Religion Books

The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible

A. J. Jacobs

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 378 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

From the bestselling author of The Know-It-All comes a fascinating and timely exploration of religion and the Bible.

Raised in a secular family but increasingly interested in the relevance of faith in our modern world, A.J. Jacobs decides to dive in headfirst and attempt to obey the Bible as literally as possible for one full year. He vows to follow the Ten Commandments. To be fruitful and multiply. To love his neighbor. But also to obey the hundreds of less publicized rules: to avoid wearing clothes made of mixed fibers; to play a ten-string harp; to stone adulterers.

The resulting spiritual journey is at once funny and profound, reverent and irreverent, personal and universal and will make you see history's most influential book with new eyes.

Jacobs's quest transforms his life even more radically than the year spent reading the entire Encyclopedia Britannica for The Know-It-All. His beard grows so unruly that he is regularly mistaken for a member of ZZ Top. He immerses himself in prayer, tends sheep in the Israeli desert, battles idolatry, and tells the absolute truth in all situations - much to his wife's chagrin.

Throughout the book, Jacobs also embeds himself in a cross-section of communities that take the Bible literally. He tours a Kentucky-based creationist museum and sings hymns with Pennsylvania Amish. He dances with Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn and does Scripture study with Jehovah's Witnesses. He discovers ancient biblical wisdom of startling relevance. And he wrestles with seemingly archaic rules that baffle the twenty-first-century brain.Jacobs's extraordinary undertaking yields unexpected epiphanies and challenges. A book that will charm readers both secular and religious, The Year of Living Biblically is part Cliff Notes to the Bible, part memoir, and part look into worlds unimaginable. Thou shalt not be able to put it down.

The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster

Bobby Henderson

Amazon Price: $11.16 List Price: $13.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Villard Amazon Marketplace: 59 new & used starting at $6.97

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 98 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

CAN I GET A “RAMEN” FROM THE CONGREGATION?!

Behold the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (FSM), today’s fastest growing carbohydrate-based religion. According to church founder Bobby Henderson, the universe and all life within it were created by a mystical and divine being: the Flying Spaghetti Monster. What drives the FSM’s devout followers, a.k.a. Pastafarians? Some say it’s the assuring touch from the FSM’s “noodly appendage.” Then there are those who love the worship service, which is conducted in pirate talk and attended by congregants in dashing buccaneer garb. Still others are drawn to the Church’s flimsy moral standards, religious holidays every Friday, or the fact that Pastafarian heaven is way cooler: Does your heaven have a Stripper Factory and a Beer Volcano? Intelligent Design has finally met its match–and it has nothing to do with apes or the Olive Garden of Eden.

Within these pages, Bobby Henderson outlines the true facts– dispelling such malicious myths as evolution (“only a theory”), science (“only a lot of theories”), and whether we’re really descended from apes (fact: Humans share 95 percent of their DNA with chimpanzees, but they share 99.9 percent with pirates!)
See what impressively credentialed top scientists have to say:

“If Intelligent Design is taught in schools, equal time should be given to the FSM theory and the non-FSM theory.”
–Professor Douglas Shaw, Ph.D.

“Do not be hypocritical. Allow equal time for other alternative ‘theories’ like FSMism, which is by far the tastier choice.”
–J. Simon, Ph.D.

“In my scientific opinion, when comparing the two theories, FSM theory seems to be more valid than classic ID theory.”
–Afshin Beheshti, Ph.D.

Read the book and decide for yourself!

Me of Little Faith

Lewis Black

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 35 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

From the hilariously mad-as-hell Daily Show regular and New York Times–bestselling author comes a ferociously funny exploration of religion and faith.

What do we believe? And in God’s name why?

Lewis Black has the answers. Or at least his answers. He survived Hebrew school and a bar mitzvah (barely), was a sixties college student who saw the parallels between religious rapture and drug-induced visions (even if none of his friends did), explored the self-actualization movement of the seventies (and the self-indulgence it engendered), and turned a cynical eye toward politicians who don the cloak of religious rectitude to cover up their own hypocrisy.

What he learned about the inconsistencies and peculiarities of religion infuriated Black, and in Me of Little Faith they get his full comic attention. In a series of comedic inquiries, Black explores how the rules and constraints of religion have affected his life and the lives of us all. Hilarious experiences with rabbis, Mormons, gurus, psychics, and even the joy of a perfect round of golf give Black the chance to expound upon what we believe and why—in the language of a shock jock and with the heart of an iconoclast.

The Blue Fairy Book

Andrew Lang

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

THE TALES in this volume are intended for children, who will like, it is hoped, the old stories that have pleased so many generations.

The tales of Perrault are printed from the old English version of the eighteenth century.

The stories from the Cabinet des Fees and from Madame d'Aulnoy are translated, or rather adapted, by Miss Minnie Wright, who has also, by M. Henri Carnoy's kind permission, rendered "The Bronze Ring" from his Traditions Populaires de l'Asie Mineure (Maisonneuve, Paris, 1889).

The stories from Grimm are translated by Miss May Sellar; another from the German by Miss Sylvia Hunt; the Norse tales are a version by Mrs. Alfred Hunt; "The Terrible Head" is adapted from Apollodorus, Simonides, and Pindar by the Editor; Miss Violet Hunt condensed "Aladdin"; Miss May Kendall did the same for Gulliver's Travels; "The Fairy Paribanou" is abridged from the old English translation of Galland.

Messrs. Chambers have kindly allowed us to reprint "The Red Etin" and "The Black Bull of Norroway" from Mr. Robert Chambers' Popular Traditions of Scotland.

"Dick Whittington" is from the chap book edited by Mr. Gomme and Mr. Wheatley for the Villon Society; "Jack the Giant-Killer" is from a chap book, but a good version of this old favourite is hard to procure.

Cool Jew: The Ultimate Guide for Every Member of the Tribe

Lisa Alcalay Klug

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

It's never been hipper to be Jewish." -VH1

Cool Jew does for gefilte fish and matzah balls what the Preppy Handbook did for plaid and polo-only with much more chutzpah.

Cool Jew: The Ultimate Guide for Every Member of the Tribe by Lisa Alcalay Klug delivers the kosher response to The Preppy Handbook. —Publishers Weekly

Cool Jew covers everything Hebraic from womb to tomb, finally putting an end to Christmas tree envy. Short essays, lists, instructional guides, photographs, and original illustrations celebrate Jewish cultural pride with love, enthusiasm, and irreverence.

Entries ranging from "Heebonics for the Yiddish Impaired" to "Self-Help for the Christmas Carole Intolerant" provide the long-awaited Jewish response to that WASP manual of the '80s, The Preppy Handbook.

In addition to cultural hilarity, Cool Jew features resourceful back-of-the-book material, including "People of Da Book" (authoritative texts on Jewish concepts and culture), the "Heebster Jewke Box" (tunes that rock the Heebster vibe), and the "Tribe Online" (an extensive listing of Jewish Web resources).

When Will Jesus Br the Pork Chops?

George Carlin

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 229 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

More classic Carlin 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This is a must-have for Carlin fans. If you don't have time to read, or don't know how to read, then buy the audio book. But don't miss this hilarious and insightful work from the master of intelligent comedy.

I highly recommend this book and audio book.

--Guy P. Harrison, author of 50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God

Carlin at his best 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Carlin, you will be missed. You were an absolute genius, and always under appreciated.

Rest in Peace.

Editorial Review:

George Carlins legendary irreverence and iconoclasm are on full display in When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? as he vainly scours the American landscape for signs of intelligence in his third national bestseller. Ranging from his absurdist side (Message from a Cockroach; TV News: The Death of Humpty Dumpty; Tips for Serial Killers) to his unerring ear for American speech (Politician Talk; Societal Clichs; Euphemisms: 13 sections) to his unsparing views on America and its values (War, God, Stuff Like That; Zero Tolerance; Tired of the Handi-crap), Carlin delivers everything that his fans expect, and then adds a few surprises.

Growing Up Lutheran

Suzanne Johnson Nelson, Janet Letnes Martin

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

If you search for the word "coffee" in the Bible, if you're pretty sure that all the pairs of animals in Noah's Ark were married, and if you know that Heaven is up and Hell is down, you'll love Growing Up Lutheran. If the Lutherans you know seem rather, er, mysterious, it will do you good.

Combining their own memories with those of other Lutherans who grew up in the 1940s through the 1960s, Janet and Suzann have written a delightful expose of what it means to be Lutheran and how it's done. Endearing, often hilarious stories shine a light on Lutheran life from baptism ("And His Name Shall Be Called Gilman Einar Stedje") to death ("He Is Not Gone, He Is Only Away"). In between, you'll learn about Sunday School, Christmas pageants (a.k.a. "bathrobe pageants"), Bible Camp, Confirmation, and Lutheran weddings. You'll get the inside scoop on the Lutheran Church Basement Women ("a special species of people"), lutefisk suppers, pew protocol, church architecture, and much more.

In the words of the authors, Growing Up Lutheran is "a mixture of ingredients that we had on hand, generously salted. . . . With gentle humor, and lightly peppered…with quite a few hot granules of Lutheran theology." This is most certainly true.

The Purse-driven Life: It Really Is All About Me

Anita Renfroe

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 19 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Full of "Purse-onality" 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

This is certainly not a "read before bed" book. You'll be laughing so hard, you'll want to call your mother, sister or best friend to share the humorous, laugh-til-you-cry truths throughout the book. You read your own womanly frustrations interpreted from Anita's honest, humorous, and insightful point of view. Women from 20-80 will enjoy Anita's clean comedy. The best part is sharing the laughter with other women in your life(men won't get it). My copy has been passed around the country to mom, grandma, aunts, sisters, in-laws, friends, and friends of friends alike. You'll be sorry when you finish reading, but...good news, she has more outrageous, fabulous books available!

So funny I dropped it in the tub!! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I picked this book up after seeing Anita at the Women of Faith conference this year...my girlfriend grabbed it to read first, told me it was a must read! Well, she was right - laugh out loud funny and a lot of fun to share with others. I read some excerpts at a ladies tea at church today - I had 3 women come up to me afterwards and request my copy!! I am on Amazon buying them their own right now! Anita really knows how to remind us that God wants us to find joy in everything - even the tough days of our lives. I hope you buy one for yourself and a friend that needs a good, clean laugh.

Editorial Review:

This collection of estrogen-driven essays takes a look at a woman's ""mid-life"" (mid-section, mid-kids, mid-crazy) through a comedic grid.

Who Ordered This Truckload of Dung?: Inspiring Stories for Welcoming Life's Difficulties

Ajahn Brahm

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 20 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Fantastic! 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This is a fantastic book, a treasure of short Buddhist tales with the deepest insights. Sometimes, when I don't have the time or the energy to read long discourses on spirituality I just grab this book, open it at random and read a couple of stories. It's and instant spiritual pick-me-up. Ajahn Brahm tells these stories with such a skill that you feel them come alive right before your eyes. I love them.

For a more serious discussion on meditation make sure you check our his other book: "Mindfulness, Bliss and Beyond". That one is a true gem of a book too.

Editorial Review:

The 108 stories in Who Ordered this Truckload of Dung? offer thoughtful commentary on everything from love and commitment to fear and pain. Drawing from his own life experience, as well as traditional Buddhist folk tales, author Ajahn Brahm uses over 30 years of spiritual growth as a monk to spin delightful tales that can be enjoyed in silence or read aloud to friends and family. Featuring titles such as "The Two-Finger Smile" and "The Worm and His Lovely Pile of Dung," these wry and witty stories provide playful, pithy takes on the basic building blocks of everyday like. Suitable for children, adults, and anyone in between, this eloquent volume wraps insight and inspiration inside of a good old yarn.

Principia Discordia - The Magnum Opiate of Malaclypse the Younger

Malaclypse the Younger

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Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Here we are in 2007 (or YOLD 3173), forty-eight, or forty-nine years after Mal2 and Omar's Discordian revelations at the hands of the Goddess Eris. Principia Discordia has been republished a number of times over the years, but not since 1976 has it been available to the general public in hardback format. Synaptyclypse Generator is proud to present this special edition of the legendary counter-culture classic, the bible of Discordianism. We have spared no cabbage-power in preparing this wonderful hardback edition for your enjoyment and enlightenment. We have done the best we could have hoped to ensure a quality and cherishable version of Principia Discordia. For this edition, we have included Kerry W. Thornley's introduction to the 1991 Illuminet Press edition and Robert Anton Wilson's Loompanics Unlimited introduction. We include all the material from the last Loompanics printing and any odd bits left over from the Illuminet version. We have closing 'Outroductions' by none other than the Rev.Dr Jon Swabey of Apocrypha Discordia fame and 'crackpot historian,' Adam Gorightly, author of The Prankster and the Conspiracy, The Story of Kerry Thornley and How He Met Oswald and Inspired the Counterculture. It also features the most sumptuously gorgeous cover that any edition has ever had.