An American Mystic: A Novel of Spiritual Adventure

by Michael Gurian

Under the tutelage of an aging Sufi master, Ben Brickman, an American graduate student in psychology, embarks on a spiritual quest that leads him around the world as he completes ten tasks of enlightenment designed to reveal the ultimate truth. By the author of The Wonder of Boys. 22,500 first printing.

Hardcover

First published March 6, 2000

About the author

Michael Gurian is an American author and social philosopher. He works as a marriage and family counselor and corporate consultant. He has published twenty-eight books, several of which were New York Times bestseller list bestsellers. He is considered, along with Leonard Sax, as one of the major proponents of the post-modern "single-sex academic classes" movement.
Gurian taught at Gonzaga University, Eastern Washington University, and Ankara University. His work tends to focus on sex differences and how they contribute to learning.
He is also a co-founder of the Gurian Institute, which trains professionals who deal with the developmental aspects of childhood. The Gurian Institute has trained more than 60,000 teachers from over 2,000 different schools. Some of these schools become "GI Model Schools" and aim to leverage the role gender plays in learning styles.

Reviews

[Michelle Contreras Ewens · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like "The Alchemist", this book is a must read. Highly enjoyable! It leaves you feeling like you're a better person for having read it.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book very much. It reads like a biography even though it is fiction. Typically in these spiritual journey books, the encounters tend towards "too much" or "too little". I was pleasantly surprised to see that some of the personal experiences of Ben were not so mind blowing that it made the whole story unbelievable. Having met and spoken with spiritual people from New Age enthusiasts, Wiccans, to the Mayan Priestess, I can safely say that what the main character experiences is well within the "defined" experiences of modern self-described mystics. If you are looking for something that even the "normal" person can relate to more than Shirley McLaine, this is it.

[Anne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Considering the two main characters were mystics, they were quite one-dimensional and unbelievable. The dialogue and inner monologue of the narrator usually felt contrived to the point of ridiculousness. The narrative often got bogged down in unnecessary mundane details, such as the rather graphic description of the Turkish public toilet. For me, the best thing about the book was being able to learn a great deal about the Turkish culture.

[Laserbrain · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a searcher this book has been very helpful & insightful in the ways of becoming one with the Self and the whole (every other living thing)
At points it's hard to relate because this mans spiritual journey is deep, profound, almost too profound. He had a shamans help as well, I for one don't have a shaman-type guide, so I read this book hoping to vicariously live these experiences through his writings.
After all, it was a good story with a lot that any mystic/searcher could take from it.

[Elizabeth Olson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this novel of a young American man's journey towards self-discovery and becoming a mystic, but those hopes were not realized. The story got thinner and thinner, the characters more and more wooden, and the whole thing more ridiculous and irritatingly badly written as it went on. First half, B; second half, C.