Letters to a Young Contrarian

Christopher Hitchens

Apr 2009 · Sold by Basic Books

About this ebook

From bestselling author and provocateur Christopher Hitchens, the classic guide to the art of principled dissent and disagreement

In Letters to a Young Contrarian, bestselling author and world-class provocateur Christopher Hitchens inspires the radicals, gadflies, mavericks, rebels, and angry young (wo)men of tomorrow. Exploring the entire range of "contrary positions"—from noble dissident to gratuitous nag—Hitchens introduces the next generation to the minds and the misfits who influenced him, invoking such mentors as Emile Zola, Rosa Parks, and George Orwell. As is his trademark, Hitchens pointedly pitches himself in contrast to stagnant attitudes across the ideological spectrum. No other writer has matched Hitchens's understanding of the importance of disagreement—to personal integrity, to informed discussion, to true progress, to democracy itself.

Ratings and reviews

Hitchens advises having the courage to speak, regardless of how other may think of you. The ballast of courage is fear, and I must think a seasoned 'Contrarian' such as Hitchens bears less fear simply because of his sheer depth of knowledge. His reader, the rebel apprentice, by definition should be less read and of less experience, and thereby needing such encouragement to speak, or rather, to go study study the facts so that one can speak out. Hitchens definitely makes it look easy. I saw a comment describing Hitchens as pedantic in this book; although the book was filled with words and references that I did not recognize, I do not believe Hitchens was putting on a display of his knowledge. I believe he was being succinct. Naturally this made the book a slow read for me, albeit a worthy one. Fortunately, reading it as an eBook in a browser made it possible to more easily lookup word definitions and various references. I would recommend this book.

Typical Hitchens: Requires academic fluff to sound deep. The book's riddled with verbiage because Hitchens apparently never grew beyond the institution; It's written like a Thesis where he uses antiquated language when it's not even remotely necessary but simply to stretch out the word count: He's trying to sound deep to his audience. He's not. This book reminds me of grad school where everything drags on and on because you're listening to the ramblings of a cerebral narcissist. Pick up the sample text and read it. The entire book is like that.

In his traditional style, Hitchens lays out, in a surprisingly intimate way, what it means to "think outside the box." A lot of the points he makes go against conventional wisdom, and intentionally so, but even if you do not agree with everything he says, he makes you think about your positions a little bit harder (which is actually one of the points he makes). Like most of his other works, Hitchens makes a lot of references, especially in literature, that may seem overwhelming to any reader, but Hitchens usually finds a way, even if you find yourself lost mid-letter, to make it all come together. This book is definitely a worthy read for any thinking mind.

About the author

Christopher Hitchens (1949-2011) was a prolific author, columnist, editor, and book critic, writing on issues ranging from politics, to religion, to the nature of debate itself. He was a regular contributor to the Atlantic Monthly, Vanity Fair, Slate, Harper's, and numerous other publications, as well as the recipient of the Lannan Literary Award for Nonfiction and the National Magazine Award. Hitchen's 2007 manifesto God Is Not Great was a #1 New York Times bestseller and National Book Award nominee.