Paulo Coelho Popular Books

Paulo Coelho Biography & Facts

Paulo Coelho de Souza ( KWEL-yoo, koo-EL-yoo, -⁠yoh, Portuguese: [ˈpawlu koˈeʎu]; born 24 August 1947) is a Brazilian lyricist and novelist and a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters since 2002. His 1988 novel The Alchemist was an international best-seller. Biography Paulo Coelho was born on 24 August 1947 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and attended a Jesuit school. At age 17, Coelho's parents committed him to a mental institution from which he escaped three times before being released at the age of 20. Coelho later remarked that "It wasn't that they wanted to hurt me, but they didn't know what to do... They did not do that to destroy me, they did that to save me." At his parents' wishes, Coelho enrolled in law school and abandoned his dream of becoming a writer. One year later, he dropped out and lived life as a hippie, travelling through South America, North Africa, Mexico, and Europe and started using drugs in the 1960s.Upon his return to Brazil, Coelho worked as a songwriter, composing lyrics for Elis Regina, Rita Lee, and Brazilian icon Raul Seixas. Composing with Raul led to Coelho being associated with magic and occultism, due to the content of some songs. He is often accused that these songs were rip-offs of foreign songs not well known in Brazil at the time. In 1974, by his account, he was arrested for "subversive" activities and tortured by the ruling military government, who had taken power ten years earlier and viewed his lyrics as left-wing and dangerous. Coelho also worked as an actor, journalist and theatre director before pursuing his writing career.Coelho married artist Christina Oiticica in 1980. Together they had previously spent half the year in Rio de Janeiro and the other half in a French country house in the Pyrenees, but now the couple reside permanently in Geneva, Switzerland.In 1986 Coelho walked the 500-plus mile Road of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain. On the path, he had a spiritual awakening, which he described autobiographically in The Pilgrimage. In an interview, Coelho stated "[In 1986], I was very happy in the things I was doing. I was doing something that gave me food and water – to use the metaphor in The Alchemist, I was working, I had a person whom I loved, I had money, but I was not fulfilling my dream. My dream was, and still is, to be a writer." Coelho would leave his lucrative career as a songwriter and pursue writing full-time. The Pilgrim – Story of Paulo Coelho is the international title for the biographical film Não Pare na Pista, a co-production between Brazil’s Drama Films and the Spanish Babel Films, in which the younger and older Coelho are played by two different actors. One of the producers, Iôna de Macêdo, told Screen International: "The film tells the story of a man who has a dream. It's a little like Alice in Wonderland – he's someone who is too big for his house." The film, shot in Portuguese, had its premiere in Brazilian theatres in 2014 and was internationally distributed in 2015. Career In 1982, Coelho published his first book, Hell Archives, which failed to make a substantial impact. In 1986 he contributed to the Practical Manual of Vampirism, although he later tried to take it off the shelves since he considered it "of bad quality." After making the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in 1986, Coelho wrote The Pilgrimage, published in 1987. While trying to overcome his procrastination about launching his writing career, Coelho decided, "If I see a white feather today, that is a sign that God is giving me that I have to write a new book." Seeing one in the window of a shop, he began writing that day. The following year, Coelho wrote The Alchemist and published it through a small Brazilian publishing house that made an initial print run of 900 copies and decided not to reprint it. He subsequently found a bigger publishing house, and with the publication of his next book Brida, The Alchemist took off. HarperCollins decided to publish the book in 1994. Later it became an international bestseller. In a 2009 interview with the Syrian Forward Magazine, Coelho stated that the Sufi tradition had been an influence on him, particularly when writing The Alchemist and later The Zahir.Since the publication of The Alchemist, Coelho has generally written at least one novel every two years. Four of them – The Pilgrimage, Hippie, The Valkyries and Aleph – are autobiographical, while the majority of the rest are broadly fictional. Other books, like Maktub, The Manual of the Warrior of Light and Like the Flowing River, are collections of essays, newspaper columns, or selected teachings. His work has been published in more than 170 countries and translated into eighty-three languages. Together, his books have sold 320 million copies. On 22 December 2016, Coelho was listed by UK-based company Richtopia at number 2 in the list of 200 most influential contemporary authors.However, reactions to his writing have not been without dissension. Though he was raised in a Catholic family and describes himself as of that faith even now, his stance has been described as incompatible with the Catholic faith, because of its New Age, pantheist and relativist contents. And whatever his sales, reviews of Coelho's later work consistently note its superficiality.In 2016, he was contacted by basketball player Kobe Bryant, who wanted to discuss a children's book project with him. Some months before Bryant's death in a helicopter crash in January 2020, they started to write the book together, but upon hearing about his passing, Coelho decided to delete the whole draft, saying in an interview that "it didn't make any sense to publish without him." He did not say how many pages had been written or whether the book had a title. Bibliography References External links Official website. Discover the Paulo Coelho popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Paulo Coelho books.

Best Seller Paulo Coelho Books of 2024

  • The Archer synopsis, comments

    The Archer

    Paulo Coelho, Margaret Jull Costa & Christoph Niemann

    From the #1 bestselling author of The Alchemist comes an inspiring story about a young man seeking wisdom from an elder, and the practical lessons imparted along the way....

  • Letters from a Stoic synopsis, comments

    Letters from a Stoic

    Seneca & Robin Campbell

    'It is philosophy that has the duty of protecting us ... without it no one can lead a life free of fear or worry'For several years of his turbulent life, in which he was dogged by ...

  • The Everlasting Man synopsis, comments

    The Everlasting Man

    G. K. Chesterton

    The Everlasting Man is a Christian apologetics book written by G. K. Chesterton. It is, to some extent, a deliberate rebuttal of H. G. Wells' The Outline of History, disputing ...

  • The Birth of Tragedy synopsis, comments

    The Birth of Tragedy

    Friedrich Nietzsche, Michael Tanner & Shaun Whiteside

    Nietzsche's first published book, The Birth of Tragedy is a compelling argument for the necessity of art in lifeThis landmark work of criticism is fuelled by Nietzsche's enthusiasm...

  • The Power of the Heart synopsis, comments

    The Power of the Heart

    Baptist de Pape

    With its unprecedented convocation of eighteen of the world’s greatest spiritual thinkers, writers, and scientists, including Maya Angelou, Deepak Chopra, Paulo Coelho, and Eckhart...

  • Paulo Coelho synopsis, comments

    Paulo Coelho

    Esther Gloria

    Paulo Coelho ha construido una suerte de piezas que permiten armar un curioso rompecabezas, cuyo resultado final es buena parte de su pensamiento, acerca de cuestiones de fundament...

  • Manuscript Found in Accra synopsis, comments

    Manuscript Found in Accra

    Paulo Coelho & Margaret Jull Costa

    The latest novel from the #1 internationally bestselling author of The Alchemist.There is nothing wrong with anxiety. Although we cannot control God’s time, it is part of the human...

  • Now is the Time synopsis, comments

    Now is the Time

    Stanislaus Kennedy

    "Take time to live it's what life is for."This is an inspiring and thoughtprovoking work of vision from multibestseller Sister Stanislaus Kennedy. A timely and prescient collectio...

  • La Magia synopsis, comments

    La Magia

    Rhonda Byrne

    Una palabra lo cambia todo.Durante más de veinte siglos, las palabras contenidas en un texto sagrado han desconcertado, confundido y han sido malinterpretadas por casi todos los qu...

  • The Penguin Book of Myths and Legends of Ancient Egypt synopsis, comments

    The Penguin Book of Myths and Legends of Ancient Egypt

    Joyce Tyldesley

    From Herodotus to The Mummy, Western civilization has long been fascinated with the exotic myths and legends of Ancient Egypt but they have often been misunderstood. Here acclaimed...

  • City of God synopsis, comments

    City of God

    Saint Augustine, G. R. Evans & Henry Bettenson

    City of God is an enduringly significant work in the history of Christian thought, by one of its central figuresWritten as an eloquent defence of the faith at a time when the Roman...

  • The Spy synopsis, comments

    The Spy

    Paulo Coelho

    In his new novel, Paulo Coelho, bestselling author of The Alchemist and Adultery, brings to life one of history's most enigmatic women: Mata Hari. HER ONLY CRIM...

  • Top Inspiring Thoughts of Paulo Coelho synopsis, comments

    Top Inspiring Thoughts of Paulo Coelho

    M.D. Sharma

    <p><b>Top Inspiring Thoughts of Paulo Coelho is a compilation of the profound and enlightening ideas woven throughout the works of the acclaimed author Paulo Coelho.<...

  • Gorgias synopsis, comments

    Gorgias

    Plato, Chris Emlyn-Jones & Walter Hamilton

    Taking the form of a dialogue between Socrates, Gorgias, Polus and Callicles, GORGIAS debates perennial questions about the nature of government and those who aspire to public offi...

  • The Woman of a Thousand Names synopsis, comments

    The Woman of a Thousand Names

    Alexandra Lapierre

    From the internationally bestselling author of the “fascinating epic” (Associated Press) Between Love and Honor comes a rich, sweeping tale based on the captivating true story of t...

  • Hippie synopsis, comments

    Hippie

    Paulo Coelho

    The worldwide bestseller by the author of The Alchemist takes us on a journey back in time, from South America to Holland to Nepal, drawing on the rich experiences of his own life ...

  • Surface With Daring synopsis, comments

    Surface With Daring

    Douglas Reeman

    Hiding, lying in wait on the sea bed, is EX16.Though one of the most important ships in the Royal Navy, she's not much to look at; she's only 54 feet long, with no defensive armame...

  • The Gaze synopsis, comments

    The Gaze

    Elif Shafak

    A beautiful and compelling novel, Elif Shafak's The Gaze considers the damage which can be inflicted by our simple desire to look at others"I didn't say anything. I didn't return h...

  • The Freedom of the Will synopsis, comments

    The Freedom of the Will

    Jonathan Edwards

    This eBook has been formatted to the highest digital standards and adjusted for readability on all devices. The Freedom of the Will is a work by Christian reformer, theologian, and...

  • Poder ser synopsis, comments

    Poder ser

    Juan Tonelli

    Juan Tonelli recopila en este libro una serie de historias que abordan los grandes problemas de la vida: "el deber ser", los mandatos, la confianza, la mirada de los otros, la infa...

  • PAULO COELHO synopsis, comments

    PAULO COELHO

    Pedro Palao Pons

    Este libro no pretende ser un repaso de la vida y obra de uno de los escritores más celebrados de los últimos tiempos, ni tampoco un viaje sobre un gran número de textos y obras, s...

  • On the Suffering of the World synopsis, comments

    On the Suffering of the World

    Arthur Schopenhauer

    Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They ...

  • Timaeus and Critias synopsis, comments

    Timaeus and Critias

    Plato & Desmond Lee

    Timaeus and Critias is a Socratic dialogue in two parts. A response to an account of an ideal state told by Socrates, it begins with Timaeus’s theoretical exposition of the cosmos ...

  • Adultery synopsis, comments

    Adultery

    Paulo Coelho, Margaret Jull Costa & Zoe Perry

    #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER  From the extraordinary author of the international bestselling sensation The Alchemist comes a provocative novel that explores the question of wha...

  • Where I Lived, and What I Lived For synopsis, comments

    Where I Lived, and What I Lived For

    Henry Thoreau

    Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They ...

  • The Swindler and Lazarillo de Tormes synopsis, comments

    The Swindler and Lazarillo de Tormes

    Francisco De Quevedo & Michael Alpert

    The unlikely heroes of the Spanish picaresque novels make their way by whatever means they can through a colourful and seamy underworld populated by unsavoury beggars, corrupt p...

  • Discourses and Selected Writings synopsis, comments

    Discourses and Selected Writings

    Epictetus & Robert Dobbin

    Contains The Discourses/Fragments/Enchiridion'I must die. But must I die bawling?'Epictetus, a Greek Stoic and freed slave, ran a thriving philosophy school in Nicopolis in the ear...

  • El Poder synopsis, comments

    El Poder

    Rhonda Byrne

    Este es el manual para el poder más grande que existe en el Universo: El Poder para lograr todo lo que quieres. Sin El Poder, no habrías nacido.Sin El Poder, no existiría un solo s...

  • A Year with Anthony De Mello synopsis, comments

    A Year with Anthony De Mello

    Anthony De Mello

    Release your true inner self, shed society’s expectations and programming, and regain your equilibrium with A Year with Anthony De Mello. This weekbyweek workbook is filled with fi...

  • Don Juan synopsis, comments

    Don Juan

    Lord Byron, E. Steffan, T.G. Steffan & W.W. Pratt

    Byron's exuberant masterpiece tells of the adventures of Don Juan, beginning with his illicit love affair at the age of sixteen in his native Spain and his subsequent exile to Ital...

  • The Invisible Hand synopsis, comments

    The Invisible Hand

    Adam Smith

    Adam Smith’s landmark treatise on the free market paved the way for modern capitalism, arguing that competition is the engine of a productive society, and that selfinterest will ev...

  • A Treatise of Human Nature synopsis, comments

    A Treatise of Human Nature

    David Hume & Ernest Mossner

    One of the most significant works of Western philosophy, Hume's Treatise was published in 173940, before he was thirty years old. A pinnacle of English empiricism, it is a comprehe...

  • Aleph synopsis, comments

    Aleph

    Paulo Coelho

    Transform your life. Rewrite your destiny.In his most personal novel to date, internationally bestselling author Paulo Coelho returns with a remarkable journey of selfdiscovery. Li...

  • On the Good Life synopsis, comments

    On the Good Life

    Cicero & Grant Michael

    For the great Roman orator and statesman Cicero, 'the good life' was at once a life of contentment and one of moral virtue and the two were inescapably intertwined. This volume br...

  • On the Genealogy of Morals synopsis, comments

    On the Genealogy of Morals

    Friedrich Nietzsche & Michael A. Scarpitti

    The companion book to Beyond Good and Evil, the three essays included here offer vital insights into Nietzsche's theories of morality and human psychology.Nietzsche claimed that th...

  • The New Spaniards synopsis, comments

    The New Spaniards

    John Hooper

    A fully revised, expanded and updated edition of this masterly portrayal of contemporary Spain.The restoration of democracy in 1977 heralded a period of intense change that continu...

  • Stop Fixing Yourself synopsis, comments

    Stop Fixing Yourself

    Anthony De Mello

    Can you imagine how liberating it would be to never be disillusioned again, never be disappointed again, never feel let down again? Want to wake up, come alive, and be free? Anthon...

  • The Desert Enigma synopsis, comments

    The Desert Enigma

    Isaac Weishaupt

    In THE DESERT ENIGMA: AN ANALYSIS OF OCCULT SYMBOLISM IN PAULO COELHO'S "THE ALCHEMIST"; author, blogger, and independent investigator Isaac "The IlluminatiWatcher" Weishaupt revea...