Why Are You Atheists So Angry?

99 Things That Piss Off the Godless

By: Greta Christina

Narrated by: Greta Christina

Length: 4 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

Why are atheists angry? Is it because they're selfish, joyless, lacking in meaning, and alienated from God? Or is it because they have legitimate reasons to be angry - and are ready to do something about it? Armed with passionate outrage, absurdist humor, and calm intelligence, popular blogger Greta Christina makes a powerful case for outspoken atheist activism, and explains the empathy and justice that drive it. This accessible, personal, down-to-earth book speaks not only to atheists, but also to believers who want to understand the so-called new atheism.

Why Are You Atheists So Angry? drops a bombshell on the destructive force of religious faith - and gives a voice to millions of angry atheists.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2012 Greta Christina (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"I found this book informative and enraging! Leave it to Greta to inform and elucidate like no other. I highly recommend this book to everyone, everywhere. And I hope never to get Greta angry at me. :)" (David Silverman, President, American Atheists)

"Greta Christina’s analysis of religion is acute and witty, and at the same time fair and compassionate. And I'm jealous: I sure wish I could write as well as she does." (Alan Sokal, Professor of Physics, New York University)

On target!

I was never able to express why I've been so angry over religions...until this book. It's as if the author could read my mind EXACTLY.

Try it - Regardless of your theistic stand

This book raised many critical questions that both theist and atheist should listen too. Whilst being more prescriptive on the atheist side (understandable given the title and intent), this book also has a elements of science which is neutral. The narrator / author sometimes maximises intonation it almost feels like a conversation (one sided of course - given it s an audio-book).

a must read for the faithfull and faithless

a lot of true points and strong ideas. even if you are a frue beliver in faith a must read

The perfect book for me

I love this book so much... if I could afford to set up a foundation to buy this book for anyone who wanted a copy I would. As a free thinking atheist I certainly don't agree with every sentence in this book, but being able to disagree with even one is important.
Thank you Greta. We each evolve in to godlessness in our own way, and this was not the one thing that convinced me... reading the Bible 40 years ago started me on that journey. It took about 5 years, mostly college, and many OTHER religious texts to realize it was ALL hogwash. Then it took me another 10 years for me to even come out to my closest nonreligious friends...
Thank you, Greta for this final summation of so many true things and why we should not believe or support the untrue. I will buy many copies to keep in my bookshelf and when someone asks me 'Why so many copies? ' I'll say 'Like so many other books I've enjoyed I want to be able to share this with those who show interest. Please take a copy of you are interested.'
1984, Enders Game, The Social Contract, Stranger in a Strange Land, Brave New World... these are the books I rate this with...

A nice compilation of reasons to dislike religion

Where does Why Are You Atheists So Angry? rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Perhaps not destined to receive any literary prizes, but a fun read for atheists. Considering the number of books that I wasn't able to finish, or had to struggle to finish, I would have to rate this book in about the 80th percentile.

What did you like best about this story?

The fact that it listed all of the diverse reasons that religion has been a bad influence in human society as well as being unsupportable as being true.

What about Greta Christina’s performance did you like?

She managed not to make it sound like a rant. Her diction was clear and appropriately paced, with just enough emotion to emphasize her points.

If you could give Why Are You Atheists So Angry? a new subtitle, what would it be?

Finally, an objective discussion of religion!

Any additional comments?

Most of the arguments and facts that she presented were already known to me, but she put them all together into a clear and compelling book.

Less Angry Now

Having had the benefit of listening to Greta Christina's thesis, I am more athiest and less angry than I might otherwise have been had I continued to avoid the debate. She makes a strong argument for taking the fight to the barricades of religion, orthodox and unorthodox alike. I'm not sure I'm up for the fight on the front line (in fact I'm sure that I am not), but I won't be slinking off (as I did) to buy the next round if the fight comes to me!
The arguments are of course made to the converted, so they go down easily with me, but they are worth hearing in this considered way, in one collective mass. There's no new argument, but there is no new argument to refute, either.
The author's reading is an important part of her message. She happens to sound like a friend and colleague of mine, so it was like having a discussion with her and so, so easy to listen to.
I agree that there are many more than 99 ways to piss-off the godless, but this book is not one of them. I thoroughly recommend it to athiests, people who say they are agnostic (as I did many years ago when I was unsatisfied by the religion that I was being taught in Secondary School), true believers and believers, perhaps not alike, but just the same. You may not like what she says, but if you're honest about it, you'll admit that she has a fine way of saying it.

A very fast introduction to Atheism.

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

For somebody who never heard of Atheism before it will be a nice introduction

If you’ve listened to books by Greta Christina before, how does this one compare?

N/A

What about Greta Christina’s performance did you like?

Very Good

Could you see Why Are You Atheists So Angry? being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

No

Any additional comments?

No

A Reasonable Discourse Concerning Atheist Anger

Where does Why Are You Atheists So Angry? rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I'm new to audiobooks, so the fact that it ranks in my top ten is meaningless, but I would listen to this title again.

What did you like best about this story?

I thought the arguments were laid out well and I liked the author's conversational tone (and performance), the lightness of the humor and that the message was delivered, but not in such a way that it seemed like a lecture.

What does Greta Christina bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I really appreciated her "vocal performance." She wrote the book in her first person voice and it seemed so natural and clear to hear her read her words in a conversational tone. It was like having coffee with her. I would love to have coffee with her because of this reading.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes. This is book was short and intruiging to me. While I was unable to listen to the whole thing in one sitting, it might get a repeat play in one sitting in the near future.

I didn't need to listen to this book

Where does Why Are You Atheists So Angry? rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

While I find the subject of religion very interesting, I live in one of those Scandinavian countries Greta mentions in her book as being secular, where religion governs less and less of our daily life.

Therefore, much of the angriness Greta speaks about doesn't really apply to someone from Scandinavia. Most of the US-related issues, such as being prevented from certain positions, political engagements, career-paths etc., don’t apply for me. Our laws and customs are changing, and religious views no longer play a part in law making. I can happily claim to be an atheist with no risk or retaliation. Religion is losing foothold every day.

In fact, I even refuse to call myself an atheist. I see absolutely no reason to label myself according to a concept I do not acknowledge. To me, it's makes as much sense as if I must label myself as a "hexagonal", because humanity suddenly introduces a concept where we all must be labeled according to the shapes of geometrical figures.

No one flinches or questions your moral upbringing if you claim to be an atheist in this country. There are very few positions, jobs or career-paths being denied me because of my lack of religious view. I didn't need to read this book. I could have said almost everything Greta said, but less elegant. Most of the 99 reasons Greta lists also makes me appalled and frustrated, but I already know what frustrates me about religion. And most people agree with me in this country.

The book does serve as a reminder though, that we must not ever relax our stand. We must constantly be on alert. The world is changing, and suddenly we might again find ourselves in a time where religion gains ground, even in Scandinavia. Just as I write this, a woman from my country is sentenced to 16 month of prison in Dubai for having sex outside of marriage while on a business trip. She was raped at the hotel, and upon going to the Dubai police to file a report, she was arrested. I see no international media jumping onto this story; it is not mentioned on CNN or BBC. I see no politicians jumping on their private jets with the purpose of defending basic human rights. It’s my reason number 100. This woman did not drive too fast. She did not try to smuggle narcotics, she didn’t kill someone, and she didn’t steal anything. She was raped. And for that, she is sentenced to 16 months in prison for violating laws based on religion alone.

Therefore, the audiobook ranks quite high on my list when it comes to importance. For me, it does not bring anything new to the table, and as such, it wasn't a necessary listen for me.

What other book might you compare Why Are You Atheists So Angry? to and why?

I guess Richard Dawkins comes to mind, although Greta focuses less on religion itself, but rather provides daily examples of religious encounters and how to debate and argue.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I think it's better to consume this book in batches. Some chapters and paragraphs leaves the listener to think a bit, review and ponder on the practical implications and how this applies to his or her daily life. By listening to the book in one go, parts of the self-insight and debating tips might be lost.

Englightening. Excellent.

Usually I hate books where the author chooses to be narrator, rather than hiring a professional narrator. But in this instance, the author narrates well; probably because she is also a public speaker.

The book sets forth a persuasive case for atheism by using logic and reason and does so without being inflammatory or contentious. It is a book that teaches.