What Is Atheism?: A Short Introduction

Rating:
Summary: Why Christianity is wrong
Review: This book is not really an introduction to atheism, but rather an introduction to what is wrong with Christianity, ignoring other variants of theism. This book is not useful as an introduction to atheism, but should rather be used as a reference when debating Christian fundamentalists.

Unfortunately, the book is full of assumptions with no references (such as the declaration that most of the books in the New Testament are *known* (emphasis his) to be forgeries. Though I honestly think he is right about that, he doesn't give any reference to the claim so it is impossible for the reader to find out if it is true. When claims such as these are not backed up by evidence they can't be used in a debate and therefore, no matter how good, the arguments presented by Krueger can hardly be used in a debate.

I fear that the author's hostility to Christianity may scare christians off from reading the book, which makes them unable to grasp the arguments. (Some of the references below confirm this apprehension). From the first to the second paragraph Krueger openly admits this hostility to Christianity.

However, the book replies to many of the most common arguments from Christian Fundamentalists aganist atheism, and this makes it very useful. It is almost impossible to enter a debate forum about religion on the Internet without encountering arguments such as those Krueger rejects. Hence, this book is a goldmine for any atheist who needs a quick reference to why these arguments fail.

I fear that many atheists will say this review is not useful only because I'm critical to Krueger. Please understand that I think this book is great reading. It gave me many arguments that I will use in debates on the Internet, and I will surely use the book as a reference. I just wish that he would not be so militant. Christians will denounce the arguments because of the hostility against them expressed in this book; and no matter how useful in debates, this book fails to give a good understanding of atheism. The impression will be that atheism is really about hostility to Christianity, and that is not a very good introduction to atheism.

If it wasn't for the dogmatic language, I would have given this book five stars. I also think the title is a little bit misleading. It should rather be "What is Wrong With Christianity? A Short Introduction".