Aleph

Transform your life. Rewrite your destiny.

In his most personal novel to date, internationally best-selling author Paulo Coelho returns with a remarkable journey of self-discovery. Like the main character in his much-beloved The Alchemist, Paulo is facing a grave crisis of faith. As he seeks a path of spiritual renewal and growth, he decides to begin again: to travel, to experiment, to reconnect with people and the landscapes around him.

Setting off to Africa, and then to Europe and Asia via the Trans-Siberian Railway, he initiates a journey to revitalize his energy and passion. Even so, he never expects to meet Hilal. A gifted young violinist, she is the woman Paulo loved five hundred years before — and the woman he betrayed in an act of cowardice so far-reaching that it prevents him from finding real happiness in this life. Together they will initiate a mystical voyage through time and space, traveling a path that teaches love, forgiveness, and the courage to overcome life's inevitable challenges. Beautiful and inspiring, Aleph invites us to consider the meaning of our own personal journeys: Are we where we want to be, doing what we want to do?

Some books are read. Aleph is lived.

"In this chimerical tale, protagonist Paolo embarks on a journey to remedy his dissatisfaction with life, a frustration he feels despite enjoying the accoutrements of success. Given that his world includes clairvoyance, Divine Energy, and time-travel, Paolo's is not the usual existential crisis. His present-day troubles, in fact, can be traced to betrayals during a previous incarnation that took place during the Inquisition. When he encounters Hilal, a woman he wronged, complications arise from their shared experience in The Aleph: 'the point at which everything is in the same place at the same time.' Given the couple's history, Paolo's response is curiously practical and distant: 'reopening old wounds is neither easy nor particularly important. The only justification is that the knowledge acquired might help me to gain a better understanding of the present.' Although the novel requires ample suspension of disbelief, there's no better author to serve such a work than Coelho (The Alchemist) — his main character bears the weight of the sometimes ambiguous and wandering narrative with pithy reflections. (Sept.)" Publishers Weekly Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

"A new tale of magical longing....Masterful." San Francisco Chronicle

"Coelho is a novelist who writes in a universal language." The New York Times

"It's time for American readers to set out on a journey of discovery that will lead them to the works of this exceptional writer." USA Today

"[Coelho's] books have had a life-enhancing effect on millions of people." The Times (London)

"Spiritualists and wanderlusts will eagerly devour The Alchemist author's fiery diatribes about love, fear, and the search for all things meaningful." The Washington Post

"Aleph is a book written by the soul, and for the soul. At once tender and fiercely courageous, it challenges you with an embrace while seducing you with a discerning blade that points directly at the heart of what matters most in life and death. And when you have finished the last word on the last page, even if your logical mind doesn't completely understand all that you've read, your eternal spirit will be dancing with joy." Cecilia Samartin, author of Broken Paradise

"Enigmatic....An illuminating book." The National

"Borges set the standard that Coelho capably upholds....Coelho the writer is both discerning and revealing of Coelho the protagonist, whose enthusiasms we share." The Washington Independent Review

Aleph marks a return to Paulo Coelho's beginnings. In a frank and surprising personal story, one of the world's most beloved authors embarks on a remarkable and transformative journey of self-discovery. Facing a grave crisis of faith, and seeking a path of spiritual renewal and growth, Paulo decides to start over: to travel, to experiment, to reconnect with people and the world. On this journey through Europe, Africa, and Asia, he will again meet Hilal — the woman he loved 500 years before — an encounter that will initiate a mystical voyage through time and space, through past and present, in search of himself.

Aleph is an encounter with our fears and our sins; a search for love and forgiveness, and the courage to confront the inevitable challenges of life.

Paulo Coelho is the author of many international best sellers, including The Alchemist, Eleven Minutes, and The Pilgrimage. His books have sold more than 130 million copies in 160 countries and have been translated into 72 languages. In 2007, he was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace. He lives in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.