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Our selection of books and associated reviews. Each cover is an affiliate link to Amazon for purchase.
Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal
Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal contains essays in politics and economics by Rand and other Objectivist authors. Of particular interest are “What is Capitalism?,” in which Rand argues that capitalism is the only moral social-political system; “The Roots of War”; “Gold and Economic Freedom,” a defense of the gold standard by Alan Greenspan; and “Conservatism: An […]
Confession
Wittgenstein probably read the Confession while in an Italian prisoner-of-war camp during the First World War. This work along with Tolstoy’s gospel harmonization entitled The Gospels in Brief, profoundly influenced the young Wittgenstein and probably accounts for the metaphysical theories expounded in the sixth section of Tractatus-Logico Philosophicus. Tolstoy’s Confession is a highly readable, gripping […]
Darwin and Design: Does Evolution Have a Purpose?
This text surveys the argument from design from its introduction by the Greeks, through the coming of Darwinism, down to the present day. Written in clear, nontechnical language; offers an assessment of the status of the argument from design in light of the advances of modern evolutionary biology and the thinking of today’s philosophers. The […]
Defense of the Faith
Reformed theologian Cornelius Van Til systematically analyzes the essential equivalence of thought in the arminiun view of salavation and the world’s view of the autonomy of man. He further argues that if humans are indeed “autonomous,” as existentialism teaches, then our choices are an illusion because we are enslaved to chance and will ultimately fall […]
Doubt: A History : The Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation
In this grand sweeping history, Jennifer Michael Hecht celebrates doubt as an engine of creativity and as an alternative to the political and intellectual dangers of certainty. Just as belief has its own history featuring people whose unique expressions of faith have forever changed the world, doubt has a vibrant story and tradition with its […]
Ethical Theory
Ethical Theory provides a fascinating and accessible selection of the most important work in contemporary moral philosophy. Divided into two parts, the first part deals with the question of objectivity in ethics and the viability of ‘moral realism.’ The second part deals with philosophical theories about how we ought to live, including utilitarianism, social contract […]
Facing Up: Science and Its Cultural Adversaries
In a recent New York Times profile, James Glanz remarked, “Steven Weinberg is perhaps the world’s most authoritative proponent of the idea that physics is hurtling toward a ‘final theory,’ a complete explanation of nature’s particles and forces that will endure as the bedrock of all science forevermore. He is also a powerful writer of […]
Foundation’s Edge
At last, the costly and bitter war between the two Foundations had come to an end. The scientists of the First Foundation had proved victorious; and now they retum to Hari Seldon’s long-established plan to build a new Empire that the Second Foundation is not destroyed after all — and that its still — defiant […]
God, Freedom, and Immortality
A collection of independent essays by the reknowned and well-respected philosopher Antony Flew on God, freedom, and immortality. The essays on “The Presumption of Atheism” and “The Principle of Agnosticism” are especially good.
H. L. Mencken on Religion
No one ever argued more forcefully or with such acerbic wit against the foolish aspects of religion as H. L. Mencken (1880-1956). As a journalist, he gained national prominence through his newspaper columns describing the now-famous 1925 Scopes trial, which pitted Fundamentalists against a public school teacher who dared to teach evolution. But both before […]
How to Think About Weird Things
Can critical thinking be taught? Certainly, and this is the book that does so. The authors have done an excellent job of compiling many techniques for critical thinking and put them into a form that is both understandable and fun to read.
I Have Landed: The End of a Beginning in Natural History
Here is bestselling scientist Stephen Jay Gould’s tenth and final collection based on his remarkable series for Natural History magazine—exactly 300 consecutive essays, with never a month missed, published from 1974 to 2001. Both an intellectually thrilling journey into the nature of scientific discovery and the most personal book he has ever published, I Have […]
Introduction to Logic
A book no serious thinker or writer should be without! Introduction to Logic will help you write better research papers and to avoid common mistakes in argumentation.
Jesus Christ and Mythology
Jesus Christ and Mythology is Bultmann’s interpretation of Heidegger’s existentialism as applied to the Christian worldview. He argues that the ancient worldview of the New Testament is incompatible with the modern worldview of science and that we must reinterpret our understanding of the biblical texts if we are to continue to find meaning within them. […]
Leaps of Faith: Science, Miracles, and the Search for Supernatural Consolation
The late Gordon Stein said of this book: “A very thoughtful and instructive book. Humphrey has marshalled his arguments carefully and illustrated them well. It is the kind of book that both skeptics and believers would do well to read, and it holds a unique place in the literature for that reason.” Telepathy. Ghosts. The […]
Malleus Maleficarum
For nearly three centuries Malleus Maleficarum (The Witches’ Hammer) was the professional manual for witch hunters. This work by two of the most famous Inquisitors of the age is still a document of the force of that era’s beliefs. Under a Bull of Pope Innocent VIII, Kramer and Sprenger exposed the heresy of those who […]
Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith
The best biography of Joseph Smith’s wife and a telling expose of polygamy in the Mormon church.
No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith: The Mormon Prophet
The first paperback edition of the classic biography of the founder of the Mormon church, this book attempts to answer the questions that continue to surround Joseph Smith. Was he a genuine prophet, or a gifted fabulist who became enthralled by the products of his imagination and ended up being martyred for them? 24 pages […]
Only Begotten Daughter
Murray Katz, the celibate keeper of an abandoned lighthouse near Atlantic City, has been blessed with a daughter conceived of his own seed and a holy ovum. Like her half brother Jesus, Julie Katz can walk on water, heal the blind, and raise the dead. But being the Messiah isn’t easy, and Julie, bewildered by […]
Philosophy of Religion: A Reader and Guide
This important new book is a combined anthology and guide intended for use as a textbook in courses on philosophy of religion. It aims to bring to the student the very best of cutting-edge work on important topics in the field. The anthology is comprised of six sections, each of which opens with a substantive […]
Raising the Devil: Satanism, New Religions, and the Media
Rob Hardy writes for Amazon: “Bill Ellis is a folklorist, and an academic specializing in English and American studies. His book, [i]Raising the Devil: Satanism, New Religions, and the Media[/i] (University Press of Kentucky) attempts a sympathetic understanding of how the Devil made one of his cyclic emergences and how folklore can affect society and […]
Religion Inc.: the Church of Scientology
Synopsis not complete.
Rose’s Will
Description When it comes to unconditional love, Italian matriarch, Rose D’Orsi is deeply challenged. Nobody feels it more than Glory, her estranged 48-year-old lesbian daughter. Though Rose attracts the attention of Eli Fineman, a rich Bulgarian Holocaust survivor whose love, compassion, and wit affects people in unimaginable ways, he arrives too late in life to […]
Secret Origins of the Bible
Description Using comparative mythology, and tell-tale verses in the Bible and archaeology, Secret Origins of the Bible demonstrates that the stories and themes of the Bible were part of the great mythic systems of the ancient world. The abstract God of modern monotheistic Judaism, Christianity and Islam is a comparatively recent creation. In later times […]
SOS Sobriety: The Proven Alternative to 12-Step Programs
In this controversial book, the founder of S.O.S. — Secular Organizations for Sobriety, or “Save Our Selves” — describes his “sobriety priority” approach to abstinence and attacks programs that promote “controlled drinking” for alcoholics and that insist alcoholism is a behavioral problem rather than a physiological and genetic one.
System of Nature (Volume 1)
The System of Nature, known as the Atheists’ Bible, is the most radical expression of atheist materialism to come from the eighteenth century milieu of the philosophes in Paris. D’Holbach (1723-1789) was a central figure of the French intellectual enlightenment, contributing prolifically to Diderot’s Encyclopedie, and undertaking numerous translations of British free thought. His intention […]
The Annotated H.P. Lovecraft
Offers four of the author’s best short stories along with the eerie novella, At the Mountains of Madness, complemented by a scholarly introduction, hundreds of detailed annotations, and photographs and illustrations depicting the author’s life and work.
The Bible’s Buried Secrets (DVD)
Description An archaeological detective story puzzles together clues to the mystery of who wrote the Bible, when and why. In this landmark two-hour special, viewers are taken on a fascinating scientific journey that began 3,000 years ago and continues today as NOVA travels to several excavations of ancient cities in the Near East, filming newly […]
The Case of Charles Dexter Ward
Incantations of black magic unearthed unspeakable horrors in a quiet town near Providence, Rhode Island. Evil spirits are being resurrected from beyond the grave, a supernatural force so twisted that it kills without offering the mercy of death!
The Creationists
This is a history of creationism from the age of Darwin to the present. The author discusses such thinkers as George Frederick Wright, George McCready Price, and John C. Whitcomb, organizations like The Religion and Science Association, The Deluge Geology Society and The Creation Research Society, and creationism in the churches.
