The Word of God: Or, Holy Writ Rewritten
With this odd blend of fiction and satiric philosophy, sf veteran Disch fires another salvo in the ongoing debate between atheists and believers. Not content to adopt the sober polemical stances taken by such prominent atheists as Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens, Disch instead assumes the role of God himself. Taking the helm of the deity allows Disch free reign to channel his own long-standing atheism into a series of amusing and subversive rants about the intersection between religion and human folly. In irreverent, bite-size chapters, Disch correlates Santa Claus and a Christian God who knows if we’re naughty or nice, points out the absurdities of an everlasting hell, and imagines how appealing Jesus would be had he appeared 2,000 years later in the form of the Good American Cowboy. Historical musings mingle with pertinently illustrative stories and verse, and also a biographical reflection on Philip K. Dick’s semireligious, paranoid visions. Although Disch’s fans may find the philosophical departure somewhat startling, they will delight in his characteristically witty observations on human nature. --Carl Hays