About the Author

Lewis Black is the hugely popular and New York Times bestselling author, stand-up comedian, actor, and playwright. Besides appearing regularly on The Daily Show (in his own segment, "Back in Black"), he has written and starred in a string of successful HBO and ComedyCentral specials and one-man Broadway shows. He's won a Grammy, an Emmy, and an American Comedy Award. Born near Washington, D.C., Black graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and has a master's degree from the Yale School of Drama.

Reviews

"The only person I know who can actually yell in print form."
—Jon Stewart

"The most engagingly pissed-off comedian ever."
—Stephen King

"Surprisingly thoughtful."
—The Washington Post

"You'll laugh while he's yelling."
—MSNBC.com

"Black throws humorous barbs at televangelism, the Mormon Church, and the Jewish faith in which he was raised."
—Entertainment Weekly

"The only person I know who can actually yell in print form."
-Jon Stewart

"The most engagingly pissed-off comedian ever."
-Stephen King

"Surprisingly thoughtful."
-The Washington Post

"You'll laugh while he's yelling."
-MSNBC.com

"Black throws humorous barbs at televangelism, the Mormon Church, and the Jewish faith in which he was raised."
-Entertainment Weekly

Readers already familiar with Black as a loud-mouthed regular on The Daily Show will be delighted to find he rants just as well on the page as he does in person. Here, he homes in on religion, which he thinks is taken too seriously and therefore is "open to ridicule." Black may not care a whit about propriety, but he's serious about waxing comedic about every religion-related angle he can dig up. No one is safe from his dark humor--the Catholic Church, Mormons, people who commit suicide in the name of faith, Jews, and of course Jesus and God are popular topics. Black's essays consistently deliver zingers, like his speculation in "The Rapture" about how, "If Jesus returns to earth... he better have one hell of a website," since he'd have to compete with all the "drug-addled young starlets"--not to mention online porn. For those not easily offended, who can stomach the F-word every other paragraph or so, Black's irreverence is laugh-out-loud funny. The chapters are short, some extremely so, and perfect for a good laugh--before bedtime prayers, of course. (June 3) Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.