Paulo Coelho and His Books

Writers have always existed from time immemorial and the reason for that is because it helps us to escape this world and enter into another person’s life or world. It is always good to know about these authors live so that we know from where they get their inspiration from and in some cases, the circumstances that led them to write the books.

Paulo Coelho is a Brazilian author who has written a number of famous books including The Devil and Miss Prym, 11 Minutes and The Zahir but his most famous book is The Alchemist which sold a staggering 165 million copies globally and has been translated to 80 languages. He has also received numerous awards for his books, like the Hans Christian Andersen award in 2007, Kiklop Literary Award Hit for The Zahir in 2006, Corine International Award for the Best Fiction at Germany in 2002 for the Alchemist and many more.

One of the most important decisions to be made by a writer is to choose a theme for his/her book. Paulo Coelho has not stuck to just one theme, he has talked about several topics. One of the themes he’s used with The Alchemist is Magical Realism. Magical Realism is a literary term that is used by authors, where the realistic and fantastical elements seamlessly blend. We can see this in The Alchemist when Santiago (a character in the book) goes out to seek his “Personal Legend”. The first few pages of the book sounds realistic but later on it progresses into the realm of fantasy. He also talks about a lot of other themes such as Love in his book called ‘By The River Piedra I Sat Down And Wept’, ‘The Battle Between Good and Evil in The Devil’ and ‘Miss Prym’, Presence of a Supreme Power in The Alchemist etc.

One of the reasons why Coelho is a very successful writer is because of the messages he gives in his books. He rose to prominence after The Alchemist and the reasons for this is his writing style, his themes and most importantly, his message. He talks about how if someone wants to achieve something in their life, the universe is always on their side. In The Alchemist he reminds us that only we can shape our fate and future on this earth. He also talks about how we must be realistic and not to see thing the way we want to see them, but to see them for what they really are. Coelho always wanted to be a writer even when he was young but his parents discouraged him and even sent him to a mental asylum thrice since he turned seventeen. The fact that he still continued his journey to be a writer and did not let his passion die is one of the many reasons as to why he is a source of inspiration for many writers around the world.