Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "1. There was a Master come unto the earth, born in the holy land of Indiana, raised in the mystical hills east of Fort Wayne..." (more)
Key Phrases: Travel Air, Donald Shimoda

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In the cloud-washed airspace between the cornfields of Illinois and blue infinity, a man puts his faith in the propeller of his biplane. For disillusioned writer and itinerant barnstormer Richard Bach, belief is as real as a full tank of gas and sparks firing in the cylinders...until he meets Donald Shimoda--former mechanic and self-described messiah who can make wrenches fly and Richard's imagination soar....

In Illusions, the unforgettable follow-up to his phenomenal bestseller Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Richard Bach takes to the air to discover the ageless truths that give our souls wings: that people don't need airplanes to soar...that even the darkest clouds have meaning once we lift ourselves above them... and that messiahs can be found in the unlikeliest places--like hay fields, one-traffic-light midwestern towns, and most of all, deep within ourselves.

From the Inside Flap

In the cloud-washed airspace between the cornfields of Illinois and blue infinity, a man puts his faith in the propeller of his biplane. For disillusioned writer and itinerant barnstormer Richard Bach, belief is as real as a full tank of gas and sparks firing in the cylinders...until he meets Donald Shimoda--former mechanic and self-described messiah who can make wrenches fly and Richard's imagination soar....

In Illusions, the unforgettable follow-up to his phenomenal bestseller Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Richard Bach takes to the air to discover the ageless truths that give our souls wings: that people don't need airplanes to soar...that even the darkest clouds have meaning once we lift ourselves above them... and that messiahs can be found in the unlikeliest places--like hay fields, one-traffic-light midwestern towns, and most of all, deep within ourselves.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Dell (October 10, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440204887
• ISBN-13: 978-0440204886
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (485 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #66,726 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

134 of 145 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful, May 4, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah (Paperback)

This is a powerful book and the Messiah's book is full of great insights. I got a little more concrete spiritual help from the book An Encounter with A Prophet, but this book Illusions inspires me to a belief in no limitations. I do not know if these levels are attainable, but it sure feels good to believe that way.

95 of 102 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of "those" books that stay with you always, May 17, 2000

By	Terry Mathews (a small town in east Texas) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Although this book was published in 1977, it didn't find its way to me until the mid 80's. "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear." No truer words were ever spoken, at least not in my life.

I've read this book over 30 times in the last 15 years, and I never fail to find something new to learn from it. I've given countless copies away to friends who then give copies to their friends.

When "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" was first published, an elderly relative told me Bach was the devil incarnate. Imagine what she'd say about THIS one!

I've not had the good fortune to run across a Donald Shimoda-like character, but I think I'd be ready to hear what he said.

Two quotes from Shimoda's 'The Messiah's Handbook and Reminders for the Advanced Soul' are worth repeating:

Your friends will know you better in the first minute you meet them than your acquaintences will know you in a thousand years.

and

The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life....Rarely do members of one family grow up under the same roof.

This book has been a great gift to me and I'm thankful it found me!

Enjoy!

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still extraordinary after 15 years!, July 3, 2001

By	Tim Burness (Brighton, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah (Paperback)

Richard Bach's classic is one of the very first self-development/spiritual books I ever read, and 15 years later it still compares very favourably with the best of the rest. There is profound truth and subtle humour on nearly every page, and I strongly recommend this beautifully written book to anyone who has not come across it yet.

The author meets stranger and fellow pilot Donald Shimoda and the story unfolds. About a third of the way through Richard starts reading the "Messiah's Handbook" which is quoted liberally from then on. It contains various pearls of wisdom.... "You teach best what you most need to learn", "Argue for your limitations, and sure enough, they're yours" and (one of my favourites) "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it however".

The chapter where Shimoda and Richard visit the cinema to discover the meaning of life is a high point and the twist at the end of the book is absolutely brilliant. Enlightenment!