"A genial exercise in public philosophy" (Kirkus, starred review) from one of the world's best-known popular philosophers
"Simon Critchley is an international treasureâ"that rare and real philosopher who embraces Rousseauâs âfeeling of existence,â David Bowieâs vision of love, and Philip K. Dickâs genius with genuine wrestling and a soulful smile!âââ"Cornel West, Harvard University
The moderator of the New York Timesâ Stone column and the author of numerous books on everything from Greek tragedy to David Bowie, Simon Critchley has been a strong voice in popular philosophy for more than a decade. This volume brings together thirty-five essays, originally published in the Times, on a wide range of topics, from the dimensions of Platoâs academy and the mysteries of Eleusis to Philip K. Dick, Mormonism, money, and the joy and pain of Liverpool Football Club fans. In an engaging and jargonâ'free style, Critchley writes with honesty about the state of world as he offers philosophically informed and insightful considerations of happiness, violence, and faith.
Stripped of inaccessible academic armatures, these short pieces bring philosophy out of the ivory tower and demonstrate an exciting new way to think in public.
Industry Reviews
"Would Montaigne have approved of the current vogue for "personal essay-writing"?...Assuredly he would have, for the French philosopher was the original blogger par excellence...He would also surely have approved of the English philosopher Simon Critchley, whose direct style, wisdom and wit, is on show in his latest book Bald: 35 Philosophical Short Cuts."-Alastair Benn, Reaction
"If Critchley's aim is to inflame readers' philosophical eros through persuasive rhetoric, then this excellent collection is certainly a success."-Sky C. Cleary, Times Literary Supplement
"Simon Critchley is an international treasure-that rare and real philosopher who embraces Rousseau's 'feeling of existence,' David Bowie's vision of love, and Philip K. Dick's genius with genuine wrestling and a soulful smile! He enacts the truth in skepticism and the power of compassion without paralysis or illusion.''-Cornel West, Harvard University
"What is philosophy? An endless succession of puzzles and parables? An attempt to understand ourselves, our language, the world around us? Simon Critchley shows us that the answer is all of the above. Indeed, we might think of philosophy as the inexorable study of unanswerable questions. Bald offers an incredibly enjoyable and endlessly fascinating excursion. It's turtles all the way down."-Errol Morris
"Wise and funny; Critchley covers a remarkable range of topics from Plato to football, Hamlet to religion, Dostoevsky to God. A book to immerse yourself in, or dip in and savour."-David Edmonds, author of The Murder of Professor Schlick
"Mixing profundity with irony and sometimes hilarity, these essays are invariably well written and intelligently observed; bald and bold."-Richard Kearney, Boston College
