The Alchemist
(Paulo Coelho)

The alchemist is an allegorical story that follows Santiago, a Spanish shepherd boy, as he travels through the Saharan desert to search for treasure at the Egyptian Pyramids. The book begins when Santiago spends the night in a deserted church with an old Sycamore growing in the middle of it. The boy dreams a recurring dream in which a child takes him to the Egyptian Pyramids and tells him that there he will find his treasure. Santiago remembers there is a woman in a nearby town called Tarifa who is known for interpreting dreams. He takes his flock to the town and goes to see this gypsy woman. In exchange for one-tenth of the boy’s future treasure, the woman tells him that he must pursue his dream.

In Tarifa Santiago meets an old man named Melchizedek who writes things in the sand about Santiago’s life that he could not possibly have known. Melchizedek says he is the king of Salem and that he has come to encourage Santiago to follow his Personal Legend, or the thing he wants to accomplish in life. The old man explains that there is a thing called the Soul of the World, which is nourished by people’s happiness and emotions. He gives Santiago two stones called Urim and Thummim to help him read the omens that will guide him to his treasure.

Santiago sells his sheep and takes a boat to Tangier. There he meets a Spanish-speaking young man who offers to serve as his guide on the way to Egypt. The man ends up stealing all of Santiago’s money, leaving him penniless in a strange land. Santiago asks his stones Urim and Thummim whether he will find his treasure but does not get a clear response. He remembers that he is supposed to make his own decisions and so he seeks employment at a crystal shop at the top of a hill in Tangier. Santiago works for the crystal merchant for almost a year. By this time, his quest to find treasure in Egypt is nothing but a distant, painful memory. All he wants is to return to his life as a shepherd in Spain. However, the crystal merchant changes Santiago’s mind by telling him that he is destined to follow his dreams.

Santiago joins a caravan crossing the desert. On the caravan, he meets an Englishman interested in alchemy. A tribal war starts in the desert so the caravan seeks refuge at an oasis. There, the Englishman searches for a famous alchemist who supposedly knows how to turn lead to gold. Santiago falls in love with a young woman named Fatima. Fatima encourages him to continue with his Personal Legend and return to her after. Santiago has a vision that enemies will attack the oasis. He tells the tribal chieftain, and the oasis adds extra defense. Santiago’s vision comes true but because of the precautions the oasis community is saved. The chieftain gives Santiago gold as a reward.

Santiago and the alchemist head into the desert so that Santiago can continue with his destiny. The journey is dangerous, and Santiago loses all of his gold when tribesmen rob the travelers. The alchemist takes Santiago to a monastery to stay with a Coptic monk. The alchemist melts lead and turns it into gold. He leaves some of the gold at the monastery in case Santiago loses his fortune again and sends the boy on his way to search for treasure. Santiago is robbed again and attacked by two men as he digs by the Pyramids for his treasure. Just when the boy is about to pass out one of his attackers mentions that this is what he gets for following his dreams. The man dreamed of treasure under a sycamore tree and ignored it. Santiago returns back to Spain to the ancient church where he began his journey. There he finds a chest of Spanish coins. He has fulfilled his Personal Legend by traveling far and wide and sets out to return to Fatima at the oasis.