The Evolution of God - (Back Bay Readers' Pick) by Robert Wright (Paperback)

About the Book

Through the prisms of archaeology, theology, anthropology, and evolutionary psychology, Wright shows how and why religion can strengthen the social order and why modern science, contrary to conventional wisdom, affirms the validity of the religious quest.

Book Synopsis

In this sweeping narrative that takes us from the Stone Age to the Information Age, Robert Wright unveils an astonishing discovery: there is a hidden pattern that the great monotheistic faiths have followed as they have evolved. Through the prisms of archaeology, theology, and evolutionary psychology, Wright's findings overturn basic assumptions about Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and are sure to cause controversy. He explains why spirituality has a role today, and why science, contrary to conventional wisdom, affirms the validity of the religious quest. And this previously unrecognized evolutionary logic points not toward continued religious extremism, but future harmony.

Nearly a decade in the making, The Evolution of God is a breathtaking re-examination of the past, and a visionary look forward.

Review Quotes

PRAISE FOR THE EVOLUTION OF GOD:
"THE EVOLUTION OF GOD gives me hope...The tone of the book is dry skepticism with a dash of humour; the content is supple, dense and layered...fresh and necessary."
--Andrew Sullivan, The Times

PRAISE FOR NONZERO:
"An original, accessible and thought-provoking view of history...full of rich detail, ingenious insight and bold argument."--The Economist

About the Author

Robert Wright is a contributing editor of The New Republic, a Slate.com columnist, and a visiting scholar at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the cofounder of www.bloggingheads.tv, runs the web-based video project www.meaningoflife.tv, and lives in Princeton, NJ, with his wife and two daughters.