A fun though slight autobiography of Herb Silverman, mathematician and prominent American atheist. Silverman recounts his Jewish upbringing, his career as a mathematics professor, and his late conversion from an apathetic to activist voice for atheism.

Some of the most entertaining parts of the book involve his upbringing in a Jewish family, one which frowned on too much fraternization with gentiles and which certainly would not condone marriage outside the faith. Silverman ended up disappointing his parents on both counts. Though nothing particualry profound happened to him as he grew up in his average blue collar jewish family, he developed an above average interest in both mathematics and in gently, but humorously challenging the norms he was expected to adhere too. Even as he entered academia he refused to conform too much, although he did it with such good grace and humor those he challenged couldn’t bring themselves to sever their relationships with him.

He realized at a very early age he was an atheist. Like many who begin digging into the faith in which they were raised, Silverman soon realized what he was being taught did not hold up when subjected to the scrutiny of reason. However, while he enjoyed his non-conformity on other areas, he maintained a kind of apathetic atheism, neither hiding it nor wearing it on his sleeve. It wasn’t until he had landed at the institution where he would spend most of his academic career – The College of Charleston – that he began to rebel against some of the institutional prejudice that existed against non-believers.

In 1990 he was persuaded to run for Governor of South Carolina primarily as a protest against a state law that prohibited anyone from holding public office who did not profess belief in a supreme being. Despite being clearly unconstitutional, violating both article 6 and the 1st amendment, no Republican politicians in the state, including Governor Caroll Campbell, would speak against it. On the contrary, they defended the law. Eventually, due to unethical political pressure Silverman was removed from the ballot before his challenge made it to court. By the time it did the court refused to rule arguing he no longer had standing.There was one more office he could pursue however.

The law preventing non-believers from holding public office also included Notary Publics, applications for which were routinely approved. Silverman paid his $25 expecting the state to tacitly admit the law was unconstitutional by approving his application. When Governor Campbell rejected the application, Silverman with the help of the ACLU eventually got the law declared unconstitutional by the state Supreme Court and the law was invalidated.

From that time forward Silverman increased his activism, eventually speaking on the subject, debating prominent theists, and helping to form the Secular Coalition for America.

What is fascinating about Silverman is that he seems to have a way to disarm those who disagree with him, with his humor and his genuine interest in the views of others. He is not afraid to disagree, but he is never disagreeable which I think increases the persuasiveness of his message.

The book is not perfect. He seems to take great pleasure in discussing every aspect of his sex life, which started slow but eventually picked up steam. A little too much discussion for my taste. Though his recollections of the many debates he has engaged in are very entertaining I find it a bit hard to believe he outclassed his opponents as much as he describes. In fact I watched a couple of these and though he is certainly most persuasive on the facts, his debating style was sometimes not up to the challenge. And near the end it devolves from autobiography to lesson plan, first on how to deal with non-believers, and then on the beauty of mathematics (interesting but out of place).

Overall a very easy and entertaining read…definitely recommended. ( )

This is an autobiographical tale of a Jewish atheist in a very theistic state. He ran for governor specifically to challenge the provision in the South Carolina State Constitution that required all office holders to be Christians. He won, too!-- well, he won the challenge, he did not win the election.

The substance of the book comes from the interplay between the religious and non-religious aspects of life in some states. I was much more comfortable with his views on the world than the views expressed by his questioners. I found his description of South Carolina to be quite foreign, compared to the parts of the United States where I have lived.

The e-book itself has an unusual format, in that it asks questions at the end of each chapter - not comprehension questions, like a test, but more an attempt to start a conversation by asking whether you, the reader, have ever encountered similar situations. I never did answer the questions.

The theme running through the book is one of tolerance - for Christian religious and for humanist - atheist, for Jewish culture and non-Jews, and even a bit for mathematicians and non-mathematicians. It was an easy, interesting read - I give it 4 stars. ( )

Anybody who thinks atheists are immoral monsters should read this book. The author, Herb Silverman, is a good guy, a professor of mathematics, and, by the way, an atheist.

SIlverman's autobiography starts in Philadelphia and tells how he ended up in, of all places for a secular Jew, South Carolina. I particularly like his accounts of running for governor and applying to be a notary public, both activities which were banned to atheists in South Carolina (he became a notary but not governor). He must have a pretty good temper and sense of humor to thrive in such an environment.

Other interesting items in the book are the author's involvement in secular organizations and his role in the founding of the Secular Coalition of America.

His summaries of his debates with various theists are well done and I am so stealing his talking points -- he makes his points in a very concise, effective way. ( )

This is a fairly interesting account of the life of a mathematician going against the grain by running for office in the bible belt while atheist. Although it could have been shortened, many of the childhood stories were cute. I would have appreciated more details on the running for office part myself, although that section was very interesting. Give it a good edit and you will have a very solid book. ( )

From a young age Herb Silverman was a freethinker waiting to happen. Being raised by an overprotective mother and an indifferent father, it was only a matter of time before he developed his own critical view of the world. His upbringing certainly helped shape his lifelong pursuit of logic and mathematics. I would describe Herb as someone I would share a beer with, but not an apartment. He's an eccentric man who was lucky enough to find a wife who compliments his quirkiness.

I've read quite a bit on arguing against religious belief, and this book is similar in many ways because much of it is devoted to introducing atheism to a reader who is "on the fence" regarding belief while persuading them away from supernatural thinking. Too often though these books read like textbooks and they all start sounding the same. Candidate Without A Prayer sets itself apart because Herb crafts the conventional arguments in the framework of his autobiography. Some highlights are when he attends a twelve-week Bible study class and ends up teaching as much as he learns, writing a joint newspaper column with a former religion news editor where they both set aside their differences and craft an inspiring piece on the views they have in common, and his critical essay on the hypocrisy of the Catholic Church where he makes a mostly-tongue-in-cheek case for why he should be elected the next Pope.

Herb Silverman's greatest strength is his willingness, even eagerness, to engage those who disagree with him. He may not always change his mind, but one can tell he's genuinely listening. ( )