Description
Book SynopsisTrade Review"This well-written and lively text will be of interest to both scholars and more general readers with an interest in American irreligion."--Publishers Weekly (starred review) "A felicitous, informative story from a highly knowledgeable author."--Kirkus "Schmidt offers an entertaining yet educational read for those interested in America's secular history and the struggles many faced to become vocal freethinkers without persecution."--Library Journal "Noteworthy."--Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution "An engaging examination of unbelief in the 19th and early 20th centuries at the grassroots."--Glenn C. Altschuler, Tulsa World "Village Atheists engagingly explores a persecuted American minority."--John Garratt, PopMatters "His deep reading in letters from small-town citizens to the editors of infidel journals--a major source of the anecdotes in Village Atheists--prove that irreligion existed in all areas of the country, including what would become the Bible Belt."--Allison Miller, Perspectives on History "Schmidt's rich, deep exploration of atheist thinkers in 19th-century America contextualizes questions pressing on American Christianity today."--Choice "The extensive research and clear writing in Village Atheists provides significant enlightenment about our history."--Mark Kolsen, American Atheist "For anyone interested in the birth, growth, and development of grassroots secularism in the United States--and the leading lights of American atheism long before Sam Harris or Madalyn Murray O'Hair--this book is an absolute must."--Phil Zuckerman, Los Angeles Review of Books
Table of ContentsList of Illustrations ix Preface xiii Introduction: The Making of the Village Atheist 1 Chapter 1 The SECULAR PILGRIM or, The Here without the Hereafter 25 Chapter 2 The CARTOONIST or, The Visible Incivility of Secularism 73 Chapter 3 The BLASPHEMER or, The Riddle of Irreligious Freedom 171 Chapter 4 The OBSCENE ATHEIST or, The Sexual Politics of Infidelity 210 Epilogue: The Nonbeliever Is Entitled to Go His Own Way 249 Notes 285 Index 329
