"The God Delusion"

-by richard dawkins
2006
Dawkins, an ethologist and biologist, was Oxford's professor for public understanding of science from 1995-2008. The most succinct measure of his brilliance is that this towering tome isn't even his best work ("The Selfish Gene" or "The Ancestor's Tale" claim that honor, perhaps). The "world's preeminent atheist" lays out the myriad reasons why religious faith is untenable, as it is simultaneously a war against most of humanity, and the very notion of free, unbiased knowledge itself (to say nothing of the human self-loathing at the core). He walks though every defense of faith, from psychological to sociological, and dismantles each one. Nor does he leave the de-pantsed believer nothing to live for, as he demonstrates that human-based morality and universal wonder can match or outdo any godly wonders. He answers every critique of atheism, and delves into the origins and psychology of religion. He offers not condescension, but compassion. His writing flows from logic to science to personal stories both tragic and hysterical.
And the second-most succinct measure of his brilliance?
He has a ship named for him in Star Trek.