Review by Abacus -- Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Be...

[Abacus]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe In" by Harold Toliver.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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In Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe in Toliver writes about illusion versus reality present in philosophy, science, and literature. He compares the natural continuum agreed to be the last 13.8 billion years for incompatible beliefs that intensify nationalism and supplement terrorist movements. He says: “I’m not concerned with everything that runs counter to natural history, merely our vulnerability to misconceptions that propose quite different universes in the interests of self-identified ethnic groups and nations.” Toliver believes we need to identify harmful myths and partisanship of blind faith. Here! Here! It seems to me that the author includes many more examples than those needed to support the above goal.

Toliver cites many examples of fraudulent assumptions; it feels overwhelming. I feel a little like a child who questions whether Santa Claus is real; the belief is so comforting, the questioning so without reward. Our present politics in America is an excellent example; half the nation has a completely diverse set of beliefs and truths than the other half. Even our Supreme Court interprets the constitution with a 4/5 vote, how can that be? Toliver highlights the US constitution as being half fiction. All men are created equal, but they are only equal before the law. Expert witnesses in a court case will hold opposing truths, and both cannot be right; hopefully, one can be. Propaganda is another tool of illusion which does not go away. A bare-faced lie often told will be believed by many.

I respect that this is Toliver’s subject, and like the way he can quote a multitude of other authors to help us understand his thesis. His ability to quote the literature is exceptional. However, it is also an overload of information that he can site so many examples. That is my unreadiness rather than a critique of the author's scholarship. So perhaps this timely book will afford discussions that we can assimilate and from which we can learn. Thus, helping the people of planet earth to be more objective and peaceful. It is harmful to us to continue thinking that non-believers of our beliefs are abominations, (or more recently, a basket of deplorables), or infidels, or dragons, or serpents, or monsters.

The writing style is delightful, and the author's use of words is witty and provocative. He maintains that casual talk or gossip as perhaps might happen at the dinner table is a prime example of misinformation, it mixes opinion, fact, gossip, humor, and then he suggests that such casual talk competes well with “podium and pulpit," and we instantly follow his comparisons. He even highlights the US constitution as being half fiction, all men are created equal, but they are only equal before the law. I have held off from believing in the Big Bang for the last sixty years as the idea seemed so preposterous; but after reading Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe in, I must accept that truth.

I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars for its extensive research, extensive application of examples, and the large bite it takes of indigestible material. I do not rate it 3 out of 4 stars because it is brilliantly drafted, professionally edited and authentic. I found no errors. I recommend the book to scholars, politicians, historians, scientists, philosophers, the legal profession, and curious people everywhere. It would be unsuitable for people who prefer light reading.

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Mythic Worlds and the One You Can Believe In
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[Tehreem_Khan]

This is a beautiful review.
This book demands active engagement from the reader, as there's a very high chance of getting zoned out while flying through the text. To me, it felt like a research thesis for which I wasn't quite ready when I started reading it, although I had an idea about what I was getting in to.

[Bigwig1973]

You wrote a comprehensive and accurate review on this book! I thought it was hard to read, although I can't quite place my finger on why I thought it was difficult. This is a book I will likely read several times over as the more knowledge I have regarding the references he makes will probably make reading it easier and quite enjoyable! Nice review!