Customer Reviews
Heavy Going - By: Rabbit, 13 May 2008 
This had some interesting bits, & the author has clearly read very widely. However, it turns into a series of GCSE-type summaries of the thought of "famous religious thinkers through the ages".
I was determined to finish all 460 pages, & did so, but it was mighty hard work.
Almost Genius...almost - By: J. Duducu, 19 Mar 2008 
I have read several of Karen Armstrong's books & I have always been stunned by the sheer quantity of research & her no holds barred presentation of the facts. If things get complicated then she presents them as such, she is a master of explaining the entire situation.
A history of god is simply an essential read for anyone who thinks they know anything about any of the monotheistic religions from the casual reader, to the Pope, to the Taliban; they should all sit down & really do their best to understand what is being said here. This is a mountain of a book so vitalin explaining & stripping away the millennia of misunderstanding as to be almost as important as the holy books it is discussing.
My only grumble is her relentlessly bone dry way of writing. I have seen herin interviews & her style is sparkling & engaging her written style however isn't & at times it would be nice if she did pause for breath & even use some of her lightness of speechin her extremely dense text. It seems to be a deliberate choice a bit like Newton writing the Principiain Latin to stop the riff raff from understanding it. That's why it doesn't get the full 5 stars for me.
However style to one side this book could do a lot of good for the world if more of the people it is written for actually sat down & read it.
Fantastic!! - By: Man Like T, 04 Sep 2007 
This is a brilliant book tracing the history of monotheism from Abraham (2000 BCE), through Moses (1200 BCE), the Israelite prophets, Jesus & the Prophet Muhammed (C7th CE), & the diverse conceptions these figures had of the Ultimate Divine Reality - Yahweh, Allah or God. But she doesn't stop there - further chapters on the 'God of the Philosophers' outline how scholars attempted to reconcile faith (revelation) with Greek rationalism, 'The God of the Mystics' how the experience of God was internalised by people of all 3 Abrahamic faiths, & then 'The Death of God?' takes the conception of the Divine right through to modern day. A truly encyclopaedic work, well-written & highly authoritative - as well as sympathetic to non-Western conceptions of religion - this book is a must-read for all who seek a deeper understanding of one of the great ideas of human history.
A Balanced Look At The Monotheistic Religions - By: Dave_42, 14 Apr 2007 Karen Armstrong's "A History of God" is a tremendous resource for those interestedin the history of religionsin general, &in monotheismin particular. She looks not onlyin the different religions (Judaism, Christianity, & Islamin particular), but alsoin the way that man's perception of God changed within each religion over time. Starting with the early history of man & religion, she proceeds right through to religion as of the early 1990's. The book was first publishedin 1993, so you will not find any references to September 11th or any of the polarizing events that have happened as a result. Instead you will find a much more even look, which is usefulin & of itself.
While this book is a tremendous reference, unfortunately it does have a significant weakness as a reference, & that is that the text itself is not all that organized. Her choices for the eleven chapters are fine, but you will find no sections or subsections within the chapters. Instead each chapter is just a long recitation with no breaks, & this can make referring back to a section rather difficult. The book does have a decent index which helps. Also, there is a very good bibliography which also helps with additional research on a topic.
The writing is a little uneven. Some sections are very well done, & others are a bit more difficult to follow, however the writing is never poor. In particular, her discussion of the early history of each of the major monotheistic religions is very well done, & it gives the reader a good understanding of what those religions were like before they started adapting to other forcesin the world. The polytheistic origins of Judaism, the lack of divinityin Christ, & the equality of women to menin Islam are just a few of the topics which would undoubtedly shake up those with fundamentalist beliefs.
The only other slight negative I can think of is with regards to some inconsistencyin the area of religion today. In her introduction, as well asin the last chapter, she refers to polls which indicate that 99 percent of the peoplein the U.S. believein God. She never provides a reference to these polls. The problem is thatin that same last chapter `Does God Have a Future?' she discusses the movement of people away from beliefin God. These two concepts seem to be at odds with one another, & she never addresses this contradiction. While there may be polls which show such a small number of atheists, the polls that I have seen show that atheists/agnostics make up 8.4% of the populationin 1990 & are up to 15.0% of the populationin 2000. This data seems to support the rest of her discussionin the chapter better than the polls she mentions.
I would definitely recommend this book to pretty much everybody. It is a window into our past & a tremendous reference for those interestedin world history as well as those who are studying religion.
I found God. - By: Christopher Floyd, 18 Dec 2006 Before this book I had always been one of those 'non-religious spiritualist' types, which means, searching for answers with little or no knowledge of the question.
The great wealth of religious philosophyin this book shows me the way & adds eloquence to the way I feel about God. I am still not pursuaded to subscribe to any particular doctrine, but feel I am at least on the path, if not very far along it. For all those who feel there must be something more than the physical realm, though are disuaded by the gimic of God this book displays a rich & varied perception of God throughout history & explains the risks of a flawed theology.
