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Summary: Writing sideways on lined paper...
Review: Daniel Quinn has written a book that people will either love or hate. The reason to read it is right there. If such a book can inspire so many to write such empassioned reviews, then there must be an important message in it. Those who call it trite, or drivel seem to have an underlying fear in their reviews. Those who praise it so totally also have a certain fear. This book seems to say that we need to give up a great deal in order to save the world. If you look at the vision Mr. Quinn wants to express, then you can see that he wants us to see the world in a different light. Basically, the world would be a better place if we learn to understand that humanity isn't cursed.
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Summary: Clarification of 12/9 review
Review: Yesterday I wrote a review for Ishamel. I'd like to clarify that I am a freelance columnist with The Arizona Daily Sun.Thank you. Jane Iddings
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Summary: A Catalyst
Review: This book is a good read for one reason......It makes you think and makes you want to read more. Ishmael is a book without an ending, it begs you to read more (and watch T.V. less!) because it plants a seed in your head that, with any common sense, will sprout almost immediately.
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Summary: The near-extinction of humans
Review: I have read all my life, traveled extensively, and acquired 3 degress from top universities. In all my reading, traveling, and learning, I have never read any information as important as that presented by Daniel Quinn in Ishmael and his other books. Quinn patiently shows how the dominant culture's thinking is leading to extinction -- and he shows us that it is just that -- thinking. It can be changed. Quinn's writings are for those who want to break through the dominant culture's veil of denial that is leading to the extinction of the human race and all the other species we're taking with us. Reading Ishmael, My Ishmael, and The Story of B, will change your thinking, your life, and possibly help to head off extinction -- if you change and pass this information on. Jane Iddings, Columnist, The Arizona Daily Sun
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Summary: OF THE BOOKS/AUTHORS WHO MADE ME WHO I AM
Review: I found this book when I was wandering through the Western Michigan University bookstore in the mid 90's. I believe it was one of the books used as a discussion book in the psychology program. After I read it, I knew I had found a treasure of the underground student of life. This book is not one to be carried forth by publicity, but by those members of society who want to understand how our civilization got to be the complicated entity that it is. Further readings of Daniel's books told of the hardship of writing books with his anthropologic views, which were very original, and getting turned down time and time again. He finally wrote his views in a fictional story and submitted it to a writers contest. Amazingly he won and his book was published and has had a continued slow growth through the underground network of people who want to "change the world - no experience necessary". The ideas of "Ishmael" as well as Daniel's next two books have left me with a very much deeper understanding of how our society has come to be what it is. For it did not just happen on it's own, there were definite reasons for how it grew so fast and continues to grow at such mind boggeling speed almost beyond comprehension. I am reading his most recent book "Beyond Civilization" right now and it discusses where our civilization is heading. His books and ideas are very worthwhile for all to read and consider.
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Summary: Want to be Inspired?
Review: I was reluctant to read this book (I wouldn't of read it at all had itnot been an assignment for a course I was taking). I thought it wouldbe another one of those typical "SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT"books. The last thing I needed was some.... environmentalist tellingme how bad humans are for the world. After reading the back cover Ithought the story line (in my best case scenario) would be somethinglike: Man meets gorilla. Gorilla inspires man to . . . ta da protestagainst big mean polluters and recycle more. Whoopee. BOY WAS I INFOR A SURPRISE. This book isn't like any of that at all. I wasstunned. I was absolutely stunned. And I felt like I had beenrobbed. I thought - why hasn't anybody bothered to tell me about thisbefore? To understand why I felt this way you'll have to read the bookfor yourself. Get ready to be inspired.s that what researchers havefound all over the globe: Hunter-Gatherers are in Paradise, they neverleft the Garden, they never ate from the Tree. I cannot tell youwhat I came to from all this. You would not believe me. What I cantell you is that this book is a catalyst for Change, but only if youare ready to Work, otherwise Beware.
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Summary: A Captivating and Motivating Book
Review: Ever since the beginning of the agricultural revolution in 8000 B.C., man has waged war against the earth. With the spark of this revolution, man has aimed to place every square foot of land under cultivation. In order to do so, farmers have killed every wolf and fox in sight in order to allow their cattle to graze freely. Through these and other similar actions, man has nearly destroyed the world. Ishmael, by Daniel Quinn, is a captivating series of discussions between a hopeless and confused pupil (a common man) and a Socratic figure (an ape named Ishmael) which points out the deliberate attacks man has committed for centuries against the natural community. Quinn specifically emphasizes three things humans do that are never done in the wild, each of which is fundamental to the foundation of man's civilization.First, humans exterminate their competitors, which is something that never occurs in the wild. Most animals defend their territories and kills and they invade their competitors' territories and preempt their kills. Some species even include competitors among their prey, but they never hunt competitors down just to kill or exterminate them, the way ranchers and farmers do with coyotes and foxes. Humans also systematically destroy their competitors' food to make room for their own. Because a population scales with the growth and decline of its food production, a competitor's food shortage decreases man's competition. This allows for even more food for man. Nothing like this occurs in the natural community. Animals take what they need, and they leave the rest alone. Finally, humans deny their competitors access to food. In the wild, animals may deny competitors access to what they are eating, but they may not deny competitors access to food in general. An animal might say, "This gazelle is mine," but it will never say, "All gazelles are mine." With all these attacks against nature, man is reducing the diversity of wildlife on the earth, resulting in a very fragile environment. With less species on the earth, the slightest rise or fall of the earth's temperature could deplete all life on earth soon thereafter. However, with a diverse community of life, the extinction of a few thousand species due to a global temperature change would be easily sustainable. By reading this unique book, once will learn the law of life: you may compete with the earth, but you may not wage war with it.
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Summary: Anxious to read more
Review: As an anthropology minor on college, I found this book stimulating and thought provoking without over intellectualizing details and explanations. It just makes sense to me that natural selection is His intent for long term survival of man. Looking forward to reading the rest of his books.
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Summary: Ishmael
Review: Have you ever had the feeling that something might be terribly wrong with this life (i.e., the way we're living, what we're doing to the planet)? Does the answer to that nagging feeling seem to be just out of reach, somewhere, perhaps, just under your nose? This might not come as much of a surprise to you, but, it is. Daniel Quinn takes you by the head in "Ishmael" and forces your eyes on the very culture that you are immersed in and leads you to one of the deepest and darkest secrets in the history of our culture. It is actually the very secret that bore our culture and it is of a magnitude that is greater than any holocaust that has ever been visited upon this planet. Change your mind. It takes one mind at a time, and if you're ready and open you might be the next to lead another to this and all of the works of this fascinating and brilliant thinker.
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Summary: Great, but not perfect
Review: First, I must applaud Quinn for not blaming all the ills of the world on organized religion. I think religion is mostly invented and can be a tool of ignorance, but anti-religious is no more openminded than religious and books like this tend to be religion fingerpointing. This was one of the best books I ever read, but I had my disagreements. When you throw out as many opinions as Quinn has I think most people will have disagreements, but Quinn probably welcomes that. The writing style was annoying, but necessary. If Quinn tried to write a story and tie all these messages into it no one would get everything he was saying. My biggest turnoff isn't really with the book, but I happened to start the book after thinking about these subjects a few years. Before I finished I had reached the point where I was tired of lamenting the society I live in, which is very much the theme of this book. In all, fascinating book and it will get you thinking like nothing since Carl Sagan.
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