Part of my New Year resolution was not only to read more books, but to read books outside my usual genre. So, I decided to start off with what had been recommended to be as a great philosophical book that is "part self-help, part fairy tale", The Alchemist.
I'm a long-time fan of fairy tales and mythology so I'm not surprised that people recommended it to me. Reviews claimed it to be an easy, profound read that changed the lives of its readers and encouraged them to fight for their dreams. So I thought that, given what I was told and some of the things that I read online, The Alchemist might be just the thing I needed to dip my toes into philosophy and get encouragement along the way.
But oh wow. I was wrong.
The Alchemist was cute, but I hated almost every minute of it and felt ten times worse after having pushed through. Instead of feeling inspired, I was angrier and more frustrated with the trajectory of my adult life and lack of control of my future than when I had began.
So what on earth am I missing? Every piece of advice felt tired, too idealistic to the point of being tone deaf, or non-statements that really didn't mean anything at all. I feel extremely dumb for getting nothing out of it. How can it be life changing for so many people, but fall so flat for me? Did I just completely miss the deeper meaning?