Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: A tedious read and, at best, poorly researched; at worst, intellectually dishonest. The misrepresentation of Spencer's idea of "contempt before investigation" on page 408 is the most glaring, though unfortunately not the only, example.
Rating: 
Summary: When in This World, Doubt
Review: Approaching this book is formidable: Over 2,000 years of time crammed with characters, events, dates and all angles of thought. Overlapping eras, philosophies, geography. A fleet or religions, believers, non-believers and heretics. To make this history interesting and informative and not a slog through ancient history is no small feat, but with Jennifer Michael Hecht as the tour guide, this book works on both levels. And the trip is fun, too. She sets a chronological course, offering a mostly delightful cast of characters, many of whom have earned their moment on the History Channel. But you'll also discover men and women lost in time who have unfathomable pluck, who spit in the eye of popular thinking at the Inquistion, in ancient Rome and India, in medieval Paris and in Washington, D.C. Hecht's language speeds along, injecting the humor and fondness of a poet for her subject. (Too often what she chronicles is put on the back shelf of libraries, put there by people who are afraid of another view of the world, which might challenge their beliefs.). Hecht explains the vision of both orthodox thought and her doubters with equal voice and clarity, but her final chapter, The Joy of Doubt, reveals a love of being free. And that is to doubt and to glory in a world of free thought.
Rating:
Summary: relief
Review: As a child I was forced to go to church by my parents. They didn't go them selves, except of course on holidays. There was a lot of Latin, sit, stand and kneeling. I didn't understand. As an adult I searched for God, and still do, but I don't go easy. I ask difficult questions, and clergy who are at first evangelistic, tend to cool down quickly when dealing with me. I tried to "just believe", but I couldn't. I am not a scholar by any means and Doubt was a tough read for me. But what an eye opener it was! I mean Thomas Jefferson? Ben Franklin? Mark Twain? The list goes on and on. I guess I'm in pretty good company.
Jennifer Michael Hecht is brilliant here. The content moves quickly and covers a lot. (I will have to read this again.) I'm sure my own philosophy is the result of centuries of doubters. Who's philosophies then carried down through history to become the still troubling questions we have today. I don't believe it's ever been chronicled like this. I'm very impressed. I love her wit as well. This is a must read for all potential, future fanatics, especially those who come to believe that murder is a powerful convincer.
Rating:
Summary: Validation for Doubters
Review: As the other reviews indicate, if you're a doubter, a "freethinker," an agnostic, an atheist or just plain unable to buy any story with a supernatural element in it, you will love this book. If you're a believer or unwilling or unable to give up the belief system you cherish (which is perfectly understandable), then this book will most likely aggravate you.
What I found as I went through this book is that for every belief system someone somewhere came up with, some other person somewhere else deflated it. As Hecht explained each system, I was tempted to think, "Ah, there's a philosophy I can adopt!" But, no. As I continued reading, the flaws in the system were pointed out by the great thinkers of all time (and sometimes by Hecht herself), and I thought, "Well, no -- I guess that one gets thrown in the trash pile of history, too."
This is why this book is NOT good for those seeking answers -- especially those who need validation of their own belief system. For, in the last analysis, this book leaves one thinking there ARE no answers (at least, at this time). Maybe it's all beyond the human brain, and always will be. I was left realizing that we're living in a Universe which is -- to use Churchill's phrase about the Soviet Union -- a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.
If one is open minded -- and especially if one is already a "doubter" and needs validation of their doubts -- I can hardly recommend this book highly enough. It's comprehensive, accessible, witty and more fun to read than you'd expect a book about philosophy could be.
Rating:
Summary: Info you didn't know
Review: Bet you didn't know about the Carvaka, or about Miriam whacking the Temple with her sandal and calling it a "wolf". Bet you didn't know that the traditional Hanukah story is a one-sided spin of an important and complex interaction between two belief systems with political ramifications that resonate even today. Bet you never heard of Wang Chun. And I bet you never really knew how cool Epicurus was.
This book made and makes me want to go back to the first page and comb the entire book while taking notes on authors I want to delve into in depth. I checked it out at the library, because I'm cheap. But it needs to be in my own collection, so I'm gonna buy me a copy for my very own (used).
It's a very good read and doesn't bog down. Though most people approaching this book will be folks like me who have a problem with religion, the author respects the continuum of doubt/belief and does not create an exaggerated dichotomy. Many of the doubters quoted fall in the category of believers.
As I read it, I found myself thinking "So THAT"S why {something important happened that has never really been fully explained in the histories I have read}!"
In sum: an important adjunct to the history of civilization, not just Western but ... civilization.
Rating:
Summary: Doubt as a journey.
Review: Hecht does us freethinker apologists a great service here. She gives us an eloquent and exhaustive account of the process of doubt through history. For the most part, the people she depicts here are skeptics, rather than cynics. Their humanistic values come from their own evaluations and struggles with objective truth, rather than a wholesale rejection based on suspicion of motives of others (although that does pop up from time to time to be sure). For as many loud and proud rebels depicted in here, there are an equal army of strugglers who can't reject what they see as true, despite the prevailing beliefs of the communities around them. It's a very lively, thought provoking book, and enjoy interested in the history of ideas would probably enjoy it. Heck, even theists should read it.
Rating: 
Summary: An Impressive Work Spanning 2,000 Years of History
Review: I am not a doubter and have a difficult time understanding how one cannot have faith. But I accept that as a reasonable position. I have always been an avid student of philosophy and theology. I think that there is great value in understanding the perspectives of those with doubt and without faith and how "doubters" have effected societal and political development. Ms. Hecht takes us on an astounding 2,000-year journey across history and introduces us to the preeminent thinkers in the history of doubt from every continent. It is a most impressive and immensely readable journey. It is important to note that this journey is not for the novice. If you don't have a background in Greek philosophical and Christian theological writings, this may be a challenging read even though Ms. Hecht makes this information very accessible and readable.
Rating:
Summary: Mind expanding and fun
Review: I loved this book. It is pretty long, and I spent about 6 weeks slowly working my way through it, looking forward to reading a little every night. The author is a very good writer. This might have been dry material in other hands, but Jennifer Hecht has a gift for language. I went to her web site and discovered she is also a poet.I had no idea that there were so many doubters in so many
cultures over the last several thousand years. She starts
about 500BC and discusses the ancient Indians, Greeks, Chinese,
Japanese, continues through to the Moslems and Europeans of the
middle ages and all the way to current day Europeans and
Americans. It is interesting that the works of many of the great doubters
have been destroyed by the religious groups that held political
power in their day. We only know about many of them by the
books that criticized them, which represented the views of the
prevailing religious establishment and were naturally allowed
to survive. We know of the doubters during the Inquisition by
the records of the Inquisition itself, as they were trying and
often torturing these people. The actual writing of the
doubters of that time have been lost or destroyed. The book taught me a lot. It gave me more than just a history
of doubt. It gave me a brief history of the growth and
evolution of philosophy in many major world cultures.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: Ms. Hecht takes on a very complex subject, and manages to handle,with poise & dignity, a debate that has raged since the dawn of written time.
She has shown me how 'doubt' like a religion, comes in many flavors. Its history is just as long and filled with its own share of martyrs and saints. All the while, Ms. Hecht artfully clued me into a need for that which is not wholly understood.
While not exactly a page turner, I found myself wanting to read often but in small 'bites', I found this book to be deeply informative without feeling like a textbook. The subject matter is unavoidably deep, but is written as it should be read. With patience and clarity.
Rating:
Summary: Great Resource - Reference Book
Review: This book has given me greater strength to stand tall as a Doubter. Living in the Deep South, it is hard to move in circles, much less be accepted, when a Doubter. I am grateful to have found Ms. Hecht's book.
Numerous times I have come back to "Doubt" in order to finish or flesh out an idea for a paper in my philosophy or ethics class. The book has also been a springboard for diving into other titles in the subject. I look forward to reading it again.
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