THE SUCCESS BEHIND A PASSION

Paulo Coelho is one of the most widely-read authors around the world .He wrote the famous book called
The alchemist which is only compared to 100 years of solitude written by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, who
is the best writer of the XX century.

e was born
on August
24, 1947,
in Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil. He attended
Jesuit
Schools
because his parents
were
devoted
Catholics, but he
was not really into
praying. At the
very beginning he
showed a great
interest
in
literature, as a worm book he
read all kind of books.
Moreover, he realized that he
wanted to be a writer. Soon,
he demonstrated his ability
and won his first prize at

His inspiration

school in a poetry contest.

However, he was discouraged
by his parents who sent him to
mental institutions, because
they saw no future in that
profession in Brazil.

After drifting among several

professions, Coelho decided
to travel around the world in
1986, but it was in Spain
exactly
where his life
changed. There, he had a
spiritual awakening because
he walked 500 miles along
Santiago de Compostela, a
Catholic site
pilgrimage,
which inspired him to write
his first book The pilgrimage
and then The Alchemist, but it
was t h e last one which
made him famous.

And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in

helping you to achieve it. Paulo Coelho.

Coelho and his leap to fame
Why is The Alchemist so
special? As Paulo Coelho
mentioned, he could write
the alchemist because the
story was already written in
his soul. As a consequence of
this, he wrote this book in
just two weeks.
The main theme of the book is
based on finding the destiny of
each person. According to The
New
York
times,
The
Alchemist is a self-help book
more than a literature book.
This book catches the reader's

attention because it has three

important aspects: it has a
simple style which makes i t
easy to follow. Second, you
can read it as if it were a letter
from a friend who trusts you
and reveals his precious
secrets. Finally, wonderful
phrases taken from the text are
a legacy for everyone who
reads it. So much so that
Coelho was nominated as
special counsellor of the
UNESCO for the Spiritual
Convergence and Intercultural
Dialogue Program.

This book has been translated

into 67 languages according to
The New York Times
magazine, and it is now the
most translated book by a
living author in the world.
Furthermore, The Alchemist
became
a
worldwide
phenomenon
and
it
is
necessary to highlight the fact
that it has been sold in 150
countries with 35 million
copies.
By: Nayareth Hernndez
Karen Utreras