mere atheism
no gods…no problem!

Atheism doesn’t require anger, bitterness or constant rants about gods and religions. George Ricker’s new book, mere atheism, tells you why…and more.

Buy the book:

My new book, mere atheism: no gods…no problems!, is now available for purchase online at:

Amazon.com,
Barnes & Noble.com
and iUniverse. (Note: if you scroll to the bottom of the page at iUniverse, you'll see a button labeled "Browse the book" that will take you to a small selection.)

If you haven't already bought Godless in America, the combination of the two books will put you over the $25 limit and make you eligible for free shipping from either Barnes & Noble or Amazon.com.

If you prefer to order from brick and mortar bookstores, don't look for them to have mere atheism in stock. They'll probably have to order it for you, but that should be no problem.

I hope any of you who like the new book (or the old one) will consider writing a review and posting it on Amazon.com or Barnes&Noble. com.

About the book: from the back cover

George Ricker’s latest book, mere atheism, no gods…no problem!, describes what he sees as the essence of atheism. In the title essay he writes, “Nothing about atheism prevents me from thinking about any idea. It is the very epitome of freethought. Atheism imposes no dogma and seeks no power over others.”

Written with the same candor and conversational style that characterized his earlier work, this selection of material from the Godless in America web site ranges from rebuttals of criticisms of atheism, “Answering atheism’s critics,” to essays on science, “Genes don’t care,” and some hot-button issues, “A death in the life of a controversy,” to reflections on the joy of sailing, “Under sail,” and the impact of the world outside on the world within in “Mockingbird.”

The twenty-four essays cover a wide variety of subjects, and the collection concludes with the one-act play A last rite and some wrongs…with apologetics.

“Many people still cling to the notion of the village atheist, obsessed by gods and religions, bitter and lonely, living on the edge of town with no friends and no family willing to acknowledge the kinship,” Ricker says. “I hope this book will help change that perception.”

A shameless commercial pitch:

Let me repeat something I said with my first book, Godless in America.

I hope you will buy my book and give it a good look. If you like it, please recommend it to anyone else you think may be interested. Buy extra copies and give them as gifts to friends and relatives. Donate a copy to your local library.

I've chosen to publish this as a print-on-demand project because mainstream book publishers move at a glacial pace, even in the days of electronic media, and I don't want to wait that long.

The advantage of the POD approach is that it's quick, and I retain total control of the material (at least with iUniverse—the POD publisher I chose—I do). The disadvantage is that POD books don't get the distribution or the promotion that regular publications do. There are a lot of reasons for that. Chief among them is that book publishers have no real investment in the work and, consequently, no incentive to spend money on advertising, etc.

But you can help me promote my book. First, by buying it. Second, by talking it up—assuming you think it's worthwhile. Finally, by calling bookstores and asking for it. Ask if they have it in stock. When they expect to. That sort of thing. They'll probably say you have to order it. If you have already purchased a copy, just say you'll check other places.

So that's my pitch. Any author needs an audience. With your help maybe I can reach one that's larger than it otherwise would be.

Whatever you decide to do, thanks for your time and your interest.