My ever favourite book!, 10. Dezember 2003

I`ve read it many times over the years, and I love to give it to people I love. It is a book that gives you wings, and a feeling you can accomplish anything you want, if you work hard enough. It says "Follow your dreams!!!" A beautiful and inspiring book.

       -, 31. Juli 2000

A hearty and inspirational book. This strikes me as one of those books that parents should read to their children, like The Little Prince.

       Limitless and Timeless, 19. Juli 2000

My dad read the story to me when I was just a little boy. I read it every now and again as an adult, and will read it to my children and grandchildren when they come. It is a wonderful heartwarming story, that will not take more than a couple hours of your time. If you have never read it, you must do so, then pass it on to a friend. It is a beautiful picture of life, and what you can accomplish when you dream.

       Seeking Perfection, 12. Juli 2000

This slender classic about a seagull who stretches the limits of Flight reads as fresh and emotionally exhilarating as when it first appeared. Disdaining the mundane existence of most gulls--who follow the garbage trails of men--Jonathan dreams of rising above such a demeaning lifestyle, on both aerodynamic and spiritual planes. He boldly pushes his body to perform increasingly difficult stunts, to achieve undreamed of aerial precision and velocity. Until he is callously ostracized for his achievements.

We admire Jonathan's quest for excellence, his willingness to sacrifice everything in his noble pursuit of raising seagfull consciousness. To FLY for the sheer joy of it, to grow in wisdom, to chafe at any limitation of the spirit, to experience the ultimate in seagullness--to meet and perhaps briefly be one with the Great Gull.

Beneath the surface of this seemingly simple tale of a gull, who literally rises above his own kind, lie themes clearly reflecting the 60's: civil disobedience for a worthy cause, social ostracism, the personal dignity of the sentient individual, refusal to accept the standard restrictions of life as imposed by Society. Bach presents philosophical gymnastics worthy of a seagull's Shangri-La; he includes Christian overtones and ideas of global spirituality as well.

JLS proves a teacher of teachers both in Flight and Compasion, but could he really be the only son of the Great Gull? (The movie with Neil Diamond's moving score is a multi-dimensional treat, but read the book first.) Timeless enchantment!

       Believe... and anything is possible., 30. Juni 2000

If there is anything that this book teaches, it is that we have the ability to change reality with the power of our own thoughts. This is one of those books that no matter how many times I read it, will never fail to amaze me. It's the kind of book that leaves you speechless, unable to do anything but think, and wonder.

Presented in the form of a charming parable about a seagull's education in flight, Jonathan Livingston Seagull is about far more than the life of one seagull. It is about each and every one of us, struggling to find the answers, to reach something higher that we are not even yet aware of. We are all a little bit like Jonathan, and when we read Bach's story, we realize that we all have the same power inside. That we can do anything, be anything that we want, if only we can believe in ourselves. Bach's message is a powerful and timeless one that stretches across all barriers to reveal the simple truth that we all, at one time or another in our lives, knew: the most powerful force that exists is that of belief, especially in ourselves.

I can't tell you exactly why you need to read this book. It's not about something as simple as plot or writing style. There is a rare magic in the words that cannot be conveyed by any other means than the experience of reading the book. All I can say is that once you read this book, you will understand.