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kalebthereader's review against another edition
3.0
A story which felt scattered and like a semi-stream of consciousness with a plot line that simply didn't carry the novel. Several times while reading I honestly felt like this book could’ve been condensed into an article online and had a much stronger point. Unlike The Alchemist, where every sentence truly mattered and made you stop and think, this story had several passages that truly could’ve been cut. Neither of the main characters was likable in my opinion - a much more viable choice for a protagonist would’ve been Jacques and Marie or the drivers instead of a privileged male like Paulo basically living off of his parent's money.
In the beginning of the autobiography, the audience is transported to Paulo’s home country where he suffers from his most traumatic incident. While the situation is definitely scarring, the way it’s written feels like a semi-cheesy action film where you expect Paulo to light off a detonator and fly away in his chopper.
With all of that being said, if you love reading about this period of time it’s still a fairly pleasant experience. As someone who hasn’t had the chance to leave America yet, I always love escaping through literature - I just would’ve loved for Paulo either to take more time to actually explain his surroundings areas or again put it into an email lol. For me, this “autobiography” would be around a 2.5-3/5 range! For how incredible this story should’ve been with what the situation was it missed that magic that Paulo is famous for in my opinion.
I will say though, Marie's LSD experience in Istanbul is fucking wonderful.
In the beginning of the autobiography, the audience is transported to Paulo’s home country where he suffers from his most traumatic incident. While the situation is definitely scarring, the way it’s written feels like a semi-cheesy action film where you expect Paulo to light off a detonator and fly away in his chopper.
With all of that being said, if you love reading about this period of time it’s still a fairly pleasant experience. As someone who hasn’t had the chance to leave America yet, I always love escaping through literature - I just would’ve loved for Paulo either to take more time to actually explain his surroundings areas or again put it into an email lol. For me, this “autobiography” would be around a 2.5-3/5 range! For how incredible this story should’ve been with what the situation was it missed that magic that Paulo is famous for in my opinion.
I will say though, Marie's LSD experience in Istanbul is fucking wonderful.
leoni1975's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
oregonian329's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
hopes_literary_life's review against another edition
4.0
ι ƒєєℓ ¢σηтєηт.
I have no other words to describe this book. I can't talk about it like I talked about Alchemist. Alchemist had me wanting to connect to the world. This, this has me craving my own love, for peace, for the calm. This has me silent, wanting to dig dip into my soul, my very existence.
"
I have no other words to describe this book. I can't talk about it like I talked about Alchemist. Alchemist had me wanting to connect to the world. This, this has me craving my own love, for peace, for the calm. This has me silent, wanting to dig dip into my soul, my very existence.
"
jenilee87's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
rdgarg1's review against another edition
4.0
Paulo described his journey as a hippie traveling from Amsterdam to Nepal by a bus. He describes how a person attains happiness by leaving all the worldly affairs behind.
lilwinning's review against another edition
okay I know I just logged this today but I already returned it to the library bc wowie I was bored. I'm sorry paulo I loved the alchemist but this just was not it