Letters to a Young Contrarian (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "The ensuing pages represent my tentative acceptance of a challenge that was made to me in the early months of the year 2000..." (more)
Key Phrases: First World War, Bertrand Russell, George Orwell (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"Do justice, and let the skies fall." Christopher Hitchens borrows from Roman antiquity this touchstone for a career of confrontation, argument, and troublemaking. Part of the Art of Mentoring series, Letters to a Young Contrarian is a trim volume of about two dozen letters to an imaginary student of controversy. The letters are wonderfully engaging--Hitchens is an exceptional prose stylist--and from the outset they strike a self-reflective note. What Hitchens lionizes and illuminates in this book is not any particular disagreement, but a way of being perpetually at odds with the mainstream. "Humanity is very much in debt to such people," he argues.

Hitchens's style is incendiary and sometimes flamboyant. He relishes the role of provocateur and fancies himself a gadfly to the drowsy American republic. One of his main strengths is his erudition, allowing him to range over vast landscapes of the humanities and politics in a single breath. But he is also sometimes glib and self-satisfied, and his penchant for referencing everything in sight can be distracting. Nonetheless, his arguments are forceful and morally important--and if the reader feels otherwise, there are few more fitting compliments to a professional dissident than dissent. --Eric de Place

From Publishers Weekly

Hitchens, a columnist for the Nation and Vanity Fair, and author, most recently, of The Trial of Henry Kissinger, has made a career of disagreement and dissent, of being the thorn in search of a side. "Only an open conflict of ideas and principles can produce any clarity," he observes. Hitchens's views, also part of the Art of Mentoring series (see Dershowitz, above), unfold in the form of an ongoing correspondence with an imaginary mentee whom he advises on modes of thought, argument and self-determination, on how to "live at an angle to the safety and mediocrity of consensus." The threats to free will are many, some predictable: establishment powers, the media, religious edicts, the manipulation of language, polls, labels, people with answers. Less obvious corrosives: the Dalai Lama, harmony, the New York Times claim to publish "all the news that's fit to print" ("conceited" and "censorious"). Indeed, the supply of enemies to rail against seems endless. Over a short span, Hitchens sounds off on a variety of topics irony, radicalism, anarchy, socialism, solitude, faith and humor, to name a few propelling readers through both time and space, from the Bible to Bosnia. At times, the argumentative positions seem offered up for their own sake which the author argues is justified and may inadvertently raise the question of how far we can define ourselves by what we are not. But this mini-manifesto, despite the somewhat mountainous terrain, should provide readers interested in current events and anti-establishment philosophy with a clearer view into one of today's more restless and provocative minds. (Oct.) Forecast: Basic figures there are as many budding contrarians out there as there are budding lawyers. The house is launching the new Art of Mentoring series with a 75,000-copy first printing of both books. With good media coverage (both authors will tour), Dershowitz's name and Hitchens's prickly reputation, both books should do well.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 226 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; 5th edition (October 16, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465030327
• ISBN-13: 978-0465030323
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #235,282 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Education in Itself. , April 16, 2005

By	Bernard Chapin "Ora Et Labora!" (CHICAGO! USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

It's easy to forget sometimes, based on the flair and panache he exudes on the television screen, just how educated Christopher Hitchens actually is. In this book, you'll be treated to a lifetime's worth of insight and scholarship as he provides the reader with some of the best citations you'll ever come across, including, "Here I stand I can do no other" by Martin Luther.

Hitchens is a contrarian but these Letters will appeal to anyone as they are the celebration of the mind via reason. When he first heard "the personal is political," he knew it was poison and he rails against the emotional approach to deciding issues in these pages. I am very glad he did. I couldn't help but think what I've thought about him so many times, "This is such a brave man."

Regardless of what one believes regarding his arguments and positions, the author always puts forth sound rationale for why he thinks the way he does. His critique of conformists is absolutely precious and I would be only too happy to give this book to any young person. It's an education in itself.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless Advice - Not for the Fair Weather Patriot, January 29, 2008

By	Stephen Williams "Stephen Williams" (Hawthorne, California) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Letters to a Young Contrarian (Art of Mentoring) (Paperback)

This is a simple and elegant series of letters written to a hypothetical student. Only a cynical could fail to admire and value Christopher Hitchens' "Letters to a Young Contrarian". This short book contains all the advice a student of twenty first century society should want or need. We get a marvelously unadulterated dose of the author's hortative aesthetics. Every letter is marked with a characteristic polish that creates a pedagogical elegance.

The book is written as a series of letters which are timely and timeless.

I bought this book as a gift for a young writer and journalist. I read it before giving it as a gift. I am very pleased with it as a gift and hope that the advice falls on fertile soil. I am also very pleased with the book as advice for my own personal causes.

These letters continue to be a priceless source of insight and wisdom as the student continues to evolve as an activist. We can all see ourselves in these wonderful words and we can witness what we aspire to be.

These letters fill the reader with hope. There is hope that society can evolve to a rational enlightenment. Hope is alive and we are not doomed to repeat all the follies of history.

What impressed me so much was the incredible precision and care in each of the letters. The commitment to explore the unconventional and contrary positions is a commitment to personal integrity. This commitment is a social contract that is a prerequisite to democracy and to civilization.

The author's choice of examples and counter examples clearly illustrate his intention to inspire the next generation of social thinkers.

I highly recommend this book to every person who wants to become an agent of change. It will probably be more useful to aspiring journalists, scientists, mathematicians and writers. People who simply enjoy the wonder of reasoned inquiry will delight in the book also.

The advice can hardly be paraphrased with any justice to the subject in a short review. For the most part, the author be gives advice about being eternally vigilant and persistent in the face of unrelenting opposition. There is no limit to human anti-intellectualism so there must be no limit to reason. Patiently embrace the struggle and make it your own. Understand that the sources of irrationality and prejudice are petty, private, archaic and primeval urges.

All of these things he discusses with incredible wisdom and lucidity. The author centers, assures and illuminates the student.

What a delight this book turned out to be. Buy a copy of this book for every young person you care about. They can read it again and again to gain insight and create a purposeful life. Some young people will cynically dismiss the relevance of the message, but no one who reads it can miss the message. Life on autopilot, accepting standards and norms without reason, is to life without human purpose.

Even the most cynical alive person can give pause to enjoy this wonderful collection of sweepingly thought provoking letters.

The author says to "Do justice, and let the skies fall." This leads to a calling of confrontation, argument, and troublemaking. The author advocates a life of being perpetually at odds with the mainstream. "Humanity is very much in debt to such people."

I highly recommend this book.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless Advice - Not for the Fair Weather Patriot, November 19, 2007

By	Stephen Williams "Stephen Williams" (Hawthorne, California) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Letters to a Young Contrarian (Hardcover)

This is a simple and elegant series of letters written to a hypothetical student. Only a cynical could fail to admire and value Christopher Hitchens' "Letters to a Young Contrarian". This short book contains all the advice a student of twenty first century society should want or need. We get a marvelously unadulterated dose of the author's hortative aesthetics. Every letter is marked with a characteristic polish that creates a pedagogical elegance.

The book is written as a series of letters which are timely and timeless.

I bought this book as a gift for a young writer and journalist. I read it before giving it as a gift. I am very pleased with it as a gift and hope that the advice falls on fertile soil. I am also very pleased with the book as advice for my own personal causes.

These letters continue to be a priceless source of insight and wisdom as the student continues to evolve as an activist. We can all see ourselves in these wonderful words and we can witness what we aspire to be.

These letters fill the reader with hope. There is hope that society can evolve to a rational enlightenment. Hope is alive and we are not doomed to repeat all the follies of history.

What impressed me so much was the incredible precision and care in each of the letters. The commitment to explore the unconventional and contrary positions is a commitment to personal integrity. This commitment is a social contract that is prerequisite to democracy and to civilization.

The author's choice of examples and counter examples clearly illustrate his intention to inspire the next generation of social thinkers.

I highly recommend this book to every person who wants to become an agent of change. It will probably be more useful to aspiring journalists, scientists, mathematicians and writers. People who simply enjoy the wonder of reasoned inquiry will delight in the book also.

The advice can hardly be paraphrased with any justice to the subject in a short review. For the most part, the author be gives advice about being eternally vigilant and persistent in the face of unrelenting opposition. There is no limit to human anti-intellectualism so there must be no limit to reason. Patiently embrace the struggle and make it your own. Understand that the sources of irrationality and prejudice are petty, private, archaic and primeval urges.

All of these things he discusses with incredible wisdom and lucidity. The author centers, assures and illuminates the student.

What a delight this book turned out to be. Buy a copy of this book for every young person you care about. They can read it again and again to gain insight and create a purposeful life. Some young people will cynically dismiss the relevance of the message, but no one who reads it can miss the message. Life on autopilot, accepting standards and norms without reason, is to life without human purpose.

Even the most cynical alive person can give pause to enjoy this wonderful collection of sweepingly thought provoking letters.

The author says to "Do justice, and let the skies fall." This leads to a calling of confrontation, argument, and troublemaking. The author advocates a life of being perpetually at odds with the mainstream. "Humanity is very much in debt to such people."

I highly recommend this book.