Hello, welcome to my blog

Mostly you will find, here, transcribed entries from the secret diary that I used to keep as a teenager between 1970 and 1975. I try to be honest with my transcriptions, but, just occasionally I do edit, to protect myself or others from embarrassment or some other emotion.
Also, though, I like to do a brief review of the books I have been reading, so these are interspersed throughout. I reserve the right to write blog entries, also, about other random things.
Why do I keep this blog? I don't know. I am an academic and one of my research interests is around how people construct their own identities. The diary transcriptions, and what I write about my books, are very much about revealing something of my identity.

Sunday 10 August 2014

Paulo Coelho - just abandoned reading ........

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

2/10


I think this is the kind of book that everyone says one should read, and that is why it was on my shelf. Well, I tried. I got to page 25 and then thought 'No. I just don't want any lessons for life at the moment, thank you'.

Young shepherd, travelling and looking for answers meets mystical people who give him clues. Maybe if I'd stuck it out to the end I would have found out the answer to the mysteries of life and happiness and destiny. But no. I'm okay thanks, for the moment.

When I was young, unlike the shepherd, who walks about with his sheep, I used to walk up to Northmoor library and get out the Fairy Books of Andrew Lang (The Yellow Fairy Book, The Blue Fairy Book etc). I worked my way through all the colours diligently and absorbed all the stories of magical happenings, poor fishermen being given three wishes, long journeys to find the hidden meaning of something etc. I enjoyed them, but then I moved on to other reading which usually delivered its messages more subtly.
I can't work out why I want to turn my back on Paulo Coelho's attempt to tell me a tale with a moral. Maybe I need more subtlety.

If I work it out, I'll let you know.

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