"It is a great pleasure to welcome Jim Herrick's book on humanism. His description of humanism is clear and concise, yet easy to read. It covers the important points in a sound manner without going into cumbersome detail." Professor Sir HERMANN BONDI, renowned British mathematician and cosmologist, King's College, Cambridge University, UK
"Jim Herrick insists that humanist optimism is neither blithely sanguine nor naively unrealistic--but rather, a sane and practical based upon a clear-eyed assessment and understanding of ourselves and the world....Definitely a book to own and certainly one to lend." NORMAN PRIDMORE, THE FREETHINKER
"A concise but comprehensive account of humanism, combing argument and defense with a wealth of factual information. A further merit of its comprehensiveness is that it avoids the narrow stereotypes of secular humanism as confined to dry rationalism. Whilst fully committed to rationality and the scientific worldview, Herrick successfully coveys that there is more to life and more to humanism, especially in his chapter on the arts." RICHARD NORMAN, formerly professor of moral philosophy at the University of Kent, UK, and vice president of the British Humanist Association
In this succinct, informative, and enlightening introduction to humanism--a philosophy that emphasizes the value of human life in all its creative potential within a secular context--Jim Herrick, a leading humanist advocate in Great Britain, provides a highly readable account of the guiding principles, history, and practice of humanism in today's world. Herrick surveys the tradition of humanism as it developed over many centuries, its skepticism toward belief in God and an afterlife, humanist values and arguments for morality outside of a religious framework, its attitude of tolerance toward different lifestyles and belief systems, its endorsement of democratic political principles, its strong ties to science, its evaluation of the arts as an exploration of human potential, and its concern for environmental preservation and the long-term sustainability of the earth.
