By A.J. Griffiths-Jones: An international bestseller that has been translated into dozens of languages The Alchemist is a book that has the unusual capability to both warm the heart and to give a real sense of reflection.

It begins with Santiago, a Spanish shepherd boy who dreams of travelling the world to seek the unknown. An avid reader, our young hero begins his quest in a simple manner, selling wool, but a chance encounter with the merchant’s daughter, who is impressed by his ambition, sets the wheels in motion for an adventure like no other.

Arriving in the city of Tarifa, Santiago encounters an old fortune-teller who professes to interpret dreams, but in exchange asks the young man for a tenth of any treasure he might find on his journey. A little later he meets an Arab who tells the boy that he can transform himself into any shape or object, then offers his advice and guidance for a tenth of the shepherd’s precious flock.

The story is told in quite a whimsical way, with moral dilemmas and quandaries along the way, being both spiritual and satisfying in its prose. Coelho is a master wordsmith, and his stories are incredibly captivating, the tales set in far-off lands and in extraordinary circumstances.

As we return to Santiago, he now finds himself in Tangiers, surrounded by a bustling crowd with people coming and going at all times of the day and night. It is here that the boy is duped by a stranger into parting with the little money he has, believing the foreigner had been willing to help him cross the Sahara to Egypt, the destiny that has often returned in his dreams.

Forced to seek employment, Santiago takes a job in a crystal shop in the hope that he can buy back his sheep one day, and it is here that he learns about a caravan planning to traverse the desert to transport goods. A chance encounter with an Englishman then sets him on a path to learning more than he could ever have imagined.

Santiago’s fateful meeting with an alchemist awaits, but not before he finds Fatima, a girl more beautiful and enticing than anyone he has ever met. A desert woman, she understands how her new love must continue to seek the treasure that he has been longing for and above all to heed the omens that have started to pull at Santiago’s heart.

The path is far from smooth as the young shepherd is taken under the alchemist’s wing, yet by believing in his own destiny he eventually finds the Great Pyramids and what he has been searching for.

The author himself had a very unusual yet inspirational start in life and one cannot help but wonder if it was these early events that led him down a path of motivational writing and spiritual insight. Born in Brazil in 1947, Coelho’s parents tried to suppress his devotion to literature and writing, taking his failure to embark upon a more lucrative career as a sign of mental illness.

Paulo instead embraced politics and joined the peace movements of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. It wasn’t until he was kidnapped and tortured by a group of paramilitaries that Coelho’s life changed radically, a chance encounter with a stranger in Amsterdam convincing him to walk the Road to Santiago, the medieval pilgrim’s route, where he encountered the diverse lives and ambitions of very ordinary people.

It is difficult not to sit and reflect upon one’s own life after reading The Alchemist, as the pages touch upon so many everyday choices and morals, both religious and personal.

Santiago’s tale is a unique one, for not many in the world would find themselves questioning their own destiny, yet the scenarios, difficulties and temptations that are laid before him are ones that we all might encounter at one time or another, albeit in different degrees.

This is a short novel, easy to digest, yet one with a great opportunity for reflection. It is also a story that has no bias for religion, language or culture, as anyone in any part of the world can appreciate its beauty and strength.

The tale of Santiago also deserves to be read more than once, for on reflection there is plenty to enjoy and consider a second time around. A profound and incredible book.