A skeptical yet deeply curious survey of how and why human beings have worshipped throughout the ages—from sun gods and cave paintings to Mormonism.
What first prompted prehistoric man, sheltered in the shadows of deep caves, to call upon the realm of the spirits? And why has belief thrived ever since, shaping thousands of generations of shamans, pharaohs, Aztec priests and Mayan rulers, Jews, Buddhists, Christians, Nazis, and Scientologists?
As our dreams and nightmares have changed over millennia, so have our beliefs. The gods we created have evolved with us through a narrative fraught with human sacrifice, political upheaval and bloody wars.
Belief was man’s most epic labor of invention. It has been our closest companion, and has followed mankind across the continents and through all of recorded history. In An Atheist’s History of Belief, award-winning novelist and committed atheist Matthew Kneale “aims to tell you everything you’ve wondered about religion but never dared to ask” (The Guardian, UK).
