Translated to English, a novel by award-winning Brazilian writer, Paulo Coelho (b. 1947). Jerusalem, 1099. The city awaits the invasion of the crusaders who have surrounded its walls. There, inside the ancient gates, women and men of every age and faith have gathered to hear the wisdom of a mysterious man known only as the Copt. As the wise man speaks of loyalty, fear, bravery and solitude, of love and sex, beauty and elegance, his words reveal the human values that have endured throughout time-then as now, these words make known who we are, what we fear and what we hope for the future.