Three books by Paulo Coelho

three books by Paulo Coelho

Most people think the first book by Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho was The Alchemist. They are wrong, it was The Pilgrimage. And for the pedantic, yes I am ignoring obscure books in Portuguese published in Brazil.

The Pilgrimage is an account of walking The Way of St James or as it is known El Camino de Santiago. Last year saw published a special limited 25th anniversary edition of The Pilgrimage. It was a limited edition, and is now a hard to find collectors edition.

When Paulo Coleho walked the route in the mid-1989s, few pilgrims walked the route. At a bar, halfway along the route, as many passed in a year, as today pass in an hour.

When walking El Camino de Santiago and finally reaching ones destination, one has to give something back. For Paulo Coelho it was The Alchemist, the story of an Andalusian shepherd boy Santiago, of his search for treasure, of following his dreams.

This year sees the publication of a special limited 25th anniversary edition of The Alchemist. It is a limited edition, and is already a hard to find collectors edition.

Last week in UK, this week in the US, saw the publication of Manuscript Found in Accra. An international best seller, it shot straight to No 1 in US. In UK, nowhere due to the crass stupidity of bookshop chains which now control the book trade.

A manuscript is found in Accra. It tells the story of the eve of the Crusaders attacking Jerusalem. The style is very much that of Kahlil Gibran The Prophet and Jesus the Son of Man.