What I just overheard in the most liberal bookstore in Austin:

[StellaBlue]

Customer to the children's bookseller:

"I am looking for some Christian books later for her, but I want some children's books... but nothing with witchcraft or any of that."

Bookseller: "Can they be neutral?"

Customer: "Yes, they can be neutral, just not anti-religion."



HOW MANY ATHEIST APOLOGIA BOOKS ARE THERE FOR CHILDREN!?!??!?!!????!

:eyes:

[Rabrrrrrr]

1. Yeah, the market for Atheist children's books is HUGE!!!

:eyes:

Certainly, the secular children's book market is gigantic - the Christian one is good size, but small in comparison.

But atheist? I don't remember any atheist children's books. I'm sure there are some, just as I'm sure that some asshole Christian fundy has written a "4 year old's guide to field dressing a towel-head felled by the sword of Christian Faith", but I can't imagine there are many.

And it's funny, I'm sure the fundy assholes would say that any book that has a theme of "be nice" or "love people" or "accept your neighbors" is a Christian book, because those are Christian (and apparently ONLY Christian) principles. But for the purpose of my argument, I do not include those in the Christian genre unless they are "be nice because Jesus wants you to be nice", etc.

[unschooler]

4. What is the parallel between these two hypothetical books?

But atheist? I don't remember any atheist children's books. I'm sure there are some, just as I'm sure that some asshole Christian fundy has written a "4 year old's guide to field dressing a towel-head felled by the sword of Christian Faith", but I can't imagine there are many.

I don't think a hypothetical book with the approximate title of "Why Mommy is an Atheist" would be remotely comparable to "field dressing a towel-head."

:shrug:

[Rabrrrrrr]

10. Ummm.... the ontology?

:shrug:

Talk about being Ms. Sensitive. Sheesh.

[Union Thug]

2. Pathetic Christians. I'll never understand these people. As an atheist..

I've been free to explore and participate in Asatru, Voodoo, Santeria, Theodish, Amazon ayahuasca, and a number of other oh so scary magical, mystery WITCHCRAFT <BOO!> ceremonies and rituals. I wouldn't trade these experiences for the world. What are they so afraid of?

God forbid you allow your children children to experience the richness of the spiritual traditions of the world. Worse yet, they won't even allow them the innocent fun of the Harry Potter books. They really are sad, sorry people.

[BlueStorm]

15. You have studied Voodoo and Santeria?

Union Thug, I am so interested in those paths, but it is very difficult for me to find groups here in Grand Rapids, being that this is a very conservative city (Think DeVos, shudder!!) I have found that studying different religions have made me a more spiritually richer person.

Blue

[Union Thug]

16. I wouldn't say I've studied either extensively. Rather,

I was heavily involved in Asatru for years and had a pretty serious network of people of various traditions all over north and south america. I was very interested in the shamanic aspect of woden's character, and this led to discussions with other shamanic traditions.

I am an atheist, but there is something about shamanic traditions that I just can't shake. I don't necessarily attribute it to an external god or gods or spirits, and perhaps it is due to my Terrence McKenna view of psychedelics, but I remain fascinated to this very day.

[OwnedByFerrets]

3. So, HP is anti-religion huh?

:puke:

[walldude]

9. Yup haven't you heard? HP turned my kids into.... into... into....

READERS! What horrors will they discover next? :eyes:

[OwnedByFerrets]

11. HAHAHAHAHA......

and god knows the repugs dont want anyone reading or thinking.

[don954]

5. Well i would sugest the Xanith series but even that might be too

far out for some wack-job fundies..

[seabeyond]

6. thinking thinking thinking. i have over 300 books in kids roomfrom the

time they were littlest. cant remember some of the names..... but i am not recalling any of the younger ones anything but neutral. unless i specifically look for a religious book, or a halloween book with witches, which we loved. probably a woman with the whole harry potter scare. sounds like to me living in the red panhandle of texas

[Lydia Leftcoast]

7. Isn't there a children's author from England who writes a series in

which religious people are villains? I can't recall the name, but I've heard of it and saw copies in a bookstore in England.

[jollyreaper2112]

12. His Dark Materials

You're thinking of His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman. He wrote it as an athiest's answer to the stealth christianity of Narnia. It's actually a great premise but falls apart by the third book due to author fatigue.

The basic premise: This is a fantasy reality version of our own world. There is magic and magical creatures but also complex history and dark politics. From Wikipedia:

In Northern Lights (released in the United States and Canada as The Golden Compass), the heroine, Lyra Belacqua, a young girl brought up in the cloistered world of Jordan College, Oxford, and her dæmon Pantalaimon — an animal-shaped manifestation of her soul — learn of the existence of Dust, a strange elementary particle believed by the Church to be evidence for Original Sin. Dust is less attracted to the innocence of children, and this gives rise to grisly experiments being carried out by Church-controlled scientists on kidnapped children in the icy wastelands of the far North. Lyra and her dæmon journey to save their best friend Roger Parslow and other kidnapped children from this peril, with the aid of the Armoured Bear Iorek Byrnison, John Faa and Farder Coram, leaders of the gyptians, the aeronaut Lee Scoresby, and the witch Serafina Pekkala. One of the details I liked is how there are armoured bears ruling the northern lands in what we would know as scandinavia. The king of the bears apes the ways of men and has even converted to christianity to curry favor with the human kingdoms, much in the same way pagan kings converted in our own history.

What you eventually discover is that there is indeed a god, known as the Authority, and the Church carries out his work. And God is malignant. Lyra's father is leading a rebellion against Heaven and has enlisted the aid of peoples from across the multiverse.

Christianity and the Church are often criticized by the characters. For example, Ruta Skadi, a minor character calling for war against the Magisterium in Lyra's world, says that "For all of history...it's tried to suppress and control every natural impulse. And when it can't control them, it cuts them out." (see intercision). She extends her criticism to all organized religion: "That's what the Church does, and every church is the same: control, destroy, obliterate every good feeling." In another passage Mary Malone, one of Pullman's main characters, states that "the Christian religion…is a very powerful and convincing mistake, that's all.".

Overall, I would say the first novel is the best. There are some great ideas in this series and it would actually be well-served by a loose movie adaptation, picking up the strongest elements and fabricating better details to round out the film.

[madrchsod]

8. that is what she wants her child to read

..what the hell is it to me to criticize her choice? the last time i looked i was free to raise my child the way i thought best. she should be granted the same freedom of chose

[OutNow]

13. Bet You Were At BookPeople

I actually liked it better when it was in South Austin.

BTW - you'd never find a customer liked you described at Monkeywrench Books, 110 E. North Loop Blvd. Check it out.

[Goblinmonger]

14. There are plenty of atheist children books

The Pokey Little Puppy
Winnie the Pooh series
Pretty much all of Dr. Suess

None of the above have any belief or reference to belief in god. Hence atheist.