Product Description

42 atheist celebrities, comedians, scientists and writers give their funny and serious tips for enjoying the Christmas season. Last year, Guardian journalist Ariane Sherine launched the Atheist Bus Campaign and ended up raising over GBP150,000, enough to place the advert 'There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life' on 800 UK buses in January 2009. Now Ariane and dozens of other atheist writers, comedians and scientists are joining together to raise money for a very different cause. The Atheist's Guide to Christmas is a funny, thoughtful handbook all about enjoying Christmas, from 42 of the world's most entertaining atheists. It features everything from an atheist Christmas miracle to a guide to the best Christmas pop hits, and contributors include Richard Dawkins, Charlie Brooker, Derren Brown, Ben Goldacre, Jenny Colgan, David Baddiel, Simon Singh, AC Grayling, Brian Cox and Richard Herring. The full book advance and all royalties will go to the UK HIV charity Terrence Higgins Trust.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #146 in Books
• Published on: 2009-10-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

About the Author
Ariane Sherine is a comedy writer and journalist. She writes for The Guardian, and has also written for The Sunday Times, The Independent, New Statesman and the NME. She started her career in television, writing for My Family (BBC1) and Countdown (Channel 4). Last year, she launched the Atheist Bus Campaign, raising £100,000 in four days.

Customer Reviews

Full of happiness and wonder
My copy of The Atheist's Guide to Christmas arrived unexpectedly early, and I opened it with interest. Would atheists really have anything to say about Christmas? It turns out: yes, so very much, yes. This is a book full of treasure, and I found myself continually delighted.

The book's 42 contributions are divided into six sections, which cover a lot of ground. `Stories' is full of charming anecdotes, memorably including Simon Le Bon (Simon Le Bon!) on his love of church music, Catie Wilkins on sending Christmas cards to biblical characters, and (I'm certainly unlikely to forget this one) Richard Herring on his Christmas with a cat. `Science' follows with some surprisingly moving odes to wonder - including how to hear the echoes of the Big Bang on Christmas Day - and a completely unexpected comedy sketch from Richard Dawkins (I won't spoil the surprise, but trust me). `How To' and `Arts' are full of genuinely practical suggestions for films, games, music, jokes, and even making Christmas environmentally friendly, while `Events' goes behind-the-scenes on the highlights of the secular community. But I think my favourite is `Philosophy', with Derren Brown, AC Grayling et al. wonderfully making the case for a humanistic Christmas, full of light, compassion and, above all, a simple joy.

Indeed, I was happy to find that the whole book is a uplifting, happy read, as the assembled atheists' enthusiasm for Christmas is surprising and infectious. Josie Long is particularly endearing in this regard, and her recommended party games had me in fits of giggles on the Tube, as did Anna Pickard's alternative carols. I'm certainly going to give both of these an outing come December.

As you'd expect, it isn't 100% in favour of the festive season, as Andrew Mueller and Jon Holmes are apparently allergic (tinselitis?), but even there the tone is jovial and light-hearted. In fact, I'd say the book is almost guaranteed to put you in a festive mood, so it's worth recommending as one to read before the big day. Put it this way - I'm writing in September, and am already yearning for fairy lights and mince pies. Even Slade. I don't know what's happening to me.

But the really special part is that placing this under someone's tree is a double gift: Terrence Higgins Trust benefits from every sale (the editor and contributors all did it for free), and I'm more than happy for my money to go to such an important cause. Getting so much entertainment as part of the deal is the marzipan on the Christmas cake.

Ariane Sherine has put together a beautiful thing, and I really can't recommend it enough: it's touching, it's personal, it's funny, it's educational, and buying it helps people who need help. Whether atheist or not, that's got to be what Christmas is about.

Atheists don't have to be "bah humbug" when it comes to Christmas
The happiness and joy of Christmas doesn't have to be restricted to people of certain religions. Christmas took over from other winter festivals, and incorporated elements from them, so it was never uniquely a Christian creation anyway - just a Christian take on existing festivals. Now we have an atheist take on it - all the fun, togetherness and joy of the celebration, without any religious focus. Fantastic!

A Funny and Heartwarming Book
I am pleasantly surprised and amazed by this book (have been lucky enough to receive my copy before publication date). Maybe because it was a charity book, I wasn't sure the standard of contributions would be that high and was expecting it to be quite serious, but I was smiling and impressed from the first page. I particularly liked Richard Dawkins' piece because it was nice to see him lighten up for once, and Derren Brown's as it showed that atheists can be just as caring and moral and religious people. I hope that's the message everyone will take away from this book.