I write it, I don’t read it.
That was always my thinking of fiction. Even though my reading habits have changed substantially for the better (read more on that here) I still don’t read a lot of fiction.
Part of it is because I don’t read so much for enjoyment, I read to learn. While you can sometimes learn great and wonderful things from a fiction book, see Tolkien, I typically lean towards reading books which directly and explicitly speak to a concepts or idea that I’m interested in (self development, business strategy, marketing concepts, that sort of thing).
My main thinking when I read a book is this: How can I use this in my life.
Recently I picked up a book of fiction to read along with the several other books I was reading. I had heard some good things about it so I figured it was worth a few pages a day of my time.
It was well worth a few pages of my time.
Both magical & wise the story carries you with it and it does so with such ease and charm. A timeless tale, literally not set in a specific time, that reads as graceful as a poem and conveys ideas like a parable.
Historical and religious elements wrapped into themes of purpose and fate, guiding you satisfyingly along to places you didn’t expect to go.
Having now completed its pages I can firmly say...it might be the best book I’ve ever read.
Now I know that’s high praise, and believe me it’s hard for me to put anything at or above the level of To Kill a Mockingbird, but in the minutes, hours, and days after finishing Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist I can’t escape that assessment.
So there you have it, take a look it’s in a book.