Rating: 
Summary: Overall, it was a worthwhile read.
Review: Mr. Shermer has created a good book that delves into the heart of a phenomena of, basically, why people believe weird things. He, overall, takes the calm, reasonable approach of knocking down many outlandish theories rather than dismissing the ideas out of hand. This is the only way to bring forth truth and send back into darkness ingorance. The book's main flaw is Mr. Shermer's unwillingness to admit the problems that exist in evolutionary theory. These are merely glossed over and he surely knows better than to do that. Also he falls into the fallacy of dismissing all UFO sightings and encounters as being delusions even after he states Carl Sagan (a man he obviously admires) believed that the universe was teeming with life. Overall, though, it was a good read.
Rating: 
Summary: A crushing blow against pseudoscientists and charlatans
Review: Shermer presents an excellent analysis of the differences between science and pseudoscience, and reveals in clear terms the underpinnings of the scientific method. Anyone who can read this book and fail to understand the differences between objective science and its antithesis isn't reading very deeply.Following this introductory material Shermer presents us with a number of concrete examples, including Holocaust denial, UFOlogy, and the "recovered memory" phenomenon. All are presented with clarity, wit, and purpose and illustrate the book's primary topic extremely well. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Read it for the subtext
Review: Let me begin (because I must) by saying that I don't believe in UFOs. I don't believe you can read other people's thoughts, predict the future, or find water with a stick. And I don't think I can fly. And unlike other reviewers, I can't say I took the wrong approach in my book, because I haven't written one. I suppose, in the end, I am a skeptic. Michael Shermer is a skeptic. I suggest you read his book. I suggest you read his book not because it gives you any insight into paranormal phenomena, but because it gives you insight into how skeptics think. I have read Michael's book. I have read his articles in "The Skeptic". There is no science there. Only pleas. The same sort of pleas creationists make when they are trying to get you to believe. Skepticism would be great if it wasn't just too far the other way. Skeptics worship the scientific method, but seem too unwilling to use it. Paranormal phenomena will not be disproved by half-hearted experiments on Saturday afternoon. It must be taken seriously to be disproved. It requires hard science, over time. Skeptics have so far found this unnecessary. Ad hominem attacks will do. Debunking pseudoscience is a worthy goal. But it must be done in the name of science. When it's done just to get a good score, it loses its meaning. I give it a five, until the skeptics show me they're not just trying to make themselves look good.
Rating:
Summary: A good book, inaccurately titled.
Review: This is a very interesting book about weird beliefs and why they are wrong. What it does not do so well is explain why people believe these things. Michael Shermer demonstrates very clearly what is meant by proof in the scientific sense and also acknowledges the fact that nothing is absolute. He then goes on to show how the Wierd Things he looks at fails to meet these criteria. For the most part his arguments are incisive although naturally some are weaker than others. On one page is displayed an arial photograph of Jews being march to a gas chamber which, for all the world, looks to me like an indecipherable blur. Also very well explained is the difference between religious and scientific belief and why they do not mean the same thing. As a European, the chapter dealing with the financial, political and legal clout that could be wielded by creationists was quite an eye opener. Overall the book is very good and extremely readable but I'm still dissappointed about how little space was given over too why people believed these things as opposed to why the beliefs were wrong.
Rating:
Summary: Required reading for a weird, wired world!
Review: Why Sculley hasn't bought Fox Mulder this book yet, I don't know! Shermer doesn't tell you what to think, but how to think well. He demonstrates, using a diversity of subjects from alien abduction to performance enhancement techniques, how we as intelligent human beings, constantly bombarded by information manipulation, can separate the fact from the fiction by asking the right questions in the right way. You may not always like the results of this approach, and you may choose to belive in something despite the lack of empirical evidence for or against the claim, but you'll have the satisfaction of knowing you weren't manipulated into your beliefs. And on top of everything, you get a good, clear, witty, fun read! The examples are sufficiently diverse and balanced. Shermer demonstrates his argument for an open mind and reasoned thought, not simple dismissal, in a compelling fashion with fascinating support. The truth IS out there, Fox Mulder! And Shermer shows you how to find it amidst all the fraud.
Rating:
Summary: Thin in the why, but great on the what
Review: As a born-again Christian cum born-again skeptic, Shermer leads us through an astonishing range of bizzare and often frightening cults, fads, intellectual trends, and religion-based nonsense dressed up as science. Using a logical approach and simple common sense, he rips the veneer off of Holocost-deniers, creation scientists, UFO researchers, and other purveyors of bovine scatology.
But he is a bit weak on exactly why people try to peddle these ideologies. After explaining the Holocost-denial fringe, he fails to delve into exactly why anyone would want to believe such things or, more important, why they would want to convince someone else. Though he does touch on the motives of the creation scientists, witch hunters and UFO researchers, he doesn't approach the possibility that these purveyors of nonsense are often opportunistic grifters who often don't even believe what they're trying to sell. Although he does explore opportunism briefly (as in the kind of "strike when the iron is hot" sort of activity especially common among creationists who are the first to pounce on any news of a new evolutionary theory that may contradict older ideas), Shermer does not expand on the fact that many of these "sciences" are indeed just repackaged religion or racism.
Explanation of motives nothwithstanding, Shermer has presented a marvelous thesis with a fantastic grasp of what many of us would consider the obvious, and indeed is a bit sympathetic to the many who are taken in by these pseudointellectuals. He faults no one for any religious belief, and indeed encourages fait in many ways, but he decries dressing up pure faith as an excuse to repudiate what someone may or may not believe in. Especially enlightening for the non-scientist is the story of the scientific community's battle with the creation scientists in Louisiana, as a window into the world of scientific reasoning.
Shermer has produced a wonderful balance of skepticism and tolerance, highly recommended to all lovers of truth.
Rating:
Summary: A Call to Arms for Intellectuals
Review: After reading most of the reviews here, I came to wonder what people were expecting from this book. People seem have expected either 1) an in depth scientific or sociological explication of "why" people believe certain phenomenon; or 2) an academic paper, complete with lengthy citation, thesis statement, and that "in-your-face" style that one can only find in a paper in the CV of a PhD. Ladies and Gentlemen, you cannot do either of the above in 300 pages. But fear not. Shermer does you all one better: he reasons, presents, charts out, explains, and does so *without* that condescending in-your-face style one can only find in the CV of a Professor of History In Why People Believe Weird Things, Michael Shermer takes us through a well reasoned, insightful analysis of many of the social phenomena -- superstition, UFOs, Cult, Holocaust Denial -- which perplex and at times plague contemporary western society. But he does so in a way that is neither blatant nor condescending. He does not argue that people who deny Evolution, see UFOS, or propagate pseudo-science are suffering from neuropathological condition (as some people seem to have expected Shermer to argue in this book). He also argues that "rationalist" philosophers are always subject to their own errors in reasoning (see the chapter on Ayn Rand and her "cult"). Hence, Shermer attributes such beliefs to problems in people's reasoning and way of seeing the world -- eg., their "baloney detection kits" -- which can be understood in lieu of various flawed assumptions, logical errors and methods of argumentation. (See Chapter 3's "25 Fallacies"). Shermer is thorough, but clear in his style and presentation, as seen in his illustration of Creationist arguments and their proper responses. And for those philosophers of science out there, Shermer even deals with some of the problems raised for the "culture" of science -- a la Kuhn's Structure of Scientific Revolutions -- in way that is satisfying to the scientist and casual critical thinker alike. In the end, this book will not pass as an academic polemic against pseudo-thought. But it is here where the book finds its proper place. "Why People Believe..." is a clear policy statement for critical thinkers and intellectuals: To cleave with Occham's Razor, but at the same time *understand* and not bewail as Baruch Spinoza did so long ago.
Rating:
Summary: Great Skeptic, Good Debunker
Review: The overall grade for this book is good, I recommend it, but it could definitely be much better. Shermer is one super skeptic fellow, and one that respects most of the people whose claims he tries to debunk. Through the book he can't deny his psychology background, since he continually makes reference to different psychological concepts (and their application to scientists like Tippler, or to holocaust deniers), this is not bad, but the truth is I wasn't expecting a pseudo-psychoanalisis on his opponents. The book is really entertaining, and has a lot of interesting anecdotes and experiences as well as good bibliographic investigation to support every case. Once again, the book is entertaining and enlightening at times, I surely recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A collection of essays
Review: I admit that I have read works by Michael Shermer for quite a while and enjoy them very much. However I tends to agree with most of the reviewers here that many of the facts he presents are a bit dubious and that many of the arguments are weak too.
Sometimes his arguments are silly too. For example when discussing Dr Tipler, suddenly he goes on at length that as Dr Tipler is a first born so his thoughts are tainted.
Often when one debates with people for a long time you tend to fall into a trap of trying to score points, keep on going on with points that are dubious but you got away with, bypassing your opponents good points rather then considering the facts on their merit. This what I suspect has happened with the author.
Rating:
Summary: Provisional Truth?
Review: Although the book was somewhat insightful, it seemed to have some illogical inconsistencies. The main inconsistency I found was Shermer's alleged "provisional truth" claim. The idea that things are either proved or considered provisionally true (as if truth were whimsical) or provisionally false is ludicrous.
If all things which I would call certain are only provisionally certain in Shermen's world, then his method of ascribing provisional certainty is only provisionally certain as well--So how can the author be provisionally certain that his provisonal method of ascertaining those things which are provisionally true, is provisionally correct?
Hopefully I've illustrated how rediculously absurd his idea of "provisional truth" is.
Furthermore, I was disappointed by the deceptive title of the book. His title would be more appropriate if he took out the word "Why," because his book simply shows that people believe weird things.
On a more positive note, Shermer does tackle many fallacies involved with superstition and pseudosciences. So if you're looking for a book that delves into the fallacies of such--especially those involving mind reading, I'd recommend this one.
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