Reading the signs

man with a book by Paulo Coelho

man with The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Aleph and The Alchemist joint No 7 (in non fiction chart)

I was waiting for the shuttle between terminal buildings. I was feeling very sad as only a few hours before I was in Venice for a fleeting visit and it was there I bade a sad farewell to my Japanese friends, Ken, Yumi and Mio, with whom I had shared three wonderful days.

I was feeling particularly miserable as on the train to Venice Mio had made me two lovely origami figures to remember her by, and as I came in to land I noticed I had crushed them and now they were merely two crumpled pieces of paper.

I looked up, and I noticed the man in front of me had a bag within which was a book by Paulo Coelho.

I saw it as a good sign. It lifted my sadness.

I made, what most people would have thought was a strange request. I asked may I take a photo of him with the bag.

He said yes. He asked did it matter which way he was looking. I said no.

I was then curious which book he had and did he enjoy it.

It was The Alchemist, but with a new cover that I had not seen before.

He said he was enjoying it very much, that he had not before heard of Paulo Coelho. He was sufficiently impressed that he was going to buy his other books.

He had been on a trip to Geneva and was saving the last part of the book for the last leg of his flight.

Whilst in Geneva, he asked his colleagues had they heard of Paulo Coelho? Apparently none had.

I then explained my interest. That I had just returned from Bassano del Grappa where I had been at a party with Paulo Coelho and at launch of a pen by Montegrappa called The Alchemist.

I showed him a Monetegrappa pen, though I hasten to add, not from The Alchemist limited edition collection.

We then parted and went our separate ways.

I found a bookshop and too my surprise found Aleph was not only out in paperback but was at joint No 7 with The Alchemist. Strange though in non-fiction.

Synchronicity: I had just returned from at a launch of a pen, The Alchemist. Paulo Coelho lives in Geneva.

Tags: Aleph, books, Montegrappa, Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist