There is no ‘required reading’ in order to identify yourself as a Humanist, but we often hear from people that they would like to learn more about this philosophy of life. The following are a few resources that allow you to find out more about the history of Humanism, famous Humanists and Humanism in popular culture…

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The British Humanist Association offers a simple guide:

The Really Simple Guide to Humanism

Free courses in Humanism are offered by the Humanist Institute at:

http://cohe.humanistinstitute.org/free-courses

Find out how to celebrate Humanism on World Humanist Day:

http://iheu.org/humanism/world-humanist-day/

You are in good company –  have a look at this list of famous Humanists:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_secular_humanists

Stay informed by reading this Canadian Humanist magazine:

http://www.humanistperspectives.org

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Further Reading

• The Philosophy of Humanism – Corliss Lamont

• Good without God, what a billion non-religious people do believe
  – by Greg Epstein,

• Humanism: A Very Short Introduction – Stephen Law

• Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism – Susan Jacoby

• Making the Manifesto – William Schulz

• The Good Book: A Humanist Bible – A.C. Grayling

• Parenting Beyond Belief – Dale McGowan

• The Magic of Reality – Richard Dawkins

• Letter to a Christian Nation – Sam Harris

• Why I Am Not a Christian –  Bertrand Russell

• Why are You Atheists So Angry? – Greta Christina

• Comforting Thoughts about Death that have Nothing to do with God
  – Greta Christina

• The Quest for a Moral Compass: A Global History of Ethics
  – Kenan Malik

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Humanism in Popular Culture

The following are a collection of films, television shows, books and authors that may appeal to Humanists. They may not be aimed specifically at Humanists, but they embrace a Humanist mindset.

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Movies

• American Beauty (1999)

• Inherit the Wind (1960)

• Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979)

• Cosmos with Carl Sagan (1980)

• Little Buddha (1993)

• The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

• The Crucible (1996)

• Chocolat (2000)

• Jesus Camp (2006)

• The Invention of Lying (2009)

• Agora (2009)

• Creation (2009)

• The Nature of Existence (2010)

• The Grey (2012)

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TV Shows

• Star Trek

• Firefly

• The Wire

• The Mentalist

• QI

• Doctor Who

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Literature

• Candide – Voltaire

• Sirens of the Titan – Kurt Vonnegut

• The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood

• 1984 – George Orwell

• Peaches for Monsieur le Cure – Joanne Harris

• Letters from the Earth – Mark Twain

• The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams

• Brave New World – Aldous Huxley

• The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam

• The Elegance of the Hedgehog – Muriel Barbery

• His Dark Materials Trilogy – Phillip Pullman

• Good Omens – Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

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