Rating: 
Summary: What this book is and is not.
Review: I had read Ishmael about three years ago and I have been in debate about it with other people who discuss only the idea that the Taker culture was bound to happen eventually and the psychology of human consciouness at the time of the Taker split. Upon reading the reviews here I am not surprised in the least to many high ratings and those to don't get the intended premise. 1.)Ishmael is not a literary masterpiece and was not meant to be. Quinn peferably would rather write nonfiction but he realizes that a novel form for presenting the ideas is the best way to reach the intended audience. 2.)Ishmael is repetitive only to lay the ground work for further discussion. In the Story of B Quinn explains in detail the necessity to repeat the structure in order to form colage where pieces fall thogether at different times. .3) Ishmael,B, My Ishamel, and Providence when read in that order give the reader the full tools to decipher Quinns arguments. Alan in Ishamel is supposed to play the role of limited inquisitor in order for the ground work to be laid. Those three novels are needed in full to lay out the premise. The questions are supposed play the role to support that objective. .4) We aren't Humanity. I am dumbfounded that people still didn't see Quinn's point. This is not a nature good versus humanity bad scenario .5)By the way if it is written like it was intended for third graders as some of the critics say I am glad because frankly Mother culture hasn't drifted their minds to sleep! Ishamel Rules! Rock on read Beyond Civilization it is the answer to your, but now what questions.
Rating:
Summary: If you only plan on reading one book, this should be the one
Review: I've read it twice, and I'm re-reading it, I own two copies and lend them to everyone I know, the word must be spread, cause like the narrarator I have always know something to be fundamentally wrong, and now I have a better idea what that is. This book was the best book I've ever read, and I've read on hell of alot of books, and I need to say EVERYONE READ THIS BOOK...and maybe we'll have achance. Till then I'm moving to the woods and living of the game. Down with the "Takers"!
Rating:
Summary: I enjoyed this book so much, it was very enlightening
Review: I am not a psycology student, I didn't even know if I would understand or could read this book. I read it, I loved it, and am trying to get my daughter and friends to read it. When it was given to me I had no idea what it was about, my friend from Texas said it was a book from her psycology class. Thanks Mr. Quinn
Rating:
Summary: So true
Review: I would really like to know other peoples reaction. We are destroying ourselves. On the Hopi reservation there is a carved rock that tells the story of destrution. We do not have long.We need to work hard to save this world.I am from the Mewuk Tribe in Toulmne city.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent, if you like thought provoking books!
Review: I was assigned to read this book over summer vacation by my honors English teacher. While reading the book, and not searching deep for any sort of meaning, I hated the book and thought it was the most terrible book I have ever read. Once returning back to school, and having my teacher explain it all, I can so much clearer understand the world I live in. A MUST READ for anyone who doesn't want to go through life with his/her head in the clouds!! Come down and take a look at our comfortable society we live in and its consequences on everyone else!! Don't pay so much attention to the monotonous tone throughout the book, pick out the meanings and just let it carry you away.
Rating:
Summary: finished ishmael tonight
Review: i give ishmael the honor of being placed in my "top 4 books" list. the content came at why society is wrong from a fresh, new perspective. in the end, it also answers the question the reader asks themself for the entire book,"what can I do about it?". i give daniel quinn a lot of credit for practicing what he preaches...trying to teach people there is something wrong-and we can fix it- instead of watching it go down. uplifting. inspiring. it's always good to see there's someone else on OUR SIDE.
Rating: 
Summary: Intriguingly thought-provoking, but a "light" read
Review: "Ishmael" is a book that falls squarely in the middle in terms of what it has to offer. The ideas and notions of human evolution and the way we are "eating up" the planet give serious pause. This is the kind of book that makes the reader stop reading every few pages just to ponder what has just been discovered. "Ishmael" offers things to think about long after the reading is done. Unfortunately, not a lot of books do that these days. On the other hand, "Ishmael" is very thinnly written. There is nothing in the way of plot, and nearly nothing in the way of character development. Essentially, "Ishmael" is a dialogue between two characters. The best (and really only)memorable setting is a brief paragraph or two at a carnival grounds. Again, the dialogue is intense and thought-provoking, but, ultimately, the lack of essential elements of good fiction makes this book fall just a bit flat. "Ishmael" is a quick read and is sure to inspire much internal thought and water-cooler discussion with friends who have read the book. I would reccommend "Ishmael" but only with the qualifier that you cannot expect much more than dialogue. I have heard that Quinn's book "The Story of B" is much more developed in terms of fictional elements, and I liked the idea-challenging nature of "Ishmael" enough to keep reading Quinn's books.
Rating:
Summary: A Must Read.
Review: There's a couple of things I'd like to note that haven't yet been mentioned. First off, for anyone who's read this book and enjoyed it, I'd recommend Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsch. This and Walsch's book remain at the top of my Best Books list, and for good reason too. Believe me when I tell you that you can't get a more interesting book.
Rating:
Summary: Makes you wonder about everything that you learned in school
Review: In Ishmael Quinn makes the reader unlearn everything that our culture teaches us and then to examine it in a completely new way. This book will make you wonder about your faith, your history, and the future of man kind.
Rating:
Summary: Good ideas, but flawed...
Review: Quinn has written a thought provoking book, which happens to be basically flawed. humankind is tainted by sin. it is. we can't shake the habit, we can't close our eyes to the perverseness that surrounds us. Quinn is not the first to suggest that we attempt to rise above our nature, and like all the others, our flight is doomed for failure. the second flaw in Quinn's ideas is removing inate value from each human life. even though we selfish, blind creatures, we are created in the image of God. we bear a divine spark, and are just as capable of beauty as we are of terror. the answer to third-world hunger is not to ignore it, it is to make resitution for the ways our country (the US), and europe have raped and destroyed whole cultures. this is true not only for africa, but also for asia, russia, native americans, latin americans, south american. i agree with the idea that "taker", or western civilization cannot last. but perhaps that wouldn't be the tragedy that everyone seems to assume it would be. we need to open our eyes, acknowledge our frailty and weakness and well as our beauty and strength, and extend our love to the least of these. because if we allow fellow human-beings to die because of a "natural process", that will be the greatest tragedy.
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