The Alchemist is a magical story about a shepherd boy, Santiago, who travels in search of a worldly treasure he saw in a dream. Along the way in this, often treacherous, journey, he teaches us to listen to our hearts, read the omens that lie before us on our path, and follow our dreams. This amazing story makes a great holiday present for book lovers and non-readers on your gift-giving list.

One poignant lesson comes at the end of the book when the alchemist he befriends says to Santiago:

What you still need to know is this: before a dream is realized, the Soul of the World tests everything that was learned along the way. It does this not because it is evil, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we’ve learned as we’ve moved toward that dream. That’s the point at which most people give up. It’s the point at which, as we say in the language of the desert, one ‘dies of thirst just when the palm trees have appeared on the horizon.’

This lesson is similar to the old proverb that the darkest hour of the night comes just before the dawn.