Ishmael : A Novel

One of the most beloved and bestselling novels of spiritual adventure ever published, Ishmael has earned a passionate following among readers and critics alike. This special twenty-fifth anniversary edition features a new foreword and afterword by the author, as well as an excerpt from My Ishmael. TEACHER SEEKS PUPIL. Must have an earnest desire to save the world. Apply in person. It was just a three-line ad in the personals section, but it launched the adventure of a lifetime. So begins an utterly unique and captivating novel. In Ishmael, which received the Turner Tomorrow Fellowship for the best work of fiction offering positive solutions to global problems, Daniel Quinn parses humanity’s origins and its relationship with nature, in search of an answer to this challenging question: How can we save the world from ourselves? Praise for Ishmael “As suspenseful, inventive, and socially urgent as any fiction or nonfiction you are likely to read this or any other year.”—The Austin Chronicle “Before we’re halfway through this slim book . . . we’re in [Daniel Quinn’s] grip, we want Ishmael to teach us how to save the planet from ourselves. We want to change our lives.”—The Washington Post “Arthur Koestler, in an essay in which he wondered whether mankind would go the way of the dinosaur, formulated what he called the Dinosaur’s Prayer: ‘Lord, a little more time!’ Ishmael does its bit to answer that prayer and may just possibly have bought us all a little more time.”—Los Angeles Times

the Narrator Of This Extraordinary Tale Is A Man  in Search For Truth. He Answers An Ad In A Local  newspaper From A Teacher Looking For Serious  pupils, Only To Find Himself Alone In An Abandoned  office With A Full-grown Gorilla Who Is Nibbling  delicately On A Slender Branch. "you Are The  teacher?" He Asks Incredulously. "i Am  the Teacher," The Gorilla Replies. Ishmael Is  a Creature Of Immense Wisdom And He Has A Story  to Tell, One That No Other Human Being Has Ever  heard. It Is A Story That Extends Backward And  forward Over The Lifespan Of The Earth From The Birth  of Time To A Future There Is Still Time Save.  like All Great Teachers, Ishmael Refuses To Make The  lesson Easy; He Demands The Final Illumination To  come From Within Ourselves. Is It Man's Destiny  to Rule The World? Or Is It A Higher Destiny  possible For Him-- One More Wonderful Than He Has Ever  imagined?

publishers Weekly

quinn ( Dreamer ) Won The Turner Tomorrow Award's Half-million-dollar First Prize For This Fascinating And Odd Book--not A Novel By Any Conventional Definition--which Was Written 13 Years Ago But Could Not Find A Publisher. The Unnamed Narrator Is A Disillusioned Modern Writer Who Answers A Personal Ad (``teacher Seeks Pupil. . . . Apply In Person.'') And Thereby Meets A Wise, Learned Gorilla Named Ishmael That Can Communicate Telepathically. The Bulk Of The Book Consists Entirely Of Philosophical Dialogues Between Gorilla And Man, On The Model Of Plato's Republic. Through Ishmael, Quinn Offers A Wide-ranging If Highly General Examination Of The History Of Our Civilization, Illuminating The Assumptions And Philosophies At The Heart Of Many Global Problems. Despite Some Gross Oversimplifications, Quinn's Ideas Are Fairly Convincing; It's Hard Not To Agree That Unrestrained Population Growth And An Obsession With Conquest And Control Of The Environment Are Among The Key Issues Of Our Times. Quinn Also Traces These Problems Back To The Agricultural Revolution And Offers A Provocative Rereading Of The Biblical Stories Of Genesis. Though Hardly Any Plot To Speak Of Lies Behind This Long Dialogue, Quinn's Smooth Style And His Intriguing Proposals Should Hold The Attention Of Readers Interested In The Daunting Dilemmas That Beset Our Planet. 50,000 First Printing; Major Ad/promo. (jan.)

One of the most beloved and bestselling novels of spiritual adventure ever published, Ishmael has earned a passionate following. This special twenty-fifth anniversary edition features a new foreword and afterword by the author. “A thoughtful, fearlessly low-key novel about the role of our species on the planet... laid out for us with an originality and a clarity that few would deny.”—The New York Times Book ReviewTeacher Seeks Pupil.Must have an earnest desire to save the world. Apply in person.It was just a three-line ad in the personals section, but it launched the adventure of a lifetime.So begins an utterly unique and captivating novel. It is the story of a man who embarks on a highly provocative intellectual adventure with a gorilla—a journey of the mind and spirit that changes forever the way he sees the world and humankind's place in it. In Ishmael, which received the Turner Tomorrow Fellowship for the best work of fiction offering positive solutions to global problems, Daniel Quinn parses humanity's origins and its relationship with nature, in search of an answer to this challenging question: How can we save the world from ourselves? Explore Daniel Quinn's spiritual Ishmael trilogy: ISHMAEL • MY ISHMAEL • THE STORY OF B Praise for Ishmael“As suspenseful, inventive, and socially urgent as any fiction or nonfiction you are likely to read this or any other year.”—The Austin Chronicle“Before we're halfway through this slim book... we're in [Daniel Quinn's] grip, we want Ishmael to teach us how to save the planet from ourselves. We want to change our lives.”—The Washington Post“Arthur Koestler, in an essay in which he wondered whether mankind would go the way of the dinosaur, formulated what he called the Dinosaur's Prayer: ‘Lord, a little more time!'Ishmael does its bit to answer that prayer and may just possibly have bought us all a little more time.”—Los Angeles Times "The narrator of this extraordinary tale is a man in search for truth. He answers an ad in a local newspaper from a teacher looking for serious pupils, only to find himself alone in an abandoned office with a full-grown gorilla who is nibbling delicately on a slender branch. "You are the teacher?" he asks incredulously. "I am the teacher," the gorilla replies. Ishmael is a creature of immense wisdom and he has a story to tell, one that no other human being has ever heard. It is a story that extends backward and forward over the lifespan of the earth from the birth of time to a future there is still time save. Like all great teachers, Ishmael refuses to make the lesson easy; he demands the final illumination to come from within ourselves. Is it man's destiny to rule the world? Or is it a higher destiny possible for him-- one more wonderful than he has ever imagined?"--Source inconnue