“At that moment, it seemed to him that time stood still, and the Soul of the World surged within him. When he looked into her dark eyes, and saw that her lips were poised between a laugh and silence, he learned that the most important part of the language that all the world spoke is the language that everyone on earth is capable of understanding in their heart. It was love…”

Being an English major, I have read a plethora of novels. The beauty of literature is that you can fall in love with thousands of different stories, each of them able to be classified as your favorite. They foster creativity, encourage imagination, and are the best teachers about life and about ourselves.

A book that I have come across recently that was incredibly successful in provoking a changed perspective and opening my mind is one called "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. I’d read online numerous blog posts claiming this to be the book, and I was pleased to find that I could not agree more.

My first time reading "The Alchemist" was with a friend. One rainy Saturday afternoon, we headed down to Powell’s and each picked out our own copy to begin reading immediately. Being incredibly competitive in nature, my initial reading of this book turned out to be more of a race to see who could finish it first (he won). However, flying through it the first time merely prompted my second reading of the book; a slower, closer look at the treasures embedded between the lines. For this, I am grateful.

"The Alchemist" is one of my favorite stories because of its simplicity. Much like "The Little Prince" in nature, the story takes you on a soul-searching journey that will leave you with a newfound sense of clarity. Eloquently stated on the back of the book, Coelho “teaches us about the wisdom of listening to our hearts, learning to read the omens strewn along life’s path, and, above all, following our dreams.” I couldn’t have described it better myself.

This book has become my bible in a way; that’s how good it is. It has a special place on my nightstand (not kidding), and I have already marked up and highlighted my favorite passages. Coelho’s words are ones that I live by, and they act as inspiration and enlightenment every time I return to them. All in all, the story that he has constructed is simple yet profound and deserves to be read by every individual.