Atheist's Guide To Christmas [Hardcover]

This is byfar one of the best books I have read on the holidays.

This book is made to preach to the choir, however theists can also enjoy some, if not all of the book. The book contains short pieces that are 3 to 7 pages long, it's good to keep your interest. The pieces range from stories,

To address the previous "reviewer":
Prairie Pal said: "brought to you by the same folk who bought bus advertising to tell their neighbours that there is probably no God. People who are so certain that the vast universe contains nothing supernatural or magic turn out to be the last people you should listen to on the subject of Christmas. "
------------------------>Notice anything odd? Yes, the book is brought to you by the people who came up with the "there is PROBABLY no God", yet in the next sentence we see "People who are so certain that the vast universe contains nothing supernatural or magic". Does Pal not realize that "probably" doesn't mean "certainty"?
The only ones that tend to be certain on the subjects, those who are closed minded, are theists. Atheism is a neutral position, the neutral position is disbelief (this is not to be confused with the statement "There is certainly no god". Just like in court, the defendent is innocent until proven guilty. This has much to do with the burden of proof. In court, guilt is what's being aimed for. Guilty or not guilty. Not guilty however does not mean "innocent". Like in claims for god, "guilty" would mean "god exists", not guilty would mean there's no reason to believe he's guilty (exists). "Innocent", or god does not exist, is not the question being aimed at.

Bottom line, atheist = disbelief in a god or gods. Not "certainty that there is no god/s".

Prairie Pal, if you happen to have evidence backed by reasoned argument to support you claims, I'd be glad to consider and it might even convince me if it is up to my standards of evidence. Does that sound like certainty on my part?

I have mixed feelings about this book, not because I waver between belief and non-belief, but because a hearty chunk of this book is not actually about Christmas. A lot of the various contributing authors just simply offer simple, albeit sometimes funny, refutations of faith, which is fine, but I feel a bit cheated since the title and the book's description all suggested that the book had a entirely Christmassy tone, which it does not. Still, there are some real gems that are a a shear delight to read, full of wonderful ideas, funny anecdotes, and a generally uplifting spirit. Some of my favourite parts are Josie Long's chapter on "Things to make and do at Christmas," Simon Singh's "The sound of Christmas," Jenny Colgan's "The Real Christmas Story," and A.C. Grayling's "A happy Christmas." It is unfortunate that the editor Ariane Sherine felt the need to put writings like David Stubbs, "Imagine There's a Heaven," or Charlie Brooker's "If God Existed, Would he have a sense of humour?" in the book. Selections like these belong in some other book, not this one. The fact is , I am not interested in even more reasons to not believe, there are plenty of those. I am interested in reasons to celebrate, reasons to feel as though being charitable is not a singularly Christian thing, reasons to feel as though Christmas is something worth celebrating whether or not you believe in Jesus.
To people considering purchasing this book, I would recommend purchasing this book for two reasons: 1) There are some real gems worth reading. 2) All of the book's proceeds go to the Terrence Higgins Trust, a sexual health and HIV charity. So even if you buy the book and don't like it, you can at least be comforted by the fact that its purchase has come to some good, then you can use it as a cheap Yule log for your fireplace.

There is a certain horrid fascination that one feels coming upon a car crash or watching an improv comedy routine dissolve in a sea of flop sweat before your eyes -- you're ashamed to be watching but you are unable to avert your gaze. That same creepy feeling struck me as I read 'The Atheist's Guide to Christmas', brought to you by the same folk who bought bus advertising to tell their neighbours that there is probably no God. People who are so certain that the vast universe contains nothing supernatural or magic turn out to be the last people you should listen to on the subject of Christmas.

For one thing they are far too earnest about the subject; like the Mormon missionaries or the Jehovah Witnesses at your door they are deadly intent on making you a true believer. Consider the light touch exhibited by a country singer named Robbie Fulks who declares 'God Isn't Real'. 'Go ask the starving millions under Stalin's reign,' he advises his reader, 'Go ask the child with cancer who eases her pain/Then go to your churches, if that's how you feel,/ But don't ask me to follow, for God isn't real.'

Even when contributors to this book attempt a humorous tone it falls embarrassingly short. Josie Long, who assures us she is a comedian, thinks it would be great fun to mix up the jokes and the punchlines in Christmas crackers. Imagine the hilarity that will ensue when the question 'Why did the sea wave?' turns out to be 'Because it was his birthday!' Hours of enjoyment for the whole family. And yet even that is pure comedy magic compared to the lumbering P.G. Wodehouse imitation attempted by famous comic Richard Dawkins in 'The Great Bus Mystery'.

And yet having paid $15 for this excrescence you continue flipping the pages hoping to find something of value. Zoe Margolis tells us why she believes in neither God nor Christmas; Graham Nunn reveals the thinking behind the atheist bus campaign; and Adam Rutherford concludes that even if there might be a intelligent person who believes in God it only proves that people are fallible.

Ariane Sherine who edited this collection never actually tells us what the purpose of the book is or for whom it is intended. If she intended to prove that atheists are self-satisfied, humourless zealots she has succeeded; if she meant to entertain or enlighten she failed.