Rating: 
Summary: A great example of what it takes
Review: The book itself can be looked at as kind of corny but the real message it sends out is amazing. The kid Loudan really wanted something and wasn't going to let anyone or anything step in his way. He put so much time and effort into it and that's what it really takes to succeed at your future goals in life. You have to make big sacrifices and take great risks to accomplish something like that. It sets a great example for anyone who wants to succeed but is hesitant about it. I recommend this book to a more mature audience like 16 and above because of it's content.
Rating: 
Summary: Sigh
Review: The only reason I picked up this book and read some of it was because it was a class assignment. There is no way I would ever read it again. Personally, I thought it had no real point to it and the ending was a disaster. No wonder it didnt come out in Sports Illustrated top 100 Sports books. I never thought a book could be bad, I guess I was wrong.
Rating: 
Summary: the vision this beautiful novel gave me
Review: This book not only made me a writer, it confirmed that there are folks out there working in each moment to be the best people they can be. I've carried the protagonist, Louden Swain, with me every day of my life since I read VISION QUEST in late 1979. And I'm glad for it.When I came to VISION QUEST in my mid-twenties, I was striving to connect with a life I could care about. I was not a reader, other than the few older novels I was required to read in freshman comp. and American lit. classes. For me, VISION QUEST was revelatory in teaching me that American literature was not something of the past: it didn't die with the likes of Fitzgerald and Steinbeck and Hemingway. Even more important (more enriching) to me, it showed that it was possible to write books and stories that would be accessible and relevant to (and resonant in) many people's lives who would not otherwise be interested in reading. What's more, VISION QUEST helped me recognize and honor the connections between my life and those of others around me. You can't ask for more than that from a book. And it's not something you often find. For these reasons and others, VISION QUEST is a novel to honor and to celebrate. The life that Louden Swain was living in this book was something I could indeed recognize as A LIFE! Louden was awake and alive to the possibilities. This was a theme I was (and remain) passionate about pursuing in my own life and work. I hope that I've done an OK job of making that happen....
Rating:
Summary: the vision this beautiful novel gave me
Review: This book not only made me a writer, it confirmed that there are folks out there working in each moment to be the best people they can be. I've carried the protagonist, Louden Swain, with me every day of my life since I read VISION QUEST in late 1979. And I'm glad for it. When I came to VISION QUEST in my mid-twenties, I was striving to connect with a life I could care about. I was not a reader, other than the few older novels I was required to read in freshman comp. and American lit. classes. For me, VISION QUEST was revelatory in teaching me that American literature was not something of the past: it didn't die with the likes of Fitzgerald and Steinbeck and Hemingway. Even more important (more enriching) to me, it showed that it was possible to write books and stories that would be accessible and relevant to (and resonant in) many people's lives who would not otherwise be interested in reading. What's more, VISION QUEST helped me recognize and honor the connections between my life and those of others around me. You can't ask for more than that from a book. And it's not something you often find. For these reasons and others, VISION QUEST is a novel to honor and to celebrate. The life that Louden Swain was living in this book was something I could indeed recognize as A LIFE! Louden was awake and alive to the possibilities. This was a theme I was (and remain) passionate about pursuing in my own life and work. I hope that I've done an OK job of making that happen...
Rating:
Summary: perfect ending to a durned good read
Review: This is one of the most real-world inspiring and beautifully understated pieces of fiction that I have read. The protagonist, Louden Swain, is a 17-and 18-year-old who is doing his very best to become the best (the most alive, capable) person he can figure out how to become. It's durned good to see such a life as Louden's promoted in a fine piece of writing instead of the maladjusts we often find in contemporary, "cool" literature. Although Vision Quest is listed as a young adult title, the writing transcends that genre. This is not so much a book for adolescent readers (although they'll likely enjoy it) as it is a fun read for adults who powerfully connect with good novels. The ending: it's downright perfect. The wrestling match between Louden and his opponent is not the point of the story. The journey of becoming is what matters here.
Rating:
Summary: Louden's Quest
Review: Vision Quest was kind of boring book because it was suppose to be about wrestling but it's not, it's more about the life of Louden and his personal problems he has and struggles with. I thought the movie was better than the book, because the book gets into more details when it's really not necessary. I personally thought the book was ok, but the movie was better than the book, I recommend the movie to other people who are into wrestling , because it shows how Louden searches for his personal strength and understanding.
Rating:
Summary: The Quest Continues...
Review: When Terry Davis first released VISION QUEST -- the story of high school wrestler Louden Swain's personal search for strength and understanding -- it was heralded as an exceptional book by John Irving, the American Library Association, Publisher's Weekly and the American Book Award committee (now known as the National Book Awards). Seeing the original Viking edition go out of print, was like losing an old friend. But Eastern Washington University Press resurrected Davis's debut novel in March of 2002, and that's good news for readers everywhere. Is it still a good and meaningful book after two decades? Absolutely. Louden's need for clarity and personal revelation is universal. It whispers to every man's journey into self-discovery. And Davis's ability to deliver the tenderness and brutality of truth masked as fiction is without parallel. Read VISION QUEST. It is a timeless novel that deserves a second shot at immortality.
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