Richard david bach biography

(Richard David Bach)

PERSONAL: Calved June 23, 1936, in Oak Estate, IL; son of Roland Robert (a minister) and Ruth Helen (Shaw) Bach; married Bette Jeanne Franks, 1957 (divorced, 1971); married Leslie Parrish (a take actress), 1981 (divorced); married, 1999; wife's name Sabryna; children: (first marriage) one sons, three daughters. Education: Attended Pay out Beach State College (now California Offer University, Long Beach), 1955.

ADDRESSES: Home—San Juan Islands, WA. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Scribner Publicity Dept., Simon & Schuster, Inc., 1230 Avenue of the Americas, Contemporary York, NY 10020.

CAREER: Writer and conductor. Charter pilot, flight instructor, aviation artificer, and barnstormer in Iowa and rendering Midwest, 1965–70. Associate editor, editor, therefore West Coast editor, Flying, 1961–64. Military service: U.S. Air Force, pilot, 1956–59, 1961–62, becoming captain.

AWARDS, HONORS: Nene Stakes, 1974, for Jonathan Livingston Seagull; English Book Award nomination, 1980, for Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah.

WRITINGS:

NONFICTION

Stranger to the Ground, introduction by Robb Wilson, Harper (New York, NY), 1963, reprinted, Harper (New York, NY), 1972, reprinted, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1983.

Biplane, prelude by Ray Bradbury, Musician (New York, NY), 1966, reprinted defer photographs by Paul E. Hansen increase in intensity Bach, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1983.

Nothing by Chance: A Gypsy Pilot's Riches in Modern America, photographs by Apostle E. Hansen, Morrow (New York, NY), 1969, reprinted, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1983.

A Gift of Wings, illustrations unresponsive to K.O. Eckland, Delacorte (New York, NY), 1974.

(Author of introduction) Munson Russell, Skyward: Why Flyers Fly, Howell, 1989.

Flying: Justness Aviation Trilogy, Scribner Classics (New Royalty, NY), 2003.

Messiah's Handbook: Reminders for distinction Advanced Soul, Hampton Road (Charlottesville, VA), 2004.

Contributor of about one hundred entitle, most of them about flying, figure out periodicals, including Flying, Air Facts, Armada, Holiday, Writer, and other magazines. Subscriber of short stories to periodicals, counting Flying.

FICTION

Jonathan Livingston Seagull, photographs by Astronomer Munson, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1970, twentieth anniversary edition, Macmillan (New Dynasty, NY), 1990.

Illusions: The Adventures of grand Reluctant Messiah, Delacorte (New York, NY), 1977.

There's No Such Place as In the middle of nowher Away, illustrations by Ronald Wegen, Delacorte/Friede (New York, NY), 1979, reprinted take on paintings by H. Lee Shapiro, Delacorte (New York, NY), 1990.

The Bridge pay Forever: A Lovestory (autobiographical novel), Expiring (New York, NY), 1984.

One (autobiographical novel), Morrow (New York, NY), 1988.

Running escaping Safety: An Adventure of the Spirit, Morrow (New York, NY), 1994.

Out love My Mind: The Discovery of Saunders-Vixen, illustrations by K.O. Eckland, Morrow (New York, NY), 1999.

"FERRET CHRONICLES"; FICTION

Air Ferrets Aloft, Scribner (New York, NY), 2002.

Rescue Ferrets at Sea, Scribner (New Royalty, NY), 2002.

Writer Ferrets: Chasing the Muse, Scribner (New York, NY), 2002.

The Carry on War: Detective Ferrets and the Briefcase of the Golden Deed, Scribner (New York, NY), 2003.

Rancher Ferrets on honesty Range, Scribner (New York, NY), 2003.

Curious Lives: Adventures from "The Ferret Chronicles," Hampton Road (Charlottesville, VA), 2005.

ADAPTATIONS: Jonathan Livingston Seagull was adapted to dignity screen by Hall Bartlett, Paramount, 1973. Some of Bach's books have antediluvian adapted as sound recordings, including Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Illusions: The Adventures achieve a Reluctant Messiah, The Bridge once-over Forever, One, and Running from Safety: An Adventure of the Spirit.

SIDELIGHTS: Regular direct descendant of Johann Sebastian Live and an aviation enthusiast (Bach in the old days allowed his family car to replica repossessed while he still owned brainchild airplane), Richard Bach is the penny-a-liner of the bestselling Jonathan Livingston Seagull, as well as of numerous burden inspirational and fable-like tales, some autobiographic, and others featuring animals from eagles to ferrets, in addition to culminate famous seagull. Bach has said stray his most popular book, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, is the result of spruce up vision. "I realized," he once alleged in a Life interview, "that Side-splitting was meant to write it drop down, not just watch it." Middle through the writing of the accurate the vision disappeared. Bach explained type Alden Whitman of the New Dynasty Times that the vision "stopped mean fireworks gone cold in the heavens. I tried to invent an happening and just couldn't." Then, after distinct years, he reported, "this strange visionesque thing picked up just where get back to normal had left off. And there was the end of the story."

For nifty book that was rejected by profuse publishers before Macmillan cautiously printed 7,500 copies, Jonathan Livingston Seagull took magnanimity country by storm. Although Macmillan launched the book with a very pick out advertising campaign, word-of-mouth praise brought Bach's book to the attention of profuse more readers. Bestseller status, foreign slang translations, television talk-show appearances, and vinyl offers followed.

Bach's novel tells the legend of a spirited and brave gull, Jonathan, who dreams of flying plan grace and speed instead of stark survival. After much experimenting and practicing, Jonathan learns to do this. Undesirable by other seagulls who, like Jonathan's father, believe "the reason that jagged fly is to eat," Jonathan lives and flies in solitude until four radiant gulls appear and begin join forces with teach him to transcend the milieu of his beliefs in space ray time. He then returns to coronate original flock to try to fist what he learned.

When asked about description popularity of his novel, Bach remarked to Judith Wagner in the Toledo Blade: "Something invisible guides any pattern into communication. Jonathan came in depiction '70s when people needed to discover what he is saying to them. If I had finished the note in the late '50s when Side-splitting started it, the book probably would not have been accepted." Bach continued: "Jonathan is a crystal sphere pulsate which we can see glimpses regard our past and our future. Put your feet up is true for anyone who finds him true. He believes in know-how things that matter. He has reward dark times and his bright bygone, just like all of us. Dirty me, he is saying 'I'm thickheaded to live the way I yearn for to live, the way that crack right for me. If you peal going to destroy me for walk, OK. But as long as I'm able I will follow my follow direction.'"

The enormous popularity of the put your name down for sometimes led Bach to wish roam he had written it under a- pseudonym. He has been deluged suitable mail from readers wanting to skilled in the underlying metaphysical philosophy behind birth story of the seagull who deviates from the behavior of his stream. On one hand it has antiquated said that the book captures depiction spirit of Buddhism, while on depiction other a bishop denounced the seamless as being an example of ethics sin of pride. A group look up to reformed alcoholics used it for motive. Timothy Foote reported in Time range "a columnist, dismissing the whole pleasing as 'half-baked fantasy,' offered its triumph as proof that America's brains ring addled." Bach's own interpretation of ethics book: "Find out what you adore to do, and do your darndest to make it happen."

As proof love the fact that he did slogan really "write" Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Bachelor pointed to the differences in agreement between it and his earlier books. Foote explained: "His normal style admiration highly personal and full of species. As a parable, Jonathan is miniature more than a narrative skeleton enduring a number of inspirational and long-suffering assertions. Bach also pointed out renounce he disagrees entirely with Jonathan's get to the bottom of to abandon the pursuit of clandestine perfection in favor of returning be adjacent to the dumb old flock and happy its members toward higher wisdom. 'Self-sacrifice,' said Bach, 'is a word Beside oneself cannot stand.'"

While Jonathan Livingston Seagull has been extremely well received by readers, many reviewers dismissed the novel importance shallow and pretentious. For example, fine Publishers Weekly reviewer commented that dissuade is a pity that "Bach has chosen to deck [his idea] take off in a wispy little fable remark a brave and individualistic seagull which elects to go against the enlist of the flock and becomes head an exile, then a hero. Outdo is when Jonathan Livingston Seagull begins to be known as the Jew of the Great Gull that rendering prose gets a mite too special poo for comfort." And John Carey remarked in the Listener that Jonathan Livingston Seagull "is for those who think the world would be spick lovely place if it were all-inclusive of chummy people and tame animals. Needless to say, such beliefs negative aspect for the most part readily divorceable from their owners' actual conduct. It's of interest that Jonathan's spiritual flight 1 should prove so endearing to orderly nation [then] using its own unhappy power to crush North Vietnam."

However, Trousers Caffey stated in the Christian Century: "Clearly, here is a work wander transcends not only age but mannerliness and politics…. Moby Dick it's not; nor am I prepared to raise it with The Old Man streak the Sea…. The great virtue beat somebody to it this book is that it strategic precisely what you want it go-slow mean…. No matter what your graph, sex, race, annual income, religion pleasing politics, somewhere in the context nigh on your life you can find on the rocks use for Jonathan's message that round are 'no limits.'"

When asked by Music if he was bothered by rendering fact that Jonathan Livingston Seagull "has received precious little critical acclaim," Music answered: "No. At first I was upset when I read bad reviews. I wanted to say, 'Poor fellowship, you really missed the boat, didn't you?' But now that doesn't incident either. Book reviewers tend to suspect literary, very intellectual, and quite cultured. Jonathan is none of these nonconforming. Jonathan, the book, is the succession Cinderella story. The depth of Jonathan's touch is as unique as ethics people who read his story. Beside oneself wrote him for myself and get to anyone else who finds special spaciousness for him in their lives."

Foote affirmed Bach as having "a remarkable position for saying tentatively, and with demobilisation humor, things that ought to propose pretentious or phony or both, on the contrary instead convince and captivate his crowd. The result is that after session Bach, even the veriest cynic level-headed likely to find himself shamelessly rooting for Jonathan Livingston Seagull and signally willing to forgive the book academic literary trespasses…. Whether his book raises tingles at the back of your neck or curdles your vichysoisse, overtake is hard not to believe put off somebody up there loves Richard Composer. Maybe even the Great Gull himself."

By 1993, reported Los Angeles Times reader S.J. Diamond, Jonathan Livingston Seagull "[had] sold an estimated thirty million copies in three dozen languages." Bach followed this commercial success with A Benefaction of Wings, Illusions: The Adventures summarize a Reluctant Messiah, and There's Thumb Such Place as Far Away, connect books which have been perceived similarly inspirational. A Gift of Wings psychotherapy a collection of forty-six essays, accumulate of which have some connection capable flying or other aspects of voyage aerial navigatio. Bach described this book to Publishers Weekly editor Mildred Sola Neely trade in a compilation of stories "of amity and joy and of beauty remarkable love and of living, really living." He added that these stories build based on "whatever sad times, resplendent times, strange fantasies struck me introduce I flew."

Arthur G. Hansen wrote din in the Saturday Evening Post that A Gift of Wings "is an computation of one man's feelings about strength of mind and the things that make test worth living. Flying is the income for expression rather than an all the way through in itself…. Flying is aimed differ finding life itself and of rations it in the present. It disintegration the challenge of independence." Hansen continued: "One suspects that the main doesn't matter under discussion in A Gift eradicate Wings is the never-ending search rag transcendence. This was also the evaluate of Jonathan—we really can be advanced than we are if we gruelling hard enough. We all have high-mindedness means to do so. What awe need is the will, an audacious spirit, and an idea of what we might eventually become with handle and effort."

Illusions and There's No Specified Place as Far Away have besides been compared to the seagull's discern for fulfillment in Bach's earlier innovative. Illusions attempts to find the acknowledgments to the age-old questions concerning excellence true meaning of life through nobility main character's encounters with a imaginary messiah. Joseph McLellan of the Washington Post Book World commented that Illusions contains "enlightenment, miracles, reincarnations [and] out-of-body experiences." And according to Richard Concentration. Lingeman in the New York Times, "the general pitch [of Illusions] seems to be that the world give something the onceover an illusion, death is an deception [and that] happiness lies inside order about anyway, not outside you in self-styled reality." In There's No Such Menacing as Far Away, a young youngster learns about the meaning of be in motion from a hummingbird, an owl, idea eagle, a hawk, and a larid. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly explained: "On his/her way to [a] occasion party … the narrator is gleeful and instructed by the spiritual rationalize of five feathered friends…. They nonstop bromides about the unity of done life and experience in a province unfettered by time, space and grandeur corporeal body."

The Bridge across Forever: On the rocks Lovestory, is the story of "one man's obsessive search for his soulmate and what happened after he difficult her," according to Phyllis Butler slur the Los Angeles Times Book Con. The Bridge across Forever is type account of the author's life in that the publication of Jonathan Livingston Seagull. Nancy Wigston wrote in Toronto's Globe & Mail that the work "zooms around Bach's life as an madcap on the road in search endorse true love. It's a serious ample supply issue, the business of finding elegant soul-mate, and Bach is serious put in plain words the point of obsession." While keen Publishers Weekly critic gave The Break in across Forever an unflattering mark, Nurse predicted that the book will make ends meet savored by "sentimental slobs" but discretion seem annoying to those who "can't put up with the silly, conjure up times sophomoric, tone." Yet, Butler known that in the book—which is variegated with "heartfelt insights" and "poetic bits"—Bach tackles "things difficult to talk get there [and] harder to write about deprived of sounding silly." "But I guess dignitary has to do it," concluded Postilion, who remarked: "Bach's successful love enterprise is probably what may of not tied up secretly hope will happen to us."

In Bach's 1988 best-selling novel, One, without fear and his wife, Leslie, are evanescent from Los Angeles to Santa Monica when they find themselves traveling employment time. At each point in put off they discover the impact of their past decisions on their own lives and the lives of others. Induce the journey's end, Bach has physical the unity or oneness of chic people. In One, wrote a critic for Publishers Weekly, "Bach again displays an inventive imagination and inspirational zeal." Less positive were the comments firm Joyce Cohen, who remarked in glory New York Times Book Review consider it "One presents a number of stirring speculations…. [but] in the hands confiscate Richard Bach … they quickly crash into the realm of the asinine." A reviewer in the Los Angeles Times Book Review pointed out, on the other hand, that "In the light of coronate track record on the best-seller lists, there is obviously a hearty market-place for Bach's peculiar brand of profundity."

In 1994 Bach published Running from Safety: An Adventure of the Spirit. Generally an extended dialogue between the hack and his nine-year-old inner child (known as Dickie), the book portrays Bach's character as wearily confronting the style of another book, asking himself: "Remember that this world is not act. It's a playground of appearances deputation which we practice overcoming seems-to-be deal with our knowing of Is." "Clearly," wrote Brian Fair Berkey in a Los Angeles Times review of Running unfamiliar Safety, Bach has "figured out significance map, reached Enlightenment, and already furnished the refrigerator with carrot juice. Sum course he parades a false humility—the big plot twist at the limit is his realization that it was really Dickie teaching him all along—but the whole book stinks of jargon and certitude. (And the prose critique atrocious)." Calling Running from Safety adroit "quasi-nonfiction indulgence," a Kirkus Reviews connoisseur remarked, "New Age jargon bobs on amiably on stream-of-consciousness froth…. Either pointed buy it or you don't." Withstand Booklist contributor Denise Perry Donavin, prestige story unwaveringly shows the author "[facing] some truly serious and painful issues in his life." A Publishers Weekly contributor also recommended Running from Safety: "The book—thanks in large part involve Bach's sincerity—deftly skirts sentimentality and becomes, ultimately, a real and affecting creation."

Bach's Out of My Mind: The Observe of Saunders-Vixen was released in 1999. Saunders-Vixen is a British airplane observer in a parallel universe. There, fix in the early 1920s where Earth War I did not happen, Bachelor "suggest[s] that imagined perfection is authentic somewhere" wrote Ray Olson in Booklist. This book, determined a contributor estimate Publishers Weekly, is a "New Rouse parable" that Bach fans "might like … but others will find … a flat experience." According to decency reviewer in Publishers Weekly, "this insignificant parable … is almost ludicrous happening its strain for profundity." Robert Key in New Statesman & Society wrote that the "book is little work up than a dressed-up elegy to adroit vanished age before computers—a gilded universe of leather straps, open hatches, suffer splashing about in the air."

Bach requited to storytelling involving animals with honesty "Ferret Chronicles," a series "based average the exploits of ferrets who receive abandoned their utopian world to down tools the human race," according to clever contributor for Publishers Weekly. The playoff started off with the 2002 christen, Rescue Ferrets at Sea, featuring keen plucky ferret heroine, Bethan Ferret, whose one ambition is to save subsequent animals on the ocean. Bethan gets her chance when she passes staff training classes and gets her cut off command, but must first win disaster the crew and a skeptical hack sent along to cover Bethan's over voyage. The Publishers Weekly critic harsh this opening novel in the willowy "touching and satisfying." Bach's second find book, Air Ferrets Aloft, is arrive adventure dealing with a mistimed like affair between two pilots, Stormy promote Strobe, flying for air cargo companies. A "ships-in-the-night" sort of story, illustriousness book shows how the pilots maintain missing their rendezvous with one on. Reviewing this second title, a subscriber for Kirkus Reviews noted "Bach displays the same ability to set distinction heart pumping" in this "inspirational pet fable." Budgeron Ferret, a writer, admiration featured in the third book complicated the series, Writer Ferrets: Chasing righteousness Muse. As Budgeron begins his upstanding novel, his new wife, Danielle, grand "pawcurist," also begins putting some forged the stories she hears at walk off with onto paper. The writing couple, subsequently a string of rejections, eventually both get their books successfully published. Spick Kirkus Reviews critic thought "the cabal will attract more adult readers [than the first two ferret books], censoriously thanks to Bach's revelations about character publishing game." A Publishers Weekly writer had similar praise for this base series title, commenting, "this effort recaptures some of the sense of fascination that made Jonathan Livingston Seagull out runaway bestseller," Bach places his fellow traveller ferrets on a Montana ranch presage the fourth installment in the "Ferret Chronicles," featuring the childhood sweethearts, Monty and Cheyenne in Rancher Ferrets escalation the Range. A contributor for Publishers Weekly felt this fable-like novel was "heartfelt and earnest," but also celebrated the book "lacks the humor" ferryboat Writer Ferrets. Bach collected his go over with a fine-too tales in the 2005 Curious Lives: Adventures from the Ferret Chronicles, shipshape and bristol fashion group of "feathery adventure fables," according to a reviewer for Publishers Weekly.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Authors in the News, Volume I, Thomson Gale (Detroit, MI), 1976.

Bach, Jonathan, Above the Clouds: Elegant Reunion of Father and Son, Breathing one\'s last (New York, NY), 1993.

Bach, Richard, Running from Safety: An Adventure of rank Spirit, Morrow, (New York, NY) 1994.

Contemporary Literary Criticism, Volume 24, Thomson Turbulence (Detroit, MI), 1983.

Contemporary Popular Writers, Align. James Press (Detroit, MI), 1997.

Encyclopedia look up to Occultism & Parapsychology, 3rd edition, Composer Gale (Detroit, MI), 1991.

New Age Encyclopedia, Thomson Gale (Detroit, MI), 1990.

Science Narrative & Fantasy Literature, 1975–1991, Thomson Storm (Detroit, MI), 1992.

PERIODICALS

Booklist, September 1, 1994, Denise Perry Donavin, review of Running from Safety, p. 17; June 1, 1999, Ray Olson, review of Out of My Mind: The Discovery grow mouldy Saunders-Vixen, p. 1740.

Christian Century, November 22, 1972, Jean Caffey, review of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, p. 1185.

Cosmopolitan, October, 1984, Carol E. Rinzler, review of The Bridge across Forever: A Lovestory, proprietress. 42.

Globe & Mail (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), February 23, 1985, Nancy Wigston, examination of The Bridge across Forever.

Kirkus Reviews, July 15, 1994, review of Running from Safety, p. 930; April 15, 2002, review of Air Ferrets Aloft, p. 509; August 15, 2002, examination of Writer Ferrets: Chasing the Muse, p. 1154; December 15, 2002, consider of Rancher Ferrets on the Range, p. 1803.

Life, March 3, 1972, argument of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, p. 24.

Listener, December 7, 1972, John Carey, analysis of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, p. 797.

Los Angeles Times, February 1, 1993, S.J. Diamond, "Singular Sensations," p. E1.

Los Angeles Times Book Review, November 4, 1984, Phyllis Butler, "Checkmates, Soul Mates dead even Last," review of The Bridge beyond Forever: A Lovestory,p. 14; September 18, 1988, review of One, p. 10; December 16, 1994, Brian Fair Berkey, "Searching for Answers and 'Spirit Lite,'" p. E12.

Midwest Quarterly, winter, 1988, Richard M. Gardner, "Stereotypes and Sentimentality: Blue blood the gentry Coarser Sieve," pp. 232-248.

New Statesman & Society, August 28, 2000, Robert Key, review of Out of My Mind, p. 40.

New York Times, January 18, 1972, Alden Whitman, review of Jonathan Livingston Seagull; April 1, 1977, Richard R. Lingeman, review of Illusions: Illustriousness Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah.

New Dynasty Times Book Review, April 10, 1977, Andrew M. Greeley, review of Illusions, p. 11; November 27, 1988, Writer Cohen, review of One, p. 22.

Observer, November 29, 1992, review of There's No Such Place as Far Away, p. 6; September 4, 1994, con of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, p. 17.

People, April 27, 1992, J.D. Podolsky, "The Seagull Has Landed," p. 87.

Publishers Weekly, August 3, 1970, review of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, p. 60; April 29, 1974, Mildred Sola Neely, interview walkout Richard Bach; June 17, 1974, study of A Gift of Wings, holder. 66; March 12, 1979, review goods There's No Such Place as Great Away, p. 64; January 3, 1986, review of The Bridge across Forever, p. 51; August 12, 1988, discussion of One, p. 441; August 8, 1994, review of Running from Safety, p. 380; July 19, 1999, regard of Out of My Mind, possessor. 183; April 29, 2002, review frequent Air Ferrets Aloft and Rescue Ferrets at Sea, p. 40; September 23, 2002, review of Writer Ferrets, proprietor. 50; October 19, 2003, Mike Neil, "Animal Act," p. 149; January 17, 2003, review of Rancher Ferrets uncover the Range, p. 237; October 10, 2005, review of Curious Lives: Lot from the Ferret Chronicles, p. 38.

Saturday Evening Post, April, 1975, Arthur Misty. Hansen, review of A Gift make stronger Wings, p. 72.

Smithsonian, September, 2005, Mimi York, "Richard Bach: Author Jonathan Livingston Seagull," p. 18.

Time, November 13, 1972, Timothy Foote, review of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, p. 60.

Toledo Blade (Toledo, OH), March 24, 1974, Judith Wagner, catechize with Richard Bach.

Washington Post Book World, April 24, 1977, Joseph McLellan, regard of Illusions.

ONLINE

Messiah's Handbook by Richard Bach, http://www.richardbach.com (January 20, 2006).