Rating: 
Summary: One of my all time favorite books!!
Review: I consider it my "personal bible", have quoted it for years and have re-read it many times. The simplicity of the story is obvious, as are the stories in the Bible. However the meaning and depth caught me from the first page and has only deepened over the years.
Rating: 
Summary: du Grandeur le Master de Turkey-dum
Review: Printed in a format of a notebook journal with handwritten letters, as if written by the main charachter jotting down his encounters with the 'reluctant' messiah... this rubbish is a whole lot of hogwash if you'd ask me. The author holds no ground for any realistic value incredibly about whatever is written going down in the book so sadly, that it makes the LooneyTune charachters more tangibly believable than the no-directional blabber that this book has- it would make you feel at loss for words to describe its degree of far-fetched Cooper-in-Wonderland(?) sort of "story". It has the equivalent of a person who picks up a bucket of paint and then splashes it on a blank wall and then afterwards would find the nerve to call himself an artist. The bottomline is: Anyone could've written this book or anything like this. If you think that this is quite fancy enough for a good read of some healthy doze of intellectualism to stimulate your brains, well you might as well talk to a person in the psycho ward and broaden your horizons.
This time waster is totally shallow, and perhaps its seemingly inventive format only signifies its pretension. Most (I said MOST ok?) people whom i find to appreciate this book are trendsetters, and are either both not serious readers and are only into (making) fashionable appearances about themselves.
Rating: 
Summary: Why?
Review: I really don't understand the overwhelming popularity of this book. I mean, what did people actually learn from it? How did it benefit their lives? I think you need to be extremely open-minded to enjoy this book. I thought it was too vague and manipulative - any thinking person can find fault with many of the principles included. Unlike some reviewers, I'm not going to burn it, but neither can I say that it's "A Great Way of Looking at life" as my copy proclaimed.
Rating:
Summary: Okay Book
Review: This book really confused me. I didn't get it at first. I had a hard time reading it. Richard Bach did a good job of writing Illusions. If you don't confused easily, I would recomed this book to you.
Rating:
Summary: It's a must read!
Review: Richard Bach has been flying his biplane throughout the midwest for many years,but he will never meet another pilot or friend like Donald Shimoda who pulls off excellent flying stunts that equal his great miracle-working talents. Richard Bach's novel,Illusions,starts off when Richard is flying his Fleet biplane across the U.S. when he lands next to a stranger pilot,Don Shimoda,whom he immediately becomes best friends with.If this is'nt strange enough,Don claims to be a modern day Messiah and proves his conclusions by manipulating the illusions of the world by knowing the truths behind them.He performs astonishing feats,from floating a wrench in mid-air to healing the sick and the crippled right before Richard's very eyes.They travel together until Richard must make a choice between staying friends with Don and facing impending danger,or getting as far as possible from his best friend. I believe that Illusions is by far Richard's best book.It not only pleases younger readers with its informal writing style,it also satisfies all who are interested in spirituality,metaphysics,and all who may be from some other planet or dimension if Illusions is sold there. Another interesting aspect of this book is that it is so believable.The first time I read it I thought that the author really did meet Don,as if this was a true story.It seemed as though the book was his own journal,depicting the actual events and life of Don,including anecdotes,(a great biography!). Also,I agree with the spiritual principles that lie within this book.The Messiah points out interesting truths and facts about life. Illusions is the greatest marriage of spirituality,writing and friendship,delivering powerful yet simple language,a realization of the power and freedom we have,and a story that meets the needs of all readers.Richard Bach has given me the impression he was spiritually enlightened while writing this book! "Powerful...a must read for all..."-Jack's Journal.
Rating: 
Summary: Mystical Richard
Review: The nature of personal reality has baffled Man since he first crawled from the ooze and started his journey to the stars. Attempts to explain with printed word and cold logic the limitless geography of the mind, heart and spirit have always fallen short, apparently because every revealed truth is interpreted as half truth and no blueprint has emerged that can bring all answers to the questioning mind.
Into this arena comes Richard Bach, with "Illusions." When first published it was his first entirely new book since pop-philosopher "Jonathan" made him famous and rich (his "Gift of Wings," published almost simultaneously, was an anthology of earlier work).
"Illusions" is an intriguing work that challenges Bach-watchers and reviewers who want to do justice to the man and his work. In a historical and classical cheap shot, Gail Sheehy in "Passanges' referred to her book as 'a Rorschach test for the reader,' inferring that if one didn't like or approve of it one's wits or taste were suspect. "Illusions," on the other hand, makes its point effortlessly and will certainly be interpreted differently by every reader. It traces the adventures of one Don Shimoda, retired from his Messiah role because it broke his heart, who now flies a mystically perfect biplane in the Midwest, giving $3 rides alongside Bach (the 'I' of the story) in classic barnstorming mode. His tale is told tongue in cheek: we must forgive Bach and his publisher the rather precious device of placing the reproduced pages of a grubby notebook in front, complete with handwriting and smudged fingerprints from the engine-adjustment hand.
The core of the book's message seems to consist of quasi-mystical sayings from a guru's handbook, written in aphorisms and epithets to instruct at any convenient space-time moment ("the book always falls open at s saying appropriate to the problem you must solve," declares Shimoda between parlor tricks in levitating wrenches or airplanes). These sayings read in a manner ranging from Confucian Profound to Fortune Cookie Cute. Shimoda eventually meets his end, which he undoubtedly brings on himself. His 'sin' is the sin of candor, since humans don't like their truths unvarnished. Bach flies off in his Fleet biplane, convinced that he must write about the reluctant Messiah.
Neat? Not really. Like everyone's typically unresolved life, the book really has no beginning or end. Bach admits that everything in the book may not be true, washing his hands of responsibility for the reader's interpretations and perpetuating his much vaunted "Jonathan" enigma. No book, especially not a slim, 144-page one, can conceivably package salvation.
Where does this leave us? Everywhere . . . and nowhere. Instant salvation from a charismatic figure is rather like heavily amplified rock music or the uniquitous Chinese food--tremendous impact at the time, but one soon returns hungry for real sustenance. With "Illusions" one ends up chasing one's own mental tail. Bach's final gesture is a shrug--he turns away quickly to hide the winner's smile at the edge of his mouth.
One senses that "Illusions" reflects forces at work in Bach's life after "Jonathan:" the implied need to explain himself to the millions who made his fictional seagull (and himself) into reluctant messiahs; the value of maintaining momentum for a worldwide audience built in for bestselling authors; and the realities of earning a living to support expensive airplane tastes ("everyone should have at least five," says Bach).
In the end, though, it is futile to attempt an evaluation of Bach's needs, desires or motivations, or, indeed, anyone's. Each of us must live alone with our thoughts, ideas and perceptions of reality and must die alone. Why are some lives touches with magic and others doomed? How can we explain the shattering differences in destiny that confront Man in his journey from blind monocell to explorer (or, as Bach puts it, otter) of the Universe? The subject is worth a million books and plenty have been attempted. "Illusions" is Bach's contribution, with a slice of earthy existence thrown in as spear carrier. The intriguing thing about the book is that it works, on several different levels, without one quite knowing why.
Rating:
Summary: A new approach to life
Review: Richard Bach's short and sweet tale offers advice about an alternative way to live life. He gives readers an answer to every problem, and assures them that getting over it is as easy as a matter of thinking it! An amazing guide to getting what you want in life, written in an easy to read format. Readers will love Bach's style of writing and will be pleased with the content of the book as well. Read Illusions and open your eyes to a life that could be your own!
Rating:
Summary: Shouldn't messiahs do more than make screwdrivers float?
Review: You can't imagine my relief when I discovered that nobody in my bookgroup liked this book. If they had, I think I would have had to quit that group. This book was shallow and did not do justice to the title of messiah. A true messiah is about much more than making random items float, having vampires materialize out of thin air, and dying a predictable and annoying death. Being a messiah is about being countercultural and addressing the injustices in the world. This book drove me up a wall and it nearly went out the window many times. The only reason I finished it was because we made a promise to finish every book before our meetings. I would have given it a zero star rating, but it didn't go that low.
Rating: 
Summary: A New Aproach On Life
Review: I think I'm sitting on the fence with this book. I can't really decide if I like it or not. I like the idea of bettering ourselves through personal triumph, but everyone needs comfort from someone, whether from a friend, God, whoever. I don't really believe that one can make themself perfect at all. No one is perfect. I do like the idea of becoming a messiah because it's comforting. It makes you look at yourself and others in a more positive manner. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a new approach to how they look at their life.
Rating:
Summary: An enormous waste of time
Review: We read this book for bookclub and, even though it's a quick read, it was nevertheless excrutiating. At the end of the group, I threw my copy in the fire in the small hope that I might save just one person from wasting their time reading this steaming pile. This is hands down the worst book I've ever read - you can get the same life lessons from your average Barney video in far less time.
|
