I enjoy books where satirists take aim at the hypocrisies of organized religion, while still working to honor the notion that spirituality itself is not a bad thing.

Black does this well...though with scatter shot organization.

The book reads like a mix of stand-up and essay, and that's a tricky blend. Black's stand up is a loud ALL CAPS shout. His approach to essay is more sincere and sedate. The mix of the two makes for a bit of a bumpy ride.

Still, whenever someone calls out folks like Falwell, Robertson, the Creation Museum in Kentucky, and George W Bush for being bad examples of what faith is supposed to be, I gotta stand up and applaud.

Lewis Black isn't the next Bill Hicks. Yet. But, if he'll keep honing his skills to mix sincere personal beliefs like this with his stand-up, maybe he'll get there. ( )

This book did not turn out as I expected: I expected a critique of religion and defense of humanism. I got that, but I also got a hodge-podge of stories about Black's spiritual experiences (not all of them drug-induced). He includes a ludicrous story in which he is flabbergasted that an astrology book pinpoints people who share his ex-wife's birthday as particularly incompatible with him. He falsely declares that the odds of this are enormous (no; they're only 1 in 30, since he was already looking at a book about HER SIGN, which only contains 30 birthdays!). Anyway, if you enjoy Black's screaming style, the book is mostly consistent with that. I could have done without the final CD, which seems to pad the book by tacking on a reproduction of a show he did some years back. ( )

If you like Lewis Black, whether from his stand-up comedy or from his work at The Daily Show, then you will probably like this book. I did not rate it higher because it does slow a bit at the end. However, it is worth reading. Black combines humor with memoir and commentary to reflect on his relationship with religion. More importantly, he reminds us of the importance of humor, especially when it comes to religion. The deity, whatever form it takes, must have a sense of humor, so we should have some sense of humor as well when it comes to religion. The early part of the book is the best part. Along the way, we get a look at politics, G.W. Bush, Muslims, Christians, and even Mormons; Black pretty much covers a lot of territory in this book. I did like it overall, and I think a good number of people should read it. Maybe it would help them be less uptight. ( )

What can you say about a joke but that, "it's all in the delivery"?

I love Lewis Black in performance, but his words in print don't have the same kick as his on-stage persona. As the title of this book implies, its focus is on Black's thoughts on religion, and they don't really pack much punch. So Mr. Black doesn't have a high opinion of institutionalized religion and thinks "born-again Christians" are a bunch of yahoos. That's hardly cutting-edge. And targeting self-proclaimed gurus and TV evangelists is shooting fish in a barrel. His remarks on these subjects might be funny on stage, filtered through his perfected ranting style. But on the page? Meh.

He also takes some time to write semi-seriously about his a couple of his experiences, including the death of his brother and his encounters with a psychic, but I doubt many of his fans would buy this book to hear Mr. Black speak seriously.

The book ends with the script of a play Mr. Black wrote back during the Reagan administration (!). Not only does it feel like padding, but the play is truly awful.

There is only funny bit: the characterization of hell as a modern airline terminal, complete with cancelled flights and delays on the tarmac. In it, I could hear the rant. More of this would have made a great book. ( )

Parts of this book were hysterically funny, and much of it was very perceptive, skewering the more bizarre aspects of organized religion while maintaining a light tone. There are a few chapters (particularly the play at the end of the book) that could have been left out, but for the most part this was very enjoyable. ( )