Customer Reviews

Hypnotizing Maria

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4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After 10 years Richard Bach has done it once again. In Hypnotizing Maria, Bach weaves a captivating tale where his hero, pilot Jamie Forbes, redefines his reality as he discovers the mystical side of his world and the power of suggestion.

This book will particularly appeal to:
* Bach Fans who have enjoyed his earlier titles such as Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah, and The Bridge Across Forever: A True Love Story.
* Those who have heard of "The Law of Attraction" but can't seem to get a handle on the concept.
* Those who were once inspired by the principles in "The Law of Attraction" but have found their enthusiasm has dimmed.
* Seekers who find they are attracted to things that happen "serendipitously"

I found after reading this book I spontaneously opened up to new possibilities in my life - without working on myself to get there! I am already lending my copy to friends.

After a much anticipated wait Richard Bach is back! And Hypnotizing Maria proves the wait was well worth it! Richard's latest novel takes us on the personal self discovery adventures of a pilot named Jamie Forbes. Richard puts forth, cleverly woven into Jamie's adventures, that unconscious "suggestions" which are given to us through culture and our up-bring shape our lives. Once we examine these accepted suggestions we are able to distinguish what is really true for ourselves and discover how to live in a more authentic and meaningful way - piloting your own plane.

I especially love Richard's writing style where his presentation of ideas or teachings are woven into "can't put the book down" entertaining and intriguing story that inspire the reader to take a look at how they are living their own life in a light easy way. The discoveries that unfold are eye opening, revealing and life inspiring. As we see with Jamie who has a series of events that trigger his taking a looking at his "accepted suggestions" the discoveries that unfold are all the more enriching, fulfilling and satisfying then he had never thought possible before.

If you enjoyed Richard's novel I also recommend Ariel & Shya Kane's book called "Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: The 3 Simple Ideas That Will Instantaneously Transform Your Life". The Kanes are expert guides who have inspired thousands on how to ride out life's sometimes turbulence with ease and create a life flight path of well-being.

And as with all of Richard's books I once again found inspiration, entertainment and time well spent in reading this his latest masterpiece, Hypnotizing Maria. Go ahead and ignite the engine on own life's grand adventures by reading Richard's amazing new novel.

Richard Bach's Hypnotizing Maria is a fictional book about a pilot that has different experiences on his solo trip from Seattle to Florida. The events seem random but at the same time seem to fit together.

Bach uses hypnotism and fiction as a vehicle to explain his views on how life works. His views on what is hypnosis is very broad. Bach explains his opinions on hypnosis and the Law of Attraction.

The story begins with an airplane emergency and continues with very intriguing storyline through the first half of the book. The second half concentrates on the main character, Jamie Forbes, taking an introspective look at his past experiences.

As an author whose book also delves into how life works, I usually stay away from similar books. I tend be overly critical if the author portrays the information in a way that promotes selfishness and excludes morals. I also am critical if authors state things magically happen and dismiss Karma. For whatever reason, I was drawn to Bach's story.

Bach does an excellent job taking this fictional flight and weaving into it his views on life. Portraying his thoughts in this manner allows the reader to see his opinions in context. It also allows the reader the ability to decipher the subject easily and determine what information can be related to them.

Bach's story brought up many questions, in a good way. When I am given information asking me to look at my beliefs, I have a basic way of deciphering it. It goes like this:

1. I have an open mind to the idea. A closed mind blocks out any possible knowledge to be gained.

2. I then question the idea. What is the motive of the author? How does this relate to what I know to be true. Am I keeping out any unsubstantiated beliefs of my own when questioning this idea?

3. I then decide if any of the information is worth pursuing or adding to what I know to be true.

Bach's ideas about life really made me think. Though a few points I may disagree with, the majority of the information really made me question how his thoughts fit with what I believe. I highly recommend Hypnotizing Maria.

Flight instructor Jamie Forbes was flying from Washington State to Florida when he is just north of Cheyenne and an hour from North Platte, Nebraska when he receives the panicked SOS from sexagenarian Maria Ochoa who says she thinks her husband is dead. Her spouse Juan was flying them when he collapsed into unconsciousness. Calmly Jamie talks Marie, who never flew before, through the steps to safely land the plane before finishing his own flight; as he did not stick around for his fifteen minutes of fame.

Afterward reporters question Maria, who insists a stranger entered her plane and hypnotized her into landing the plane before disappearing. Hearing Maria's commentary leads to Jamie contemplate what is real even as he meets his own angelic guiding stranger and learns how to truly teach is to guide but allow your students to do.

HYPNOTIZING MARIA is a thought provoking philosophical character driven thriller. The story line is a fast-paced one sitting novella as Jamie (and readers) contemplates what is reality and how does one truly instruct someone else when each has there own interpretation of what they sense is real. Richard Bach soars with this cerebral tale that will leave his audience pondering metaphysical questions and challenging Jamie's answers to them; wonderfully encouraged by the author to do just that as the right answer is personal.

Harriet Klausner

Richard Bach has probed the corners of his mind and given us yet another inspirational book that asks us to probe our own minds, beliefs and fringes of our reality.

Bach combines several background ideas in this easy to read story, which lay the foundation of how we accummulate beliefs and the limitations each one adds to our individual worlds. He shows us from an unsuspecting angle the fullness of the idea behind The Secret. He adds a level of richness to it, not really gone into before.

Flight instructor Jamie Forbes guides a woman to landing her plane safely after her husband loses consciousness, then flies on to his own destination unimpressed by his act--flight instructors guide students every day.

Only after she tells reporters that a stranger appeared in an airplane alongside hers and hypnotized her into landing, and after he meets his own guiding stranger does he solve the bigger mystery: how each of us creates, step by step, what seems to be the solid world around us.

The best mysteries are the ones whose answers lie in front of us, in plain sight.
The best solutions are those moments when all of a sudden we realize what we've known all along.

Richard Bach is the author of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Illusions, One, The Bridge Across Forever, and numerous other books. For a short read and a trek to investigate the outer limits of your mind, pick up Hypnotizing Maria by Hampton Roads Publishing.

It was nice to see that Richard Bach had recently published a new novel. I LOVE Illusions - have read it many times over the years and it still speaks to me in a deep and meaningful way. Hypnotizing Maria cannot match Illusions. It does cover some of the same ground - what we see is not reality (ie illusion); we buy into the illusion (ie we are hypnotized) so we can experience earthly life and learn things. Anyone familiar with the teachings of Seth will recognize these ideas. So after reading Hypnotizing Maria, I was left with the question, "what was there new or different in this book from some of Bach's previous works?" The answer is not much. It's an ok read - I wouldn't dissuade anyone from it. And for someone who has no familiarity with the "you create your own reality" philosophy, they might glean something. But Illusions (and even Jonathan Livingston Seagull) remains a much better piece of work from Richard Bach.

It's been a decade since Richard Bach wrote Out of My Mind: The Discovery of Sanders-Vixen. I remember that when I first discovered on the Internet that this book was out, I'd just purchased my first computer and was in awe about my new access to millions of great books. I quickly ordered Out of My Mind, read it, and then wrote one of my initial book reviews on the Internet and on my brand, spanking new computer. Since then, Bach has written several more books, all of which have dealt with his two pet ferrets and their unusual adventures. It was only by chance that I recently found out that Mr. Bach had a new book coming out that was finally geared toward adults. I was excited by this because I'm a long-time fan of Richard Bach's, and I still remember buying his second bestseller, Illusions, when it came out in paperback so many years ago and then The Bridge Across Forever, which gave me hope that soul mates do actually exist. Anyway, after reading the newest book, Hypnotizing Maria, I now feel that it wasn't an accident or coincidence that I just happened to look up Richard Bach a few weeks ago, only to find out that he had a new book coming out within a few days. You see, there are no coincidences when certain people or events or things suddenly come into your life to help change it for the better. That's one of the primary themes of Hypnotizing Maria, and it's certainly an important one to remember.

This short novel starts off with pilot Jamie Forbes flying from Washington state to Florida in his small aircraft. On the first leg of the journey, he hears an emergency call for help on his radio from a distressed flyer and realizes that the other plane is near his present location. He quickly finds the endangered aircraft and discovers that the pilot has passed out from a stroke and that his wife, who doesn't know how to fly an airplane, is left to handle things on her own for better or worse. Jamie swiftly calms her down and carefully leads her to a nearby airport, giving her instructions on what to do, and helping her to eventually land the airplane safely. The next day, Jamie reads an article about the whole incident in a newspaper. The woman (Maria) states in the article that Jamie had hypnotized her with his soft voice, knowledge, and total confidence in her ability to land the plane. It's her use of the word hypnotized that causes him to remember an odd experience that had happened to him during his earlier years. He'd gone to see a live show featuring the well-known hypnotist, Blacksmyth the Great. One thing had led to another, and Jamie found himself on stage as a volunteer for the performer's act. Jamie was then hypnotized into believing that he was enclosed within a stone-walled room and couldn't get out. To Jamie, the room appeared to be real, no matter what he tired or how hard he attempted to escape, he couldn't get out. Just as he was about to panic from his forced enclosure, the hypnotist awakened him and explained that it had all been in his mind just like the reality we live in on a day-to-day basis. The incident remained in the back of Jamie's mind for years. The article about Maria, however, brought it back to the surface, causing him to question the state of reality as we know and experience it. This is soon followed by the appearance of a mysterious lady at his next stop along his journey, who prepares him for a quantum leap of faith and the many questions that will soon follow about parallel universes, larger dimensions of time and space, life after death, the power of one's thoughts, and why we're really here.

Much of the information being offered in Hypnotizing Maria has been around for hundreds of years, but is just now being investigated by numerous scientists around the world, who are finally beginning to understand that what we know about the Universe and spirituality is only the tip of the iceberg. Richard Bach offers his view of this evolutionary leap for mankind in easy to understand terms and in a way that isn't threatening to those grounded in their own religious beliefs. The fact is that what scientist are exploring is way beyond religion as we know it and opens doors of unique possibilities that leave us in awe of what might really be out there in a space so vast that it makes your toes curl. For me, reading Hypnotizing Maria was the opportunity to re-explore my own interests in spirituality and this amazing Universe and how we're all interconnected with each other. This is a fabulous little books filled with golden nuggets of insight that can be read in a day, but will have you asking very important questions for a lifetime.

Here's something that shocked me the other day. I work in an office with several women, the oldest being in her late thirties. When I mentioned Richard Bach and this book, not to mention Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Illusions, The Bridge Across Forever, and One, nobody knew what I was talking about. Other than me, not one other person in the office had ever heard of Richard Bach or knew about his several bestsellers during the eighties and early nineties, and how they changed the lives of countless people over a period of time. Once again, this may not be an accident. Maybe...just maybe I'm supposed to buy several copies of The Bridge Across Forever as Christmas presents for the ladies I work with so that they can have the opportunity of taking a new look at their own lives and the wonderful possibilities out there.

A short book, easily read in a single sitting. Given that the book is short, and a considerable amount of the book is an exploration of the law of attraction, there is not much of a story here. Once again Bach writes about what he loves, flying, and once again, it really works. It hooked me from the start and was a page turner all the way through.

The book explores hypnosis, and it's implications on how our mind works in relation to perceptions and suggestions. How we create our own reality and the law of attraction fit in nicely. In typical Bach style, the book sometimes rambles, repeats, and rants on the subject, but it is deeply insightful and has an edge to it that makes it thoroughly enjoyable.

I liked Bach's earlier works a bit more, but this is a worth addition.

Entertainment: 4.5 stars
Enlightenment: 4.5 stars

Richard Bach has not disappointed me and my friends! We all bought his book and he continues to have us at "hello" right from the start. He shares the mysteries of the Universe in a parable, in a way we can hear the information through such an entertaining story. It's a quick read, short book but my friends and I underlined over half of the book. We couldn't put it down and have read it twice AND then did an entire evening discussion group with about 12 friends last Thursday night on all we learned. I can't recommend it highly enough... I'm retired and an avid researcher, reader and it kept my attention the entire time. I couldn't put it down. What a wonderful surprise to see he can still provide something FRESH & expansive in this world. A MUST for anyone looking to understand more of who they are and WHY in this vast magical Universe...

It took a long time, but Bach has done it again. As is most often the case, a small book, an amazing book. Bach can cram more truth into a small space than any author I know, but always with a delicate touch, a captivating story line. I have been waiting for this book, and it did not disappoint. In fact, I think it tops the Bach charts.