Rating: 
Summary: A challenge to readers
Review: While this book might better have been titled 'What weird people believe', Shermer addresses many of the North American emotional aberrations with wit and clarity. The geographic limitation omits haunted castles in Britain, elephant tusk powder for potency in China, or papal infallibility, but none of these interest his immediate audience. As an American skeptic, Shermer is here seeking to expose irrational beliefs, presumably in the hope better education will result in fewer aberrant ideas. By showing readers what some people believe, spending pages exposing the fallacies in those beliefs, he's challenging us all to take up the cause in his behalf. That's an admirable quest, deserving attention and applause.Discussing the transmission of weird ideas, Shermer traces expansion of one of the European 'witch crazes' during the 17th Century. This topic is one worthy of further pursuit. Many modern delusions follow patterns often discounted as 'mob hysteria'. In a modern episode, he cites the Satanic Cults of this century in showing such events recur. Shermer's book shows the importance of plumbing these occurrences in the hope of applying some preventive medicine. The medicine is rational thinking, which this book shows isn't limited to the educate elite. If Shermer can attract more people to take the time to understand and care about what is happening in their society he's done what he set out to do. What you, as a reader, must do is extend his appeal - tell the media loud and clear that you don't want them to enhance belief in 'weird things' by spending so much time on them. Some reviewers have complained this book lacks depth. The 'why' of these errant ideas is incomplete or lacking, but the book isn't intended as a deep psychological study. There are references in the bibliography for that topic. This book is an appeal for awareness - readers will learn the strange ideas his subjects have and who else believes them. Shermer can only be admired for his courage in exposing these mythologies. Shermer's call for reason deserves a wide and attentive audience. Join us and support his book.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating!
Review: This book is a welcome feast of data on the ability of otherwise intelligent and thinking people to believe strange or bizairre ideas without any proof behind them while ignoring hard evidence of the impossibility of those same ideas. Shermer does a nice job of covering a variety of topics including UFO's, creationism, holocaust deniers, and psychics in a way that shows just how fervently people hold onto these beliefs and presents arguments against each of them in a thought-provoking fashion. I do wish that some of the sections (such as on UFO's) had been longer as not all topics get the same thorough treatment as others.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable and informative
Review: Shermer's analysis of some of the stranger social phenomenon of our time is crisp. Many have said that he doesn't talk about why people believe wierd things (the title of the book, after all, slightly overblown as it is) but he does offer some general explanations of strange behavior. (The "feedback" system he describes, for example.) The really good thing about his book is how it shows that anyone, even the most rational of people, can fall into "cultish" or peculiar behavior. The chapter on Ayn Rand and how her philosophy of Objectivism, which is supposed to be all about rationality and individuality, turned into a cult centered on her is a fantastic read, and goes beyond the usual focusing on UFOs, Roswell, JFK assassination type of material. But, all of that's there too, in its bizarre glory. There's also an excellent chapter(s) on the phenomenon of Holocaust denial that, while utterly wrong on its face, isn't always just about anti-Semitism, as Shermer points out. He does a very good recap of how historical evidence is collected, and how that collection builds a preponderance of information, something that deniers usually don't get. Shermer's an historian, so historical aspects are a strength to his book, as you would expect. Shermer sings the praises of rationality and skepticism, things I'm all in favor of, but he doesn't get as negative about irrational behavior as some other skeptics have. He claims that he himself, in the past, participated in a couple of bizarre fads and faddish behaviors, so he has an understanding for their appeal. A sense of mystery, alienation, deviancy, a bit of paranoia, societal reinforcement, all are ways that bizarre ideas proliferate, and we're all susceptable to them from time to time.
Rating: 
Summary: An excellent expose' on pseudoscience and psychobabble
Review: The West is losing its edge, and a great deal of the blame falls on the shoulders of those who shy away from science as too hard, too rigorous, or with the mistaken perception that it's some sort of affront against some deity or other. There are also far too many "wannabees" who would like to be legitimate academics, but who lack the skill or desire to have their work reviewed and critiqued by their peers. Most of these people seem to end up writing pseudoscientific, illogical works in vain attempts at acceptance. Michael Shermer's book, like Sagan's _The Demon Haunted World_ and Gardner's _Science: Good, Bad, and Bogus_, reveals the real stuff and shows pseudoscience and fakery for what it is. Of special mention are chapters 2 and 3, which provide an excellent "toolkit" for discriminating between legitimate science and poppycock. The ability to think critically is a skill that should be taught in our schools. We'd be a lot better off if it were; instead we seem to be turning out droves of credulous adults who don't even understand that the word "gullible" isn't in the dictionary. More's the pity.
Rating:
Summary: Education on Reality
Review: I am so thankful that someone wrote a book like this one -- it is a great reality check! I would have liked the book more, though, if the author had taken a more psychological and even perhaps spiritual perspective as to the reasons people believe in weird things -- although this might defeat the very purpose of the book, written well and matter-of-factly it could have strengthened his argument. (After all, I think that vice versa some people take science as a religion, etc. etc. And psychology is a science; it is forms that some of psychology has taken, like New Age stuff, etc. etc., which I think is more pseudo-science.) In any case, this book was very educational and comforting.
Rating: 
Summary: right on some counts, wrong on others
Review: This book is right on concerning the bankrupt psuedoscience "young-earthism." But notice the book only addresses young-earther claims? Not the refutations of naturalism from established scholars of "old-earth creationists" whose science is seen as impeccable and has been destorying the illogic of naturalism. See what the other side says in Hugh Ross' "The Genesis Question," Behe's "Darwin's Black Box" and Heeren's "Show Me God." The religion of naturalism is DOA.
Rating: 
Summary: Shermer incorrect about creationism
Review: I have perused this book in the bookstore, though not actually bought it and read it; so that's my upfront disclaimer. I like some of the things Shermer says, the way he categorizes common errors in critical thinking. What he doesn't seem to realize is that his arguments regarding creationism commit these same errors.
Rating:
Summary: A well-written book of modern skepticism
Review: I must come to admire the writings of Michael Shermer and the technique he used in this book. Rather than simply disaproving the New Age philosophy, the author tells you what it is that he sees in the New Age, and among the sentences there are "suggestions" that indicates how fraud most of the things are in the New Age. Michael Shermer is so far the "elite" skeptist I have seen in this category, but the problem lies in the author's lack of practical experiences with spirituality. Nevertheless, anyone can believe anything they wanted to believe.
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Summary: www.skeptic.com
Review: This book has some interesting topics to read. However, the chapter on the Holocaust movement both troubled and sadden me deeply. Still, living in the Deep South I really enjoyed the creationist chapter. Especially on how to prove their theory wrong.
Rating:
Summary: Very well-written and illuminating
Review: Quite a few reviews of this book have been posted, so I won't write a comprehensive review, just a couple of points that struck me: 1) The book is exceptionally well-written, with prose that is clear and eloquent without being in the least bit pompous. 2) For me, it was especially illuminating to read about the debating tactics that creationists use in order to put evolutionists on the defensive. I will be prepared for such tactics if I ever engage in a debate with a creationist!
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