My wife is a (lapsed, maybe? She has very strong Christian upbringing, but doesn’t seem to believe most of it anymore) Christian, and recently asked me to recommend a book she could read on Atheism. I’m looking for recommendations.
My first thought was The God Delusion, by Dawkins, which I’ve read. I’ve also read several books by Sam Harris that might be reasonable choices. I haven’t read anything by Christopher Hitchens.
Another thought was The Demon Haunted World, by Sagan, which isn’t specifically about atheism, but is about science, skepticism, and reasoning about rejecting untestable and supernatural explanations.
I would not suggest The God Delusion. I found it very dense and difficult.
I am curious. Yes, I’ve read The God Delusion, but really out of general curiosity rather than an attempt to learn anything about atheism. What’s to learn? What does she hope to get out of reading about atheism?
Yeah, Demon Haunted is prolly at the head of my short list. Just is so accessible, and makes so much sense.
I think skepticism more useful than atheism. Gods are just one type of BS to be skeptical about.
Many years ago there was a thread in GD about the IPU (invisible pink or purple unicorn). Think it was in GD. No idea what it would look like if I tried to search for it, but as I recall, it had a ton of great insight in addition to some wicked humor.
Mr Deity on Youtube is a hoot if you want video.
Another take - just read the damned source material - the Bible and a history of how it got to its current state.
I’m a lifelong atheist, but a couple of years ago I read Faith vs. Fact, by Jerry Coyne. It’s a great read. I wouldn’t really characterize it as an “atheist” book; rather, it’s a book about how we know what we actually know. Professor Coyne is an evolutionary biologist and a clear, concise writer. He pulls together all the thinking in a very logical, easy-to-follow way.
As the kind of atheist who is an atheist because no one ever taught me a religion, this question feels … odd. To me, a defining feature of atheism is that you don’t need a book to tell you about it.
I don’t have a specific book recommendation, I just think it’s funny that that’s exactly the kind of thing a book about atheism would have to address. It’s a conundrum.
It’s interesting that a book is needed.
I think this shows that religion can distort thinking processes.
If you agree with the scientific method, then you examine the evidence for Gods and discover there isn’t any.
I don’t know of books like:
Why you shouldn’t believe in the Loch Ness Monster
I’ve never read a book on atheism, so I can’t recommend one. But I’ve read Bertrand Russell’s “Why I Am Not a Christian" many times. It was a lecture given in the 20s and later distributed as a pamphlet. It’s freely available with a simple search. I found it very compelling.
I think this is why Sagan’s The Demon-Haunted World is being recommended in this thread (and I’ll add another recommendation for it). It’s not a case for atheism as much as a case for being skeptical about anything for which there is no scientific evidence. Especially for someone who was raised in a religious household or greater environment, equating a belief in god(s) with a belief in something equally supernatural, such as ghosts or Nessie, is not an easy thing to do. If one is able to see the value of the scientific method, Sagan’s book makes the case for applying that method to a belief in deities.
I think Dawkins and Harris’s books are probably not the best place to start, especially for someone who is wavering – they both make very strong arguments, but they take a sledgehammer approach.
The OP mentions Christopher Hitchens: his God Is Not Great is quite good, but I’d recommend the Sagan book first. Hitchens also edited The Portable Atheist, which I have by my bedside – it’s a great collection of essays from non-believers down through the ages.
It’s been awhile since I’ve read Demon-Haunted World, but I don’t remember it being at all about atheism, or having anything in it that a sincere Christian (or other believer in God) would necessarily disagree with.
I came in to say that Hitchins’ God is Not Great is a pretty vitriolic read, especially as an introduction to atheism. Having said that it would be a good book for a second or third essay on the topic.
I would also suggest Unweaving the Rainbow as a good read on rediscovering the wonder of the universe in the absence of a Creator.
Something to consider: is she looking for something to make an intellectual case for atheism, or against religious mythology? Or is she, perhaps, looking for something that grapples with questions about moral principles and life outlooks, in the absence of those conferred by faith and religious dogma? IME, some people cling to their religious upbringing not so much because they ~believe~ in its mythology, but because its structures serve functional roles in their life, and they have no experience in how that need can be otherwise served.
Well, if someone had taught you a religion, and you believed it very strongly and it affected the way that you think about the world, realizing the subtle ways in which your previous belief colored your religious experience would probably not be quite so simple.
I’m kind of surprised at people who suggest you don’t need a book (not just you, Sattua). What do you do when you want to learn about something you don’t know much about?
I don’t know exactly what she hopes to get out of reading this book. I think she wants it to be a jumping-off place for more discussions about philosophy and religion. It’s quite possible that The Demon-Haunted World is going to miss the mark because she won’t really apply skepticism to religion, and I’d be better off with an explicit case against religion. Or, one of topics that’s come up in the past is morality, and how morality can be derived without religion. So maybe something like Sam Harris’s The Moral Landscape is a good one.
I’m also going to read the book, so if there’s something that people recommend that I haven’t read, that might be a nudge in its favor.
I came to my atheism the hard way, without a guide, through a belief in the scientific method and deep readings in philosophy and a number of mythologies, including the Christian one. For someone who has moved beyond the initial question to the issue of ethics, they could do worse than to read Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations. It’s not so much a moral guide as a Poor Richard’s Almanac of ethics, though.
