God Is Not Great

How Religion Poisons Everything

By: Christopher Hitchens

Narrated by: Christopher Hitchens

In the tradition of Bertrand Russell's Why I Am Not a Christian and Sam Harris' recent best-seller, The End of Faith, Christopher Hitchens makes the ultimate case against religion. With a close and erudite reading of the major religious texts, he documents the ways in which religion is a man-made wish, a cause of dangerous sexual repression, and a distortion of our origins in the cosmos. With eloquent clarity, Hitchens frames the argument for a more secular life based on science and reason, in which hell is replaced by the Hubble Telescope's view of the universe, and Moses and the burning bush give way to the beauty of the double helix.©2007 Christopher Hitchens (P)2007 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"The best of the recent rash of atheist manifestos." (Publishers Weekly)
"Effortlessly witty and entertaining as well as utterly rational." (Booklist)

Why read this book?

So you've read Bertrand Russell's 1927 essay Why I Am Not a Christian and you're wondering why read Hichens? It's more than cold, hard logic about only Christianity. So you say you've read Sam Harris, The End of Faith and you're wondering the same thing? Well, Hichens is more than just about indicting Christians and really slamming Muslims. He's not so much about promoting atheism as Richard Dawkins as he is about promoting reasoned thought and critical thinking. Thinking that includes the unmasking of violence behind pacifist Buddhism which blew my socks off.

And what about that mumbling narration by the author? Is it that bad? It really is. I would have thought that a book this good with so much to be proud of, the author would have taken more care to enunciate a little bit more clearly. So here is what I would recommend: wear earphones. I have Bose noise-canceling earphones that worked just fine. Listening in the car did not work at all. One of the best parts of the book, the author's wit, is lost in his endings of so many sentences into audible unintelligibility. The author has a beautiful voice and I loved listening to it... when I could hear it.

So why read/listen to this book? It is just that good.

Brilliant & Thought-Provoking

This book helped me finally come to grips with thoughts that have been creeping up on me for a long time. Religion damages us. It is responsible for many of the most heinous crimes against humanity and given excuses for arrogance, disdain and complete disregard for the sanctity of life and the value of independent thought. A *great* listen!

Should be mandatory reading in churces

Hitchens nails all the key points in his argument as to why religion should be irrelevant in a modern society. Unfortunately religious people are very unlikely to be persuaded by logic.

A classic that everyone should read once.

Would you consider the audio edition of God Is Not Great to be better than the print version?

Hitch is a very good reader & since he's not with us any more, it's powerful to hear him narrate his book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of God Is Not Great?

The tidbits about Joseph Smith (Mormonism) are funny & devastating.
His comments on the Arabic language & how that impacts the Korans message were new to me.

What about Christopher Hitchens’s performance did you like?

His personality & intelligence shine through.

Better researched than narrated

I wish Authors would resist the temptation to narrate their own books. They rarely do them justice. If you can put up with the mumbled, slurred narration, it is an interesting, if rambling treatment of the corrosive effects of Religion. It is easy enough to let him ramble on in the background and miss the occasional point, without losing the gist of his arguments. Like Dawkins and Harris, a reader would need hard blinders not to be persuaded by his discussion. I found myself wanting to revert to hard copy to digest the material more completely. If Hitchens narrates his next book, I'll probably go that route.

Fascinating

I thought this was a fascinating and well researched book. My only quibble is that the author spoke too fast or didn't enunciate clearly enough for me, so I had difficulty understanding him at times.

fantastic book

Well structured and articulate narrative. Really thought provoking and enjoyable book that delivers a measured and well researched viewpoint that doesn't revoke to a polarised discussion of opinion.

Highly recommend for religious and non-religious readers alike.

different style

I struggled with the book. the reader/writers style was difficult for me to follow. it was good concept though

A Must

This is the quintessential Hitchens audiobook. Altho ugh he was taken before his time, this book will solidify his legacy as the ultimate challenger to Orthodox authoritarianism.

It was like Chris Hitchens was in the car with me

Great as a gift to I've been giving it to people. A profoundly entertaining wordsmith