Sam Harris reminds us that awakening does not depend on religious belief. With his usual probing clarity, Sam points out the rational methodology for exploring the nature of consciousness.

So entirely of this moment, so keenly in touch with the growing number ... who are willing to say that they do not find the succor they crave, or a truth that makes sense to them, in organized religion.

Sam Harris ranks as my favourite sceptic, bar none. In Waking Up he gives us a clear-headed, no-holds-barred look at the spiritual supermarket, calling out what amounts to junk food and showing us where real nutrition can be found. Anyone who realizes the value of a spiritual life will find much to savour here – and those who see no value in it will find much to reflect on.

Harris shows how our egos are illusions [and] how abandoning this illusion can wake us up to a richer life, more connected to everything around us.

Waking Up is an extraordinary book ... It will shake up your most fundamental beliefs about everyday experience, and it just might change your life.

Richard always writes like he’s telling you a story, which is why so many of us non-science people understand science better than we used to. But when the story is his own life, its doubly compelling.

This is the Richard Dawkins I have come to know and respect ... witty, self-deprecating, intensely curious, always genuine, and a beguiling storyteller, who just happens to also be one of the best scientist-writers on the planet. For those who want some insight into the true nature of the man behind The Selfish Gene and The God Delusion, this book is sure to please, and perhaps surprise.

A century from now historians will take note of a handful of scientific luminaries in the second half of the 20th century who changed not just their science but their culture. First among equals in that short list will surely be Richard Dawkins, unquestionably one of the great minds of our time who is also an eloquent writer. Brief Candle in the Dark gives those future historians his pathway to greatness that begins with the publication of his monumental The Selfish Gene in 1976 and climaxes with the book that may do more to elevate atheism to a legitimate position than any that came before—The God Delusion—whose impact, like the author, reverberates still.

Brief Candle in the Dark provides so many pleasures in which to revel: the searing clarity of scientific insights and explanations; the depth of wit and width of erudition; a prose which can soar to poetry while never losing its accuracy; an inspired delight in the beauty of nature’s ways and a just as inspiring delight in the gifts and talents of others. The Richard Dawkins who comes shining through these wonderful pages is as generous as he is brilliant, calling to mind Darwin’s ringing words: There is grandeur in this view of life.

Sometimes funny, sometimes fascinating, and always interesting,Dawkins takes us through his later years story by story, revealing the humanity behind the man like never before. Richard Dawkins stands on a well-deserved pedestal in my mind because of all he has accomplished, and how those accomplishments have affected me, personally, and millions of others as well; A Brief Candle in the Dark reminds us, warmly and eloquently, that the greatest accomplishments are achieved when science is bolstered by good will and kindness.

Winston Churchill once quipped, “Mr. Attlee is a very modest man. Indeed he has a lot to be modest about.” Richard Dawkins is also a very modest man, though he has a lot to be immodest about. In Brief Candle in the Dark, Dawkins takes us through a personal journey of anecdotes and conversations with world-class scientists and thinkers, without acknowledging that he is truly a rock star among them. You don’t have to be a scientist to appreciate how deeply Dawkins loves interpreting science for the rest of us in this remarkable book about his own remarkable life, so far.

The text is fascinating, thoroughly readable, and joyful ... Whether he is relating his experiences popularizing science or summarizing his travels to the Galápagos Islands, Dawkins tells a good tale as he expounds upon the value in broadly promoting science literacy ... Dawkins offers great insight into the nature of science and introduces readers to many of the major players responsible for creating the field of evolutionary biology.

What it lacks in intimacy it makes up for with wit and bounce and a sense that this deeply learned man is running for mayor of our brains....A line that Mr. Dawkins uses to praise another scientist, the evolutionary biologist Alan Grafen, could surely be applied to the author himself: “As P.G. Wodehouse might have put it, ‘North of the collar stud, Alan stands alone.’ ”

Better spend time on a relatively poor book by Dawkins than on the best efforts of many other science writers.

Taking us from prehistoric to modern times, Karen Armstrong deftly manages her vast subject, and her conclusions will surprise you

A disturbing and refreshing view of 20,000 years of human society

thought-provoking

Armstrong is doing us a great service