kitabı mantığına da katılmamakla birlikte, kitabın konusunu ve anlattığı şeyleri epey sade buldum. Aslında dünyada da genel olarak bu sadeliğinin güzelliğinden dolayı seviliyor olabilir. Fakat, Simyacı bana bu sadelik, detaysızlık ve konunun katmanlı değil tek bir yönde ilerlemesinden ötürü bir tuzsuz pilav yemiş etkisi yaptı. Evet, okuduktan sonra okudum ve bu kitabı hayatıma kattım diyebiliyorsunuz ama ben kendi adıma tat alamadım bu kitaptan.

Hiçbir kitabı zaman kaybı olarak görmeyen ben, bu kitabı da keza zaman kaybı olarak görmedim. Sadece popüleritesinin yerini alabilecek çok fazla sayıda başka kitap var iken bu kitabın neden bu kadar popüler ve kıymeti abartılmış, gereğinden fazla değer verilmiş olmasını sorguladım kendi adıma.

Hayatın sürekli devam ettiğini, kendini tanımanın ve "kişisel menkıbe"nin önemini, evrenin işaretlerini, evrenin dilini, sözcüklerin ötesinde bir dili, yolculukların, gelişimin ve güzelliklerin önemini ben de biliyorum fakat bu bir romana yoğrulunca bende bir kişisel gelişim kitabıymışçasına algı bırakıyor sanki.

Dediğim gibi benim için hala tuzsuz bir pilav, şekersiz bir tiramisu, ekşisiz bir mandalina, acısız bir çiğköfte etkisi bırakan kitaptır.

All those negative reviews are baffling to me. Where does it say this is a self help book? People are bashing the "lessons" as if this is some philosophical or religious work. It's a fictional story that can be enjoyed by yourself or with your kids for ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. It's a fun story filled to the brim with quirks and marvels. I was curious the entire time how following one's legend blindly would turn out for the boy. Am I going to now follow my dreams without logic and reason as in the story? No. Because I'm not a crazy person. Get over it. It's just a story and a good one at that.

EDIT: My first 100+ likes review. Thank you everyone!

Mua cuốn này vì nhiều lý do. Thứ nhất vì nghe đồn là cuốn sách bán chạy nhất mọi thời đại chỉ sau Kinh Thánh. Thứ 2 vì liếc thấy dịch giả là bác Lê Chu Cầu, 1 trong 2 bác mình thấy khá kết (bác còn lại là Trần Tiễn Cao Đăng). Thật ra bác Cầu dịch tiếng Đức rất xuất sắc (điển hình như "Mùi hương" đọc rất phê :3), cuốn này bác ấy cũng dịch từ tiếng Đức, mình ko thích việc dịch từ thứ tiếng khác, ko phải tiếng của bản gốc lắm (bản gốc tiếng Bồ) nhưng thôi cũng đành chịu :|

Lý do thứ nữa cũng là cuối cùng vì thấy bảo cuốn này phù hợp với những người vẫn còn đang phân vân về định hướng cuộc đời. Còn gì phù hợp với 1 thằng đang sắp sửa bước vào độ tuổi đc coi là đen tối nhất cuộc đời thằng đàn ông : bồ cũ sắp đi lấy chồng, sự nghiệp chưa có chi, bọn sv nó chê mình già ko cho mình chơi cùng nữa, nhận ra những điều trước giờ nghĩ vậy mà hóa ra ko phải vậy... :(

Nói về nội dung thì mình có phần hơi ngại những câu chuyện nhiều màu sắc tín ngưỡng, đức tin...vì mình gần như ko quan tâm cũng như ko có nhiều kiến thức về tôn giáo các thể loại. Gần nhất là va phải Life of Pi, phần đầu lê lết mãi mới qua may mà những phần sau hành trình lênh đênh trên biển hấp dẫn quá ko đã bỏ dở giữa chừng :s

Quay lại vs "Nhà giả kim" mình thấy nó hơi giáo điều thậm chí sáo rỗng ở nhiều đoạn. Đôi khi có cảm giác giá trị của nó không xứng tầm với danh tiếng mà nó được (hoặc phải) mang. Thêm nữa câu chuyện có vẻ hơi dễ đoán, thiếu cao trào kịch tính, hơi mang nhiều màu sắc cổ tích (phản ánh giấc mơ và những thế lực thần bí giúp ta theo đuổi giấc mơ).

"Nhà giả kim" chưa đạt được tới tầm "đáng đọc" hoặc "để đời" đối với bản thân mình. Ai bảo mình nông cạn chưa "thấm" được những triết lý thì mình cũng đành chịu :3
Lưỡng lự giữa 2 sao và 3 sao :| thôi cho 2 sao - mức trung tính cho những cuốn mình ko bỏ dở giữa chừng nhưng thấy chưa đủ hay, chưa đủ xuất sắc :|

Bài học rút ra : sách bán chạy tức là và chỉ đồng nghia với việc...bán đc nhiều, thế thôi.

Whenever I felt lost, depressed, sad, numb, conflicted, frustrated, exhausted, I get this book into my hands and follow the journey of young shepherd Santiago who is looking for a worldly treasure. As like T.S. Eliot says: “ The journey not the arrival matters.”

This journey is about self discovery, fighting with your own demons, letting your heart being your own eyes and leading you throughout the dark and threatening roads of life. It’s epic, uplifting, motivational, inspirational,heartfelt, poignant!

Here are my favorite quotes of the book:
“When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.”

“The simple things are also the most extraordinary things, and only the wise can see them.”

“Remember that wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure.”

“Don't give in to your fears. If you do, you won’t be able to talk to your heart.”

“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”

“And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”

I made it through a few pages before throwing it across the room. Then I picked it up, skimmed a few more pages and threw it in the bin. Then I washed my brain, eyes and fingers with bleach. Belongs with things like The Secret in the deepest depths of Book-Hell.

I need to start this review by stating 1) I can't stand self-help books and 2) I'm a feminist (no, I don't hate men- some men are quite awesome, but I am very conscious of women and our place in the world.)

Short summary (mild spoilers): A boy named Santiago follows his 'Personal Legend' in traveling from Spain to the Pyramids in Egypt searching for treasure. Along the way, he learns 'the Language of the World' the 'Soul of the World' and discovers that the 'Soul of God' is 'his own soul.'

If the statements in quotes above ('personal legend', etc) fascinate you, then you'll enjoy this book. If you think they are hokey and silly, then you'll think this is a terrible book. If you think statements such as "When you want something, all the universe conspires you to achieve it" and "All things are one" are moving and life-changing, you'll love this book. If such statements have you rolling your eyes, then this isn't your cup of tea.

Its not that I find anything wrong with these messages. They are important, but must be balanced with responsibility. In my experience, 'following your dreams' (or personal legend) is not the only way toward wisdom and strength. Is the person who struggles to put food on the table every day for his or her family, consciously realizing that he or she may not be following his or her 'personal legend' any less heroic than some traveler who leaves everything and everyone he or she is responsible for to go on a spiritual quest? Coelho comes close to labeling such people, as losers in life, which I find completely off the mark as some of these people have the most to offer in terms of wisdom.

The issue of responsibility is also part of this book's sexism. The main male characters in the novel have 'Personal Legends' - they are either seeking them, or have achieved them, or have failed to achieve them. But Coelho never mentions 'Personal Legend' with regard to women, other than to say that Fatima, Santiago's fiance, is 'a part of Santiago's Personal Legend." Thats fine, but what about her own Personal Legend? Instead of traveling to find her dreams, she is content to sit around, do chores, and stare everyday at the desert to wait for his return. This is her 'fate' as a desert women. The fact that women don't have Personal Legends is even more galling considering the fact that according to Coelho, even minerals such as lead and copper have Personal Legends, allowing them to 'evolve' to something better (ie, gold).

In the ideal world presented in THE ALCHEMIST, it seems that the job of men is to seek out their personal legends, leaving aside thoughts of family and responsibility, and its the job of women to let them, and pine for their return. Of course, someone has to do the unheroic, inconvenient work of taking care of the children, the animals, the elderly, the ill...If everyone simply goes off on spiritual quests, deciding they have no responsibility other than to seek their Personal Legends, no one would be taking responsibility for the unglamorous work that simply has to take place for the world to run.

On the other hand, what if both men and women are allowed to struggle towards their 'Personal Legends,' and help each other as best as they can towards them, but recognize that their responsibilities may force them to defer, compromise, or even 'sacrifice' their dreams? This may seem depressing, but it isn't necessarily. Coelho seems to think that Personal Legends are fixed at childhood (or at birth, or even before) and are not changeable: they have to be followed through to the end, no matter how silly. But in my experience, many people have chosen to adjust, compromise, and even 'give up' on their dreams, only to find that life grants them something better, or they have a new, better dream to follow, a path providing greater wisdom. For me, these people have a more realistic, more humble, more fair, and less cliched vision of the world than Paulo Coelho's vision in THE ALCHEMIST.

There are a number of “should read” books on my TBR... The Alchemist is probably one that’s been on my list the longest.

I don’t know what I was expecting, but this wasn’t it. I’m slightly disconcerted that it didn’t WOW me as I was led to believe— having read the 25th anniversary edition with a strong preface, I’m wondering why I wasn’t transformed by this classic?

Some lovely philosophical musings and plot devices to prove some long recognized adages. A few passages gave me pause and I even re-read one or two to make sure I understood them. I will admit to thinking of the stasis of my own life once or twice, now that I’m middle-aged. I definitely identified with the crystal shop owner more than I’d care to admit.

A quick read, I can see why so many have this on their “must read” lists but a five-star read it was not.

At least not for me.

(Reviewed 1/5/19)

I picked up this book in an airport between flights, it's been pretty hyped up and was obviously the most-purchased book from the store. Even the girl on the plane next to me, obviously not an english-speaker, took great efforts to tell me that she loved this book.

The book's protagonist is an adolescent shepherd and reads as if it were written by one. Coelho abandons all subtlety, capitalizing the phrase "Personal Legend" and using it every other page in a story that has the ingredients of a successful fairy tale but stitches them together in such a barebones superficial way that reminds me of $1.50 starbucks cups wisdom or motivational stories told by commencement speakers with a religious agenda. It's initial message of 'follow your passion' is soon altered to 'the story of your life is written by the same hand who wrote the story of the world' and then to 'the heart of alchemy is the Soul of the World [sic] which all should strive to join.' 80 pages was more than fair. Very willing to sell/swap.

Needless to say I didn't read any of the "Plus" aspects of this edition.

I feel like everyone LOVES this book, but I was kind of underwhelmed. I know that translation affects the quality of writing, but I could not get into this writing style. At all. I felt like it was totally affected and contrived. He was going for this "fable/parable" style, but it seemed to fail miserably. The parable-like quality was totally contrived, and I thought the "moral" was pretty stupid.

Moral: everything you want and need is close to home. Take chances. Follow your "personal legacy."

Then....there was a supernatural element which was just plain dumb. Granted, I am not religious. I think god-fearing people get more out of this bc they can take that leap of faith, excuse the phrase. If this was supposed to be a story of magic, I may have been into it. But it was supposed to be a simple story of knowing yourself. And I think, philosophically speaking, when you truly know yourself that is when you truly realize your destiny. Why do you need supernatural forces to convey that message? This was about realizing your destiny, or "personal legacy." It could have been done without the hocus pocus, and, yes, the cheese.

In short, the book attempted to be deep and failed. "Speaking with the wind and the sun" and "being a shepherd" and getting over "personal hardship" all as part of a transparent "higher plan" (read: personal legacy) doesn't make a plot deep. A character simply called "boy" and short sentences doesn't make a story a fable. Learning from your flocks and from nature doesn't make a character inexplicably wise. I really got nothing out of this book.

It is short though. The book came very highly recommended. Read it to judge the hype for yourself. After all, a whole nation, including Bill Clinton (who I'm into), thought it was a touching account that personally changed them. Then again, this is the same country who thought The Celestine Prophesy was worthwhile. Gag.

When a book is as infamous as “The Alchemist”, people who miss why it is special and interpret it as “too basic” are no surprise. Simplicity does not at all, lack depth. “Base instincts” and “base emotions”, the core of who we are, to the contrary, equate profundity. A single-threaded fable is the hinge onto which authors hang important principals. This is why the message of children’s stories are more complex than the adventure carrying them. I put aside this novel a long time, expecting uppity scholastics. I was thrilled I could coast and soak up the nuggets that resonated with me.

Let’s dispense with critical analysis and consider this: few of us have careers in what we love doing best; what our most natural talent is. We don’t dare take a pay cut in pursuit of it, we don’t want in-laws disapproving of us; we accept the most lucrative jobs among those readily available and stick there for life. I’m certain Paulo Coelho is addressing we, who dream of writing; who hesitate to believe we can be published authors.

We permit roadblocks to overrule treasured hobbies too, or the most sincere items on our personal wish lists; because we think them costly or impractical. I adopted a saying that I use whenever something I dream, begins to look feasible. I declare: “There will be bills whether I do something fun with the money or not. Let’s create some bills we’re happy about”! ‘None of that is new but it comes as a relief to see other people courageously asserting the same thing you believe. A new thought for me is that the universe conspires to help us, if we are true to ourselves and make a move. I smiled throughout this whole book. That says five stars to me!

- ذاكرتي لا تساعدني الآن ... لكني قرأت هذه الرواية في مكان آخر
____ ا
ابريل 2018

قرأتها منذ عامين، وانا اقرأها كنت احس بأنني اعرف روحية النص وبأنني قرأته في مكان آخر..... وبعد سنتين كنت اقرأ بعض الصفحات من "الف ليلة وليلة"، فعرفت اين قرأت "الخيميائي" ولماذا كان ذلك الإحساس بروحية النص، فدافع البغدادي (الف ليلة وليلة) في رحلته هو الحلم (مثل سانتياغو في الخيميائي)، سافر البغدادي الى مصر (وكذلك فعل بطل كويلو)، تعرض البغدادي للمخاطر والتنكيل به (وكذلك بطل كويلو)، تكذيب الحلم والإستهزاء بصاحبه (الوالي عندما يتكلم مع البغدادي في الف ليلة وليلة، والزعيم لسانتياغو في الخيميائي وهو يحفر النفق)، الحلم المضاد (الوالي للبغدادي: هناك بيت في بغداد وصفه كذا وكذا فيه كنز (بمعناه)، والزعيم لسنتياغو: في اسبانيا كنيسة يرعى فيها الرعيان..الخ (نفس الكنيسة التي كان يرعى بها سانتياغو)، العودة وايجاد الكنز (في كلا القصتين) و "الف ليلة وليلة قبل الخيميائي بمئات السنين!!!!

(B+) 78% | Good
Notes: On chasing dreams, don't settle themes, enjoying silver linings, but too cliché and child's play, relies on stars aligning.

*Check out progress updates for detailed commentary:

Progress updates:

06/08/2024 - Preamble
(1) It's been a very long time since I first read this. Really, this is one of the earliest novels I read when I began reading recreationally.
- I remember at the time not getting what all the hype was about and thought it, while quite well done, was fairly ordinary.
- It'll be interesting to see if I'll change my tune at all after so many years.
(2) No real chapter breaks, which is a shame. I like boundaries.

06/09/2024 - Prologue
(1) You know, I'd just been wondering why the original cover art was "Narcissus" by Caravaggio. I couldn't understand why. Well, the prologue answered that question immediately albeit not directly.
- My first thought is it's symbolic of this book in concept. The prologue tells the story of Narcissus, but then adds to it. Which is to say this book might use existing folklore as a base to build its fiction upon.

06/12/2024 - Andalusia
(1) Melchizedek's interesting. He says he's the Biblical King of Salem, who dealt with Abraham. So, he's either a liar/conman or in some way divine.
- You'd think Santiago, who attended seminary, would be either awed or skeptical. He seems neither.
- Presuming he's divine, the way he disrupts Santiago's life, overturning the status quo, makes him an archetypical trickster.
- This is magical realism, I suppose.

06/13/2024 - Tangier
(1) "The boy knew that in money there was magic; whoever has money is never really alone."
- True, albeit cynical. You're never alone because people want your money.
- Of course, it implies the inverse is also true. Losing all his money means he's now really alone and has no ability to make things magically happen.
(2) This whole Tangier section is about blessings in disguise and not settling for the familiar.

06/14/2024 (1) - The Caravan and Oasis
(1) "Once you get into the desert, there's no going back, and, when you can't go back, you have to worry only about the best way of moving forward."
- That's the difference between the Crystal Merchant, who looks back and never sees Mecca, and the Englishman, who builds a forge in the desert.
- This whole section is like one big Nike ad. So many metaphors all amounting to the same "Just Do It!" call to action.

06/14/2024 (2) - The Desert
(1) It's interesting how figures here tie themselves into a Biblical lineage, as if to imply this story is Biblical as well.
- We saw this previously with the old man who insisted he was the Biblical Melchizedek.
- At the oasis, the tribal elder says they were the very people who purchased Joseph and brought him to Egypt.
- Like Joseph, Santiago is a foreigner who saves the locals and is made a court official.

06/15/2024 (1) - The Military Camp
(1) It's around this point in the book that you realize the titular "Alchemist" isn't the alchemist character, but Santiago.
- Because turning lead into gold is a metaphor for leaving a mundane life to pursue treasure.
(2) "Usually the threat of death makes people a lot more aware of their lives."
- Hitting rock bottom usually spurs people into action.
- That's why the boy was robbed of everything three times.

06/15/2024 (2) - Epilogue
(1) Ultimately, this is one of those "it's not you it's me" books.
- I can understand why it inspires so many people and why it's one of the most popular books on this site.
- But (call me jaded, cynical or a grump) the book-long refrain that the universe conspires to make your dreams come true just seems quixotic and trite.
(2) Overall, a better experience than before, but nothing to make me change my rating.