Gift of Wings, A [Hardcover]

Richard Bach (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 15, 1980

These stories, inspired by Bach's lifelong passion for flight, filled with memories of friends from the past and friends not yet met, are woven together with warmth, honesty and courage. With signs and signals, coincidences and tangents turning up at every juncture, Bach shows how truly complex and beautiful life can be, and also how its troubles can in fact knock us onto better paths or teach us lessons we benefit from in other situations. Drawing on the allegorical power of flight, each a mini-parable, these stories will inspire you with their simple experiences made technicolour by the prism of Bach's extraordinary imagination. Celebrating Richard Bach's unique vision, these transcend their pages to touch the real drama of life with magic that reaches out to us all across its limitless horizons.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"He captures the sheer exhilaration, at moments approaching exaltation, that he experiences up there." -- San Francisco Chronicle. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Inside Flap

Once in a generation a book, a vision, a writer, capture the imagination  and emotions of millions. Jonathan  Livingston Seagull was such a book. Richard Bach's unique vision again shines forth, touching with magic the drama of life in all its limitless horizons. Once again Richard Bach has written a masterpiece to help you touch that part of your home  that is the sky. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Delacorte Press (December 15, 1980)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385283652
• ISBN-13: 978-0385283656
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,720,705 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

A former USAF pilot, gypsy barnstormer and airplane mechanic, Richard Bach is the author of more than three books.
He has not taken much thought to his page at Amazon, having just discovered today that it exists. He will likely return and fluff up this page a bit. His new website is www.richardbach.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational and Life Changing Book, December 10, 2001

By 

Rod Rikimaru (usa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Gift of Wings (Paperback)

"A Gift of Wings" and Bach's "Stranger to the Ground," led to my earning a Private Pilot's License, the second most influential event in my life. After reading Bach, I had little choice: I had to fly solo, above the clouds and earth, and experience the trancendental moments he described, or my life would be incomplete, perhaps even wasted.

This is my flying "Bible." Whenever I need inspiration, whether related to life or flying, a few chapters will renew my spirits and leave me yearning to fly, my cynicism, anger or depression evaporated by his lovely words. Some of his deeply heartfelt sentiments are so beautiful, it brings tears to my eyes, even after the 20th reading.

Bach will convince you that the invention of the airplane was mankind's singular greatest accomplishment, not for it's technical achievement, but for it's affect on the human spirit.

I own a hardbound copy which I hope to have Bach autograph. I bought 20 paperback copies: one for my car, several at my airport office, one at my bedside, and the some given away to private and airline pilots, who having lived some of Bach's magic moments in the air, can appreciate his insights. The rest are reserved for unsuspecting, non-flying "groundpounders" I will meet, who are about to have a life changing experience, when I bestow upon them - "A Gift of Wings."

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 48 classic magazine articles from a golden age, August 9, 2001

By 

Dave English (Arizona, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Gift of Wings (Paperback)

For pilots and lovers of flight, this is a 'must have' book. It's a collection of 48 magazine articles Richard Bach wrote from the the late 1960's/early 1070's (with a couple of even earlier ones). They originally appeared in Flying, Air Progress, Private Pilot, Argosy, Sport Flying, and Air Facts. The topics range from classic Bach railing against the FAA by cheering for the Outlaws, to barnstorming, to Egyptians flying, to applying at United Airlines. There is an awesome article describing his favourite books, his relationship with pilots that write, complete with a reading list. There is even a little one-page article from 1959, 'There's something the matter with seagulls.' He was thinking about seagull acrobatics for a while . . .

It's all flying and thoughts about flying. Unlocking the magic box of flight with wonderful words.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book will lift your heart and soul, December 27, 1999

By 

John R. Linnell (New Gloucester, ME United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Gift of Wings (Paperback)

I bought this book soon after I started taking flying lessons in 1975. I have given copies of it to friends with the inscription: "If you want to know the heart of a pilot...read on." The short stories about various aspects of the flying experience in this book are about a lot more than flying...and you will enjoy them whether or not you have ever landed a taildragger on a grass strip or felt the joy of your first solo flight. Give yourself a present and read this wonderful collection.