Comments on: How Well Are the Atheist Books Selling?

By: Friendly Atheist » Who Hires These People?

Friendly Atheist » Who Hires These People? — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 14:58:55 +0000

[...] It’s actually a little more than 282,000. But maybe Jackson is rounding up… [...]

By: Chris Ho-Stuart

Chris Ho-Stuart — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 15:44:22 +0000

My copy of “I Sold my Soul” arrived today; and was swiftly whisked away by my father who wanted to read it. He is a retired minister of religion, but still active in preaching for churches where their normal minister is on leave, or where they are currently going through the process of calling a new minister. He was very impressed with it, and thinks it would be a good book to have available in church libraries.

I should be able to get it back and read it myself now…

Cheers — and thanks! — Chris

By: Siamang

Siamang — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 23:22:09 +0000

Oh, and which book has sold more copies than every book on atheism/humanism combined??

God, if I hear any more hype about the new Harry Potter book I’ll puke.

By: Darryl

Darryl — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 22:03:13 +0000

I have to assume that the heightened interest right now with these books is partly because of their relative novelty in our predictable and trivial media market, and partly because of a tedium and annoyance with the over-exposed Christian fundamentalists, and a fear of the Muslims.

A lot of political moderates (those centrists that both parties clamor for) are tired of the “God, Guns, and Gays” wedge issues, the abortion controversy, and the corrupted politics that seem to go with them. Many Americans are annoyed that more talk and attention seems to go to these “values” issues than to the challenges that are most urgent–the war in Iraq, healthcare, immigration reform, jobs, etc.

The Christian fundamentalists have discredited themselves not only because of their bizarre and uncompromising policy statements, but because of their alignment with an administration that can’t seem to do anything right. They are only now waking up to the fact that they have been used by the Karl Roves of the Republican Party. These books by atheist authors lay bare the ideological underpinnings that account for the failures of the fundamentalists, and they challenge the notion that our form of civil society requires or even benefits from their brand of religion.

By: Joe

Joe — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 21:24:34 +0000

It is a good thing if the people buying these books are open to someone else’s point of view. Too often, we amass books from authors that affirm and strengthen our already held beliefs. If books with provocative titles such as “God is not great” spark conversation and dialog, instead of insults, then it can be nothing but a good thing.

By: Sobex

Sobex — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 20:58:36 +0000

Let me guess, the one that “everyone” has but that no one has actually read, because they’d actually laugh or recoil in horror at its detailed contents?

By: Brendon Lake

Brendon Lake — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 20:49:30 +0000

Oh, and which book has sold more copies than every book on atheism/humanism combined??

By: Brendon Lake

Brendon Lake — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 20:41:44 +0000

Mmmm, that book with the title ‘God is not great’ clearly an over the top title to sell the thing.

Dare I say whom I think is going to have the last laugh

By: Siamang

Siamang — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 18:23:47 +0000

Dude, BOUGHT IT.

Still waiting for Amazon to deliver it. I think it was your book that held up the rest of my order (Hitchens and Parenting Beyond Belief were in that too).

By: FriendlyAtheist

FriendlyAtheist — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 17:52:40 +0000

Sorry Hemant, I only bought one copy of your book.

Kim– You’re forgiven

The rest of you, though… I’m watching you!