Half way through project Alchemist.
So this one is tough for me to write about knowing that Fellow Francophile loves this novel (parable?) a whole lot. First let me say that I don't have any overall impression of the prose novel. At all. Part of this I think is by Choehlo's design. He specifically impugns the interpretation of text. This leads me to believe that aside from decoding the obvious metaphor we are to take the message of the parable at face value. To this end the very plain storytelling and cupidity of our protagonist made me blithely turn pages without divining any great weight from the moments in the book. This is not a fault of the story. It is a rare book that I can take at face value and glean any message. My struggle with the novel is the very purpose of the book which is to stress the value of a Personal Legend. I found myself pulled out of the story thinking about how society ultimately benefits from individuals serving their own goals. I understand that this is a reader fault and not a fault of the work so it left me conflicted. Is being conflicted bad? Probably not but I wish I were wrestling with the text rather than wrestling with my expectation of the text. I am hoping that the graphic novel adaptation sheds some further light on the text overall because right now I am sort of ashamed at my lukewarm response to what many of my friends have considered a life-changing work.
Showing posts with label Paulo Coehlo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Paulo Coehlo. Show all posts
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Book 2 - An adventure in two parts.
Hey book club-
Our second book is in fact two books...
Both the same story, but two different renditions.
The Alchemist, a story by Brazil's Paulo Coehlo, is about following one's dreams and was first suggested to me by a dear friend. I am indebted to her for so many things.
It sounds easy, to follow one's dreams, but don't be fooled like me... I have found it extremely difficult to always find the inner-faith and boldness to follow my dreams. The majority of the challenge stemming from uncertainty - how do I know - REALLY know - what I want; what my dreams are?
The Alchemist is a short novel, a fable almost, and thus, in ways predictable and simple, but that does not take away from its elegance and powerful message. This book has been translated to 67 different languages, and now has been adapted to a graphic novel.
The first book to read is the original version of The Alchemist, the novel, and the second book to read is the graphic novel.
I hope that we can compare the two versions of this story. Find out how each version excels. How they are similar and how they are different.
I also challenge you to think about your path in life as you read this book. Where did you hope to be right now, say ten years ago, when you were in high school, or when you were in college? Did you ever have to make sacrifices? Does/did that detract from your pursuit toward your dreams? What happens if your dreams conflict with one another? What happens if your dreams conflict with another person, say your parents, society, your partner, a younger you??? How does that impact your pursuit? Do you view that as abandoning one dream for another or the simple evolution of a single dream?
I guess what all these questions are getting at... is the real-life complexities and complications that happen, which this book does not dwell on... or am I making up excuses? Can life be so straight-forward?
In our previous book, Oscar fell quickly and easily in (and therefore out) of love. If he LOVED Jenni but then professed his love for another woman on the bus... what does that say about his love? What does that say about his "dream" his direction? Was Oscar shallow in that the only thing he consistently wanted was a relationship and sex seemingly irrelevant of the female in question?
As you read these books, compare Oscar Wao to Santiago, the main character in The Alchemist.
Our second book is in fact two books...
Both the same story, but two different renditions.
The Alchemist, a story by Brazil's Paulo Coehlo, is about following one's dreams and was first suggested to me by a dear friend. I am indebted to her for so many things.
It sounds easy, to follow one's dreams, but don't be fooled like me... I have found it extremely difficult to always find the inner-faith and boldness to follow my dreams. The majority of the challenge stemming from uncertainty - how do I know - REALLY know - what I want; what my dreams are?
The Alchemist is a short novel, a fable almost, and thus, in ways predictable and simple, but that does not take away from its elegance and powerful message. This book has been translated to 67 different languages, and now has been adapted to a graphic novel.
The first book to read is the original version of The Alchemist, the novel, and the second book to read is the graphic novel.
I hope that we can compare the two versions of this story. Find out how each version excels. How they are similar and how they are different.
I also challenge you to think about your path in life as you read this book. Where did you hope to be right now, say ten years ago, when you were in high school, or when you were in college? Did you ever have to make sacrifices? Does/did that detract from your pursuit toward your dreams? What happens if your dreams conflict with one another? What happens if your dreams conflict with another person, say your parents, society, your partner, a younger you??? How does that impact your pursuit? Do you view that as abandoning one dream for another or the simple evolution of a single dream?
I guess what all these questions are getting at... is the real-life complexities and complications that happen, which this book does not dwell on... or am I making up excuses? Can life be so straight-forward?
In our previous book, Oscar fell quickly and easily in (and therefore out) of love. If he LOVED Jenni but then professed his love for another woman on the bus... what does that say about his love? What does that say about his "dream" his direction? Was Oscar shallow in that the only thing he consistently wanted was a relationship and sex seemingly irrelevant of the female in question?
As you read these books, compare Oscar Wao to Santiago, the main character in The Alchemist.
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