The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho

This book claims to be an "International bestseller phenemenon" and is apparently targeted towards male youth.  I picked it up at the library because the title and cover caught my interest.

Actually well written, with interesting characters, exotic setting, and plot that moves steadily along,  nevertheless this book left me feeling upset.  What upset me was the underlying message it sends to young boys about girls/women.  That and the fact that the author--and international readers--appear to be oblivious to that message.

Bottom line is that the story leaves no room for girls/women to put themselves into the protagonist/hero's role.  No, not only was there no indication that girls/women would have a dream or "personal legend" of their own, but the female characters in the story were all used to advance and support the young man's interest with no concern for them and their interest.

Why couldn't the author have written this little story with room for girls/women to identify with the deep power within them and in the universe supporting them? At one point the value of Tradition is raised by way of explaining how a desert society/community functioned/survived in harsh conditions.  On the one hand this was positive, but on the other hand a young girl probably fell victim to that Tradition yet the author showed no concern.  Just prior to departing for the last leg of his journey to the pyramids to find his treasure, the young man did something against the taboos of Tradition.  He then blythely departed and the author neglected to reflect on the consequences of this action for the young woman who would have been forced to suffer the harsh backlash from the community (for surely this action would not have gone unnoticed) for her innocent role in the actions taken.

It just saddens me that this type of story could still be written today.  If it's true that it was read by millions, then it speaks to me of the failure for the plight of girls/women to advance beyond this myopic point of view after so much work and suffering endured for so long so many.