Paperback Trade Fiction, Published: August 10, 2008

1. THE SHACK, by William P. Young. A man whose daughter was abducted is invited to an isolated shack, apparently by God.

2. WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, by Sara Gruen. A young man — and an elephant — save a Depression-era circus.

3. THE KITE RUNNER, by Khaled Hosseini. An Afghan-American returns to Kabul to learn how a childhood friend has fared under the Taliban.

4. BAREFOOT, by Elin Hilderbrand. Three women burdened by various problems (work, love, health) spend a transformative summer together on Nantucket.

5. THE ALCHEMIST, by Paulo Coelho. A Spanish shepherd boy travels to Egypt in search of treasure.

6. IN THE WOODS, by Tana French. An Irish detective investigating the murder of a 12-year-old girl returns to the woods where he experienced a terrible ordeal during his own childhood.

7. NINETEEN MINUTES, by Jodi Picoult. The aftermath of a high school shooting reveals the fault lines in a small New Hampshire town.

8. THE ROAD, by Cormac McCarthy. A father and son travel in post-apocalypse America.

9. LOVING FRANK, by Nancy Horan. A story of the romance between Frank Lloyd Wright and Mamah Borthwick Cheney, and the scandal that followed when they left behind spouses and children.

10. THE FRIDAY NIGHT KNITTING CLUB, by Kate Jacobs.  A group of women meet weekly at a New York City yarn shop.

11. MY SISTER’S KEEPER, by Jodi Picoult. A girl sues her parents after learning they want her to donate a kidney to her sibling.

12. THE LAST SUMMER (OF YOU AND ME), by Ann Brashares.  The bond between two sisters is tested by a romance with an old friend.

13. THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES, by Sue Monk Kidd. In South Carolina in 1964, a teenage girl tries to discover the secret to her mother’s past.

14. SECOND CHANCE, by Jane Green.A group of 30-something friends reconsider their lives after one of their number is killed in a terrorist attack.

15. THE MEMORY KEEPER’S DAUGHTER, by Kim Edwards. A doctor’s decision to secretly send his newborn daughter, who has Down syndrome, to an institution haunts everyone involved.

16. OUT STEALING HORSES, by Per Petterson.  In a remote cabin, a Norwegian man circles around his memories of the past.

17. THOSE WHO SAVE US, by Jenna Blum.  A professor of German history investigates what really went on in her mother’s life in Germany during World War II.

18. ON CHESIL BEACH, by Ian McEwan. A wedding night goes terribly wrong.

19. THE YIDDISH POLICEMEN’S UNION, by Michael Chabon. A detective investigates a murder in a Jewish settlement in Alaska.

20. TRUE TO THE GAME III, by Teri Woods. Gangsters, crooked cops and a vicious killer pursue Gena in this conclusion to the True to the Game trilogy.

21. THE GATHERING, by Anne Enright

22. THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH, by Ken Follett

23. MIDDLESEX, by Jeffrey Eugenides

24. THE GATECRASHER, by Madeleine Wickham

25. GHOSTWALK, by Rebecca Stott

26. THE GRAVEDIGGER’S DAUGHTER, by Joyce Carol Oates

27. ISLAND OF LOST GIRLS, by Jennifer McMahon

28. SOMETHING BORROWED, by Emily Giffin

29. AWAY, by Amy Bloom

30. REPLAY, by Ken Grimwood

31. BUDDHA, by Deepak Chopra

32. THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL, by Philippa Gregory

33. THE BOLEYN INHERITANCE, by Philippa Gregory

34. RANT, by Chuck Palahniuk

35. THE MAYTREES, by Annie Dillard

©2010 The World of Books. All Rights Reserved.

The style of The Alchemist is fairy simplistic. Paulo Coelho tells his story by means of an all-knowing narrator. But there is warmth in the writing, and there are wonderful passages of simple wisdoms and far-reaching reflections at almost every page. It is a book one reads and lives. The Alchemist is not about the Elexir of Life or the Philosopher’s Stone. The Alchemist is a book about listening with our hearts, and following our hearts. As well, it is a book about Love for nature and all beings, and about Spiritual Enlightenment.

It is a magical story. Santiago is an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure as extravagant as any ever found. To achieve this, he leaves behind that which he holds dearest, to embark on an adventure instead of clinging to his possessions. From his home in Spain he journeys to the markets of Tangiers and across the Egyptian desert to a fateful encounter with the alchemist. On his journey he meets people who tell him stories and things about himself. He learns how important it is to listen, and to see and read all the omens that one encounters along life’s path.

It’s a simple story, but rich on experiences, observations, dreams, and longing - some of the main ingridents of life itself. And so the simple story addresses those grand themes of our lives, and touches those who read it with a magic wand.

– Peter

Links The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho at Bokkilden, Amazon US: The Alchemist, and amazon UK: The Alchemist

©2010 The World of Books. All Rights Reserved.