The Grand Design by Stephen Hawking

http://www.amazon.com/Grand-Design-Stephen-Hawking/dp/0553805371/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0

If you read books on physics, then chances are you have read some of Stephen Hawking's other books. If you don't read physics books, then this is a good place to start. The book isn't very long. I read it in just one afternoon. However, part of that is because I could not put it down. It's similar to his condensed and updated version of A Brief History of Time, called A Briefer History of Time. This time, however, he delves into a little philosophy. It's funny, because he says in the opening of the book that philosophy is dead. However, I think he's talking about philosophers of mind and theologians who do not keep up with the most recent advances in science. So don't fret, philosophers. He does put forth a very logical positivist style philosophy of science called Model-Dependent-Realism. It's an interesting concept. Furthermore, the focus of this book is M-Theory, which many know as string theory. The difference is that there are many individual string theories, and theories that are inspired by string theory (take the Randall-Sundrum model for instance). M-Theory is the collective name for all of these. Some might say that Hawking is a bit TOO convinced of M-Theory, since there is not, as of 12/18/2010, much experimental evidence to back up it's more outlandish claims. Hawking draws the conclusion that there is no need for a creator god because of the physical laws discussed in this book. I, of course, agree with this. However, that's up for the reader to decide for themselves. Even if you are a religious person, there's not much of a need to get offended over this book. For a person interested in physics, it's an exciting read on the modern state of physics. However, I would recommend reading another book by him to supplement this if you are not familiar with physics.

I give it an 8 out of 10. I'd give it a higher score, but I would have liked it to have been a little longer. Another point off because Hawking seems too convinced of a theoretical model that is still incomplete both mathematically and empirically. Nevertheless, this is a good, thought provoking, and informative read. 

Godless by Dan Barker

http://www.amazon.com/Godless-Evangelical-Preacher-Americas-Atheists/dp/1569756775/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1292519641&sr=8-1

Godless by Dan Barker is one of the best books by an atheist I have ever read. Dan Barker is a former evangelical, Pentecostal minister and Christian song writer turned atheist. Not only is he now an atheist, but he is involved in the Freedom from Religion Foundation. This is somewhat of an autobiographical work, but it's also a book on philosophy, and a book on Bible scholarship. The book consists of four parts, and a foreword by Richard Dawkins. The first part is called Rejecting God, and consists of four chapters. The chapters outline how he first became involved in the ministry as a teenager and his work as a Christian songwriter and Pentecostal minister as an adult, his first seeds of doubt and his loss of faith, the fallout from his coming out as an atheist, and his new calling in life: protecting the civil rights of non-believers and ensuring that the government and religion remain appropriately separated. The second part of the book is called Why I Am An Atheist, and it goes more into depth about the reasons he does not believe. It delves a little into the philosophical arguments against the existence of God, and ends with an amusing letter written from God's point of view to a philosopher. The next part of the book is called What's Wrong With Christianity, and it goes in depth into the lack of moral instruction in the Bible, as well as historical discrepancies, internal contradictions, and a discussion on whether or not Jesus ever existed, and if he did, just who was he really? The final part of the book, Life is Good!, returns to the autobiographical part of the book, and talks about his life now as a political activist, debater, as well as a father and husband.

The book is scholarly work sandwiched between an autobiography, and the way the book is formatted is actually quite captivating. Some people are put off with the tone of the books other atheists have written, but if you are a Christian or person of some other faith, I don't think this one should be too painful for you to read. I think that this book has something for everyone. If you are a believer looking for a book about the arguments for atheism, this is a good start. If you are a believer looking for a book to understand how someone loses their faith, this will also give you a wonderful insight on that. If you are an atheist or agnostic of some sort, this book is highly enjoyable as well. I myself have always been of a skeptical bent, only going through a brief religious phase in my teen years, so it was very interesting seeing how a person who was absolutely convinced of his religion changed over the years from a conservative, pentecostal, fundamentalist, to a more liberal Christian, and finally, to a non-believer. The prose is very well written. It's captivating and to the point. The sections on the Bible may lose you if you are not already familiar with it. However, I suspect most readers who grew up in a Christian society should have at least some familiarity with it. Even if you don't, he doesn't go too in depth. After all, this is not a book about the Bible, there are just some chapters about it.

I give this book a 10/10.