First Impression - Aarif Siddiqi

     The Alchemist is a novel by Paulo Coelho.  In the first 20 pages of the novel there are only two characters that are mentioned. We are introduced to a boy name Santiago a his desire love he has for a girl whose name we haven't be mentioned yet. Personally I don't have no interest in reading books but, I am really interested on reading further throughout the novel. Although the author does use some difficult vocabulary which gets me confused by on the other hand it is a book I recommend reading.

     It is quite interested on how the author starts the novel. The author gives no background or anything, he starts off by "A boy name Santiago".  Witch had me thinking on what the author would convey through this character. There is also a lot of suspense and hints that will foreshadow throughout the novel. I as reader not interested in books but I do enjoy suspense and this made me reading further on. Furthermore Paulo Coelho did a great job on the setting because you can acutely create an image in your head what is going on. This helps most readers such as I or anyone else who looks forward to reading this book.

     Santiago who we only get introduced to is a shepherd and he loves to travel. But he has a desire love for a girl who is illiterate but her name we are not mentioned. Santiago being a shepherd and who is always traveling we can assume that he will have to forget about his love towards her and will encounter many things. The setting takes place in a Spanish town name Tarifa. Santiago knows a lot of people and has many friends because he is always travelling.

     In conclusion this book so far looks like it's a romantic novel. Due to the fact Santiago loves this girl but whose name he hasn't come across yet. But as a shepherd who is always travelling he might go through some challenges that will make him forget about his love. Although this is a romantic novel there is a lot of suspense which will make you going and on how its make me read further on.        

The Alchemist - Kapilan

In the first twenty pages of the novel The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.  I see that the book is mostly talking about Santiago,a shepherd . The novel at this point is also showing the slight glimpses of a girl that Santiago leans his side towards. At this point this book is going on a pretty good run for me and I am enjoying it. But I very much do that the use of higher vocabulary is very common which really does slower my perception and perspective of the novel.

As I read the first few pages of the novel I started to realize that the author had put nothing if not anything for a introduction. the story just starts as "The boy's name was Santiago. Dusk was falling as the boy arrived with his herd at an abandoned church. The roof had fallen in long ago, and an enormous sycamore had grown on the spot where the sacristy had once stood." as you can see there was not really any smooth movement in to the opening of the book but I still was able to create a picture in my mind of what had been going on. Nonetheless, the non usage of a pick up into the story, really had me thinking about what was going to happen next, and I really do think this was one of the good features of the book other than the ones yet to come.


Reading throughout  the novel  I have get the feeling that this book may feed my interest. The protagonist of this story is typically a very curious person who is now on his journey in life with his sheep, along his side.  he moves on in life and comes across a girl whose mane is not known. The introduction to their meeting was not really that significant but that's what made me move on throughout the novel. what really got me curios through their meeting was when she suspected him of not being smart when he was able to read thoroughly.

Overall I think that this book really does give you a thrill. This is because the author Paulo Coelho is very good at making his readers attracted to his books due to his ways of keeping you in question of what was next. As a result i feel that this book will be very adventurous and thrilling. I am greatly looking forward to reading on.

First Impressions Journal by Terry Eugine

     The first twenty page of The Alchemist had brought me full attention and I wanted to know more of what was going on. So far, I find the book very interesting to read by how the words are presented to the reader, and the flow of the story. Personally, I like reading books that are from African countries because that is where I find my comfort of reading, and it shows the characteristics of their culture, which therefore I admire.

     As a reader I know that this book is from the African countries because by the main characters name, which is Santiago, and where the setting of the story is taken place, which is a Spanish town of Tarifa. Books that involve talking about the main characters life, and their opinions, allows me to follow through what they are going through in their life, and these type of books lead to become more attentive to the novel, and makes me understand more of what their struggle in life is.

     I believe that the theme of the novel is fate because I think that further on in the novel. there will be scenes where one of the characters will determine their developments of events beyond their control, as regarded by a supernatural power. I feel that this book would be a perfect example of fate because of the characteristics being used. some predictions that I have from this book would be maybe Santiago will fall in love with the merchants daughter, and also he might have more dreams to come that may happen in the reality which may also might foreshadow what is going to happen next.

    There are many more events to come in the story which I cannot wait to read. I also think that this might not be the best book I ever read, but over all it seems to be a a very catchy book. Some negative thoughts that I think would be how the introduction was need more catchy phrases to catch the readers attention, also made it very formal. the introduction was also not in a flow because they started it off by a persons name which I thought to be very unsatisfying.

     Overall, I still think that this novel is a very interesting novel to read, and I am glad that we as a group had chose this book. I still am excited to read further on in the novel, and finding out if my predictions were correct. I also found the theme of love going on in this novel. I know this because as Santiago travels around the world, he finds the girl of his dreams which is the merchants daughter. This is what I think of this book as a reader.          

    

        

First Impressions Journal-Andrew Davis

By: Andrew Davis
The Alchemist is a book written by Paulo Coelho. So far, I have seen the book to revolve around two people; Santiago, who is a shepherd, and a girl who he took interest in, who's name remains unknown at the moment. Typically, I enjoy stories based on legends, as the legends being told are always interesting. Therefore, this book has quite piqued my interest. However, an overwhelming use of difficult vocabulary combined with had to understand passages is taking away from that experience.

Upon reading the first page of this book, I was quite taken a back at the enormous lack of context that was provided for the introduction. The story just jumped into the life of a random boy named Santiago who was walking into a church. The reader (in this case, me) has to find out for themselves what is happening, making it a challenge. Quite frankly, I do not always enjoy challenges while reading novels-moreover, I would rather have it to be an enjoyable experience. However, a positive would be the fact that by not revealing much in this scene, Paulo Coelho keeps the reader in suspense about what would happen later on in the book.

As I examined the revealed personalities of the characters, I have noticed quite a few positives that look as if they promise high hopes for the novel ahead. Santiago, who is the only revealed character at this point is an aspiring explorer; being a shepherd, he like to take his sheep on great journeys and discover what the world had to offer him. He ends up meeting a girl who he seems to take great interest in. They socialized for a short amount of time, and then he had to leave. Considering this girl had underestimated the limits of his abilities by daring to think he could not read just because he was a shepherd, he still took no notice to it and conversed with her nonetheless. Typically, no character in a novel would ever be this humble, which makes this situation particularly special.

From this situation, I can already make an implicit prediction about the events that may occur further on in the novel. Since Santiago loves 'this girl' with all his heart, but is a shepherd, he will likely end up having to travel around the world searching for his true love, of whom he regretfully left behind. He will encounter many lethal dangers along the way such as snowstorms, tsunamis and even hurricanes, but he would endure it all just to find her again. However, it would all eventually be too much, and he would be killed by one of these disasters, in time. His funeral would then be held after his body was located, and that girl, whom he died searching for was at the funeral. I myself am not normally a person who enjoys love stories, but this one coped with just the right amount of action would be perfect, if it were what the book was about.