'The Alchemist' (1984) by Paulo Coelho

The Alchemist is a novel by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho which was first published in 1988. Originally written in Portuguese, it became a widely translated. The story follows the shepherd boy Santiago in his journey across North Africa to the Egyptian pyramids after he dreams of finding a treasure there.

Coelho wrote The Alchemist in only two weeks in 1987. He explained that he was able to write at this pace because the story was "already written in his soul."

The book's main theme is about finding one's destiny, although according to The New York Times, The Alchemist is "more self-help than literature". The advice given to Santiago that "when you really want something to happen, the whole universe will conspire so that your wish comes true" is the core of the novel's philosophy and a motif that plays throughout it.