Books - Suggestions?

ScatteredThoughts

I decided to rummage through my Amazon wish list last night, and decided that it was time to order a couple of books related to Atheism. So far, I have never been one to seek formal support of my atheism; the wonders of science, diversity of existing religions, and the idea of First Cause have all been enough to make me disregard the notion of a Christian God.

There are a couple of books which I intend to order today:

Reasonable Atheism: A Moral Case For Respectful Disbelief - Scott F. Aikin
http://www.amazon.com/Reasonable-Atheism-Moral-Respectful-Disbelief/dp/1616143835/

Meditations for the Humanist: Ethics for a Secular Age - A C Grayling
http://www.amazon.com/Meditations-Humanist-Ethics-Secular-Age/dp/0195168909


Both seem like books which are geared towards thoughtful and non-combative ways of supporting atheist viewpoints. I do intend to dive into the works of Hitchens and Dawkins at some point, but feel these may be a better start for me.

Do any of you have any recommendations for other books which you thought were particularly good?


Thanks

soldier4242

Getting the obvious ones out of the way.

The God Delusion- Richard Dawkins
The Moral Landscape- Sam Harris
God is Not Great - Christopher Hitchens

I also enjoyed:
God No! - Penn Jillette
The God Virus - Darrel Ray

perfekta

Getting the obvious ones out of the way.

The God Delusion- Richard Dawkins
The Moral Landscape- Sam Harris
God is Not Great - Christopher Hitchens

I also enjoyed:
God No! - Penn Jillette
The God Virus - Darrel Ray

Seconding The God Delusion.

megggsss

I plan to read

DeConverted: A Journey from Religion to Reason - Seth Andrews

msleanlegs

I'm halfway through Dan Barker's "Losing Faith in Faith: From Preacher to Atheist" and would recommend it. So far, it's been an enjoyable, thought-provoking book.

toutmonpossible

I bought The Portable Atheist by Christopher Hitchens. I'm considering buying Buddhism Without Beliefs by Stephen Batchelor.

ScatteredThoughts

Thanks for the great suggestions! I have purchased more than I intended, while still adding to my wish list.

Annie_ga

I love my Raising Freethinkers by Dale McGowan and am looking forward to his new Atheism for Dummies. Good luck!

BinaryPulsar

I love my Raising Freethinkers by Dale McGowan and am looking forward to his new Atheism for Dummies. Good luck!

I second this!!

BinaryPulsar

I also like: The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature by Steven Pinker

BinaryPulsar

And I like: Confession of a Buddhist Atheist by Stephen Batchelor

BinaryPulsar

Some other authors that I like are: Dale McGowan, Steven Pinker, Sam Harris (I read The Moral Landscape), Daniel Dennet, Paul J. Zak, Antonio Damasio, Alain de Botton.

I know you already purchased your books. The library is always good. And a lot of these authors have talks on TED or Big Think or other places.

BinaryPulsar

I'm considering buying Buddhism Without Beliefs by Stephen Batchelor.

I have this one. It's good. Confession of a Buddhist Atheist by the same author was better.

ScatteredThoughts

Some other authors that I like are: Dale McGowan, Steven Pinker, Sam Harris (I read The Moral Landscape), Daniel Dennet, Paul J. Zak, Antonio Damasio, Alain de Botton.

I know you already purchased your books. The library is always good. And a lot of these authors have talks on TED or Big Think or other places.

No problem. More suggestions are still welcome. They will go in the wish list for future purchase.

Thanks for all of the recommendations!

BinaryPulsar

I did not particularly like the chapter on child abuse in The God Delusion. It was pretty absurd. Richard Dawkins had one experience of uncomfortable touching as a child and thinks that makes him some kind of expert on what the majority of sexual abuse is like. He claims that Religion itself is worse than sexual child abuse. That's a pretty inane statement to make and absurd to even choose to make such a comparison. Obviously it depends on the circumstances of the religion and of the sexual abuse. He thinks that it's wrong all the people that have come forward to report the vast amount of sexual abuse that occurred within the Catholic church, and thinks people should just leave the priests alone and allow them to live out the rest of their lives in peace since many of the crimes happened long ago (but it was the silence and control and fear that kept the children silent for so long, and allowed the abuse to continue, so he is wrong about that). Anyhow, I've discussed it with other Atheist friends online that love Richard Dawkins and when I shared an article that he wrote elaborating on it, everyone agreed he was way off the deep end when he discusses that topic. So, he is good for evolutionary biology and atheism, but a bit of a ding bat when discussing child abuse.

ScatteredThoughts

I love my Raising Freethinkers by Dale McGowan and am looking forward to his new Atheism for Dummies. Good luck!

Purchased Raising Freethinkers just now.

Is this the edition of Atheism For Dummies to which you were referring?

http://www.amazon.com/Atheism-For-Dummies-Religion-Spirituality/dp/111850920X

ScatteredThoughts

I did not particularly like the chapter on child abuse in The God Delusion. It was pretty absurd. Richard Dawkins had one experience of uncomfortable touching as a child and thinks that makes him some kind of expert on what the majority of sexual abuse is like. He claims that Religion itself is worse than sexual child abuse. That's a pretty inane statement to make and absurd to even choose to make such a comparison. Obviously it depends on the circumstances of the religion and of the sexual abuse. He thinks that it's wrong all the people that have come forward to report the vast amount of sexual abuse that occurred within the Catholic church, and thinks people should just leave the priests alone and allow them to live out the rest of their lives in peace since many of the crimes happened long ago (but it was the silence and control and fear that kept the children silent for so long, and allowed the abuse to continue, so he is wrong about that). Anyhow, I've discussed it with other Atheist friends online that love Richard Dawkins and when I shared an article that he wrote elaborating on it, everyone agreed he was way off the deep end when he discusses that topic. So, he is good for evolutionary biology and atheism, but a bit of a ding bat when discussing child abuse.

This surprises me, and it seems rather unfortunate that he would take such a stance on that issue. If anything, I would have thought it more opportunity to vilify members of the church for abuse of power.

BinaryPulsar

I did not particularly like the chapter on child abuse in The God Delusion. It was pretty absurd. Richard Dawkins had one experience of uncomfortable touching as a child and thinks that makes him some kind of expert on what the majority of sexual abuse is like. He claims that Religion itself is worse than sexual child abuse. That's a pretty inane statement to make and absurd to even choose to make such a comparison. Obviously it depends on the circumstances of the religion and of the sexual abuse. He thinks that it's wrong all the people that have come forward to report the vast amount of sexual abuse that occurred within the Catholic church, and thinks people should just leave the priests alone and allow them to live out the rest of their lives in peace since many of the crimes happened long ago (but it was the silence and control and fear that kept the children silent for so long, and allowed the abuse to continue, so he is wrong about that). Anyhow, I've discussed it with other Atheist friends online that love Richard Dawkins and when I shared an article that he wrote elaborating on it, everyone agreed he was way off the deep end when he discusses that topic. So, he is good for evolutionary biology and atheism, but a bit of a ding bat when discussing child abuse.

This surprises me, and it seems rather unfortunate that he would take such a stance on that issue. If anything, I would have thought it more opportunity to vilify members of the church for abuse of power.

Sam Harris and Christopher Hitchens took a strong stance speaking out about the sexual abuse in the Catholic church and I think eventually they got Richard Dawkins on board with them. Perhaps Richard Dawkins was just ignorant on the issue (clearly lacking some empathy in that area), and maybe he was still struggling with his own issues more than he realized. And he was maybe also mixing up his feelings about false accusations along with real abuse cases (which are two separate issues).

BinaryPulsar

I love my Raising Freethinkers by Dale McGowan and am looking forward to his new Atheism for Dummies. Good luck!

Purchased Raising Freethinkers just now.

Is this the edition of Atheism For Dummies to which you were referring?

http://www.amazon.com/Atheism-For-Dummies-Religion-Spirituality/dp/111850920X

Yeah, that's it!

theCarlton

The Magic of Reality by Richard Dawkins is a nice one to have on hand if you find yourself in the position of having to explain things to children or adults who think like children. It dismantles and explains many strong religious beliefs and questions often posed by people of various faiths. It answers common questions in general. Most of these, you already know the answers to (If we descended from apes, why are there still apes? What were we before apes, etc.) It's beautifully illustrated. It's textbook style. Just nice to have on the coffee table for guests

BinaryPulsar

I really like recommending books. I made two lists that relate. One is a list of science books and the other is a list of non-theist Buddhist type of books (some of which were helpful to me, since my family was/is in a type of cult).

The science book list: http://www.amazon.com/Books-for-expanding-your-concept-of-reality/lm/R6ZL7X74UZCT2/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_title_full

The other list: http://www.amazon.com/Mindfulness-Loving-Kindness-non-theist/lm/2X1W2DU3U25QC/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_title_full

I often add to the lists, when I read more books.

BinaryPulsar

I really like recommending books. I made two lists that relate. One is a list of science books and the other is a list of non-theist Buddhist type of books (some of which were helpful to me, since my family was/is in a type of cult).

The science book list: http://www.amazon.com/Books-for-expanding-your-concept-of-reality/lm/R6ZL7X74UZCT2/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_title_full

The other list: http://www.amazon.com/Mindfulness-Loving-Kindness-non-theist/lm/2X1W2DU3U25QC/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_title_full

I often add to the lists, when I read more books.

I have the book "Believing Bull****" with the hope it would reach my family, but those books never reach the people that need it most.

ScatteredThoughts

The Magic of Reality by Richard Dawkins is a nice one to have on hand if you find yourself in the position of having to explain things to children or adults who think like children. It dismantles and explains many strong religious beliefs and questions often posed by people of various faiths. It answers common questions in general. Most of these, you already know the answers to (If we descended from apes, why are there still apes? What were we before apes, etc.) It's beautifully illustrated. It's textbook style. Just nice to have on the coffee table for guests

Hah. Nice subtle way to let people know where stand.

I really like recommending books. I made two lists that relate. One is a list of science books and the other is a list of non-theist Buddhist type of books (some of which were helpful to me, since my family was/is in a type of cult).

The science book list: http://www.amazon.com/Books-for-expanding-your-concept-of-reality/lm/R6ZL7X74UZCT2/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_title_full

The other list: http://www.amazon.com/Mindfulness-Loving-Kindness-non-theist/lm/2X1W2DU3U25QC/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_title_full

I often add to the lists, when I read more books.

Whoa. There a lot of books on those lists. Bookmarking for future review. Danke!

msleanlegs

I have the book "Believing Bull****" with the hope it would reach my family, but those books never reach the people that need it most.

You can say that again! My road to atheism began 10 years ago, just a couple years after marriage. My husband refuses to even listen to my atheistic views. A few months ago I started jotting down my thoughts on religion and hope to share them with him when he's ready. It better happen soon before he ends up with a bonafide book to read. 80 pages and counting so far.

BinaryPulsar

I have the book "Believing Bull****" with the hope it would reach my family, but those books never reach the people that need it most.

You can say that again! My road to atheism began 10 years ago, just a couple years after marriage. My husband refuses to even listen to my atheistic views. A few months ago I started jotting down my thoughts on religion and hope to share them with him when he's ready. It better happen soon before he ends up with a bonafide book to read. 80 pages and counting so far.

Wow!!

My husband and I are on the same page. He is a scientist. He does not refer to himself as an atheist. He just defines himself as a scientist. But, I do usually define myself as an atheist. Sometimes I say agnostic, just because it's not like I wouldn't believe in something if there were evidence for it. I wouldn't reject evidence, but there is no evidence (people claim there is, but anecdotal experiences are way too subjective and not something I consider to be evidence). Anyway, I am respectful of other people's beliefs and being on their own learning process (or finding comfort in things). As long as no one is being harmed, it's fine. But, of course I will still have my own frustrations at times and clashes with my family of origin. I try not to get into too much of that with them, but once in a while I assert where I stand on something. I certainly feel that my life is a lot healthier and freer since I have separated from the spiritual belief system of my family (it was always a struggle trying to find reasonableness within that, since it wasn't possible to find reasonableness in that). I do still lean towards some Buddhist ways of thought (without the religious aspect) and I think that was a result of my growing up years. Buddhist teachings (particularly by Thich Nhat Hanh) were always a lot more practical, helpful and reasonable to me. It was something I could turn to when the belief systems of my family were crazy or unhealthy to what I needed.

soldier4242

If a talk show were to interview a respectable scientist with mature and informed ideas about a topic there will be nothing but crickets in the room yet if they were to bring in the guests from a Jerry Springer episode people would line up around the block to see it. So what is a person to do when their goal is to sell books about science/religion/philosophy?

They resort to hyperbole. It might not be interesting to hear someone say something like.

"The burden of proof rests upon the person making the assertion. You have prove you god exists. I don't have to prove that your god does not exist."

The vast majority of people who read that sentence will be putting that book back on the shelf. If you type

"Indoctrinated religious faith is worse than sexual abuse."

You now have a chance that someone will be interested or offended enough to read your book.

This is really more of a why it is like it is rather than an actually agreement with what Dawkins was saying. I feel that as a society we have collectively trained our authors to write books for us that are incendiary. I am not trying to sell anything so I have no reason to make hyperbolic statements. I know that I am against abuse of the innocent. I do wish it weren't this way. I wish people could get just as excited about the actual world as it is as they could about the fantasy worlds that we make up but I know that we can't.

moni_tb_192

Some of my favorite books are by Portuguese author José Saramago. He was an atheist and Nobel prize winner. Have you heard of him? I really like "The Gospel According to Jesus Christ" and "Cain"

ScatteredThoughts

Some of my favorite books are by Portuguese author José Saramago. He was an atheist and Nobel prize winner. Have you heard of him? I really like "The Gospel According to Jesus Christ" and "Cain"

I am not familiar with him, but I will certainly look into his work. Thanks!

moni_tb_192

Some of my favorite books are by Portuguese author José Saramago. He was an atheist and Nobel prize winner. Have you heard of him? I really like "The Gospel According to Jesus Christ" and "Cain"

I am not familiar with him, but I will certainly look into his work. Thanks!

Have you heard about the movie Blindness? with Julianne Moore... It's based in another novel of his :P http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0861689/

ScatteredThoughts

Have you heard about the movie Blindness? with Julianne Moore... It's based in another novel of his :P http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0861689/

I haven't seen it. I will see if it is on Netflix.

halflife1978

I have read The End of Faith and Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris and agreed with most of the points in his book, but I think at times he is coming on pretty strong and it's helpful to confirm my own ideas of things but not extremely helpful when I am asked to talk to anyone with a faith based perspective because nobody wants to be told that they're completely wrong and backward.

Currently I am reading ¿Dónde está Dios, papá? which is a book by Spanish author Clemente Novella that gives gentle but clear answers to hypothetical questions by children in regard to matters of religion, spirituality and science versus faith.

I am definitely putting both the books in the OP on my Amazon list to be purchased after I get paid on Wednesday.