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  • The Portable Atheist

  • Essential Readings for the Nonbeliever
  • Written by: Christopher Hitchens
  • Narrated by: Nicholas Ball
  • Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (15 ratings)

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The Portable Atheist

Written by: Christopher Hitchens
Narrated by: Nicholas Ball
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Publisher's Summary

From the number-one New York Times best-selling author of God Is Not Great, a provocative and entertaining guided tour of atheist and agnostic thought through the ages with never-before-published pieces by Salman Rushdie, Ian McEwan, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali.

Christopher Hitchens continues to make the case for a splendidly godless universe in this first-ever gathering of the influential voices past and present that have shaped his side of the current (and raging) God/no-god debate. With Hitchens as your erudite and witty guide, you'll be led through a wealth of philosophy, literature, and scientific inquiry, including generous portions of the words of Lucretius, Benedict de Spinoza, Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, Mark Twain, George Eliot, Bertrand Russell, Emma Goldman, H. L. Mencken, Albert Einstein, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, and many others well-known and lesser known. And they're all set in context and commented upon as only Christopher Hitchens, "political and literary journalist extraordinaire" (Los Angeles Times), can.

Atheist? Believer? Uncertain? No matter: The Portable Atheist will speak to you and engage you every step of the way.

©2007 Christopher Hitchens (P)2007 Phoenix Books, Inc.

What the critics say

"A fascinating collection of readings from some of the West's greatest thinkers." ( Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about The Portable Atheist

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Do not purchase the audiobook version

The positive
The narrator is great. The audio file played with no problems.

The negative
This audio version is too heavily abridged. The table of contents of the print version shows that there is a progression and careful arrangement of writings that all build up to a central argument. This version leaves out too many writings that address the many objections to atheism. I do not recommend the audio version.

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

WAY more varied than I expected

Typing quick on mobile, but this is solid work! Such a variety of authors, it gives you a lot of different viewpoints on the topic of religious criticism. Great jumping off point for further reading.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

informative and thought provoking

Hitchens presents in a most reasonable way.
I enjoy his points developed from respected personalities, literature and reasonable thought.

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