Publisher's write-up:
'For most
seagulls, life consists simply of eating and surviving. Flying is
just a means of finding food. However, Jonathan Livingston Seagull is
no ordinary bird. For him, flying is life itself. Against the
conventions of seagull society, he seeks to find a higher purpose and
become the best at doing what he loves.
This is a fable
about the importance of making the most of our lives, even if our
goals run contrary to the norms of our flock, tribe or neighbourhood.
Through the metaphor of flight, Jonathan's story shows us that, if we
follow our dreams, we too can soar.'
I started reading this book for two main reasons: one – I'm badly
lagging behind in the Goodreads reading challenge and this book being
just 87 pages (of which, half of them are pictures), could help my
chances of completing the target; two – the author, Richard Bach,
is an American. I haven't reviewed a book written by an American
author in this blog, so far. I would have definitely liked the first
to be a much bigger and a far more mature novel but it is good to
start this with something as simple as Jonathan Livingston
Seagull: a story.
I did mention two reasons, but I'd also heard about this novel
several times, as a highly inspirational story and you start looking
at your life from a different perspective after reading this novel.
Over my four years experience, I've learnt to have my expectations
low for something that is frequently praised by others since more
often than not, such works of fiction have always disappointed me.
But, this was rather different and I like the way it started,
Jonathan Livingston, a seagull trying to break free from the chains
of command of the seagull flock and follow his passion. Unlike the
other seagulls for whom flight was a mere tool acquiring food,
Jonathan wanted to excel in flying for that was his passion.
But for the start, the story was simply bad, on all the other
aspects. When I arrived at this conclusion, I wondered, at the outset
whether I was the only one who was unable to appreciate this work but
I was glad when I realised after reading some reviews at goodreads
that most people who've read this book shared my opinion. When this
was tagged as 'motivational', I expected how Jonathan would fight
against the norms of the flock and in turn excel in flying overcoming
the societal constraints. Instead, the author just went on describing
how Jonathan flew at '190 miles per hour' which in no way was
interesting and wasn't anywhere close to being inspirational.
Besides that, I'm shocked to find this book stacked in the shelf
'Literature' in various bookstores and libraries whereas I'd
say that this is nothing more than a standard fairy tale – the
seagull is oppressed but two 'angels' take him to another
world where all birds are like him, returns happily to earth and
starts training like-minded seagulls. Moreover, I found it odd to
give seagulls a surname – Livingston, Lynd, etcetera. I've nothing to say beyond this; a four paragraphs review is more than sufficient for a forty page novel.
I didn't get any inspiration out of this story and I'm sure most
people who read this book would feel the same. It is definitely one
of the most overrated books I've read so far.
Rating – 2/10
Have a nice day,
Andy
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