The #1 International Bestselling author of THE ALCHEMIST reveals in this deeply thoughtful novel that the great wisdom of life is that we can be masters of the things that try to enslave us.

"There is nothing wrong with anxiety. Although we cannot control God's time, it is part of the human condition to want to receive the thing we are waiting for as quickly as possible. Or to drive away whatever is causing fear. Anxiety was born in the very same moment as mankind. And since we will never be able to master it, we will have to learn to live with it--just as we have learned to live with storms."

1099. Jerusalem awaits the invasion of the crusaders who have surrounded the city's gates. There, inside the ancient city's walls, 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, sex, beauty and elegance, his words offer truth and guidance, and reveal the human values that have endured throughout time--then as now, his words reveal who we are, what we fear and what we hope for the future.