"Godless," a 2004 National Book Award winner written by Pete Hautman, tells the story of a fateful summer in the life of teenager Jason Bock. Fed up by his parents (a mother who believes any slight illness could mean impending death and a father who is a straitlaced lawyer) and their constant pushing of their Catholic religion, Jason, in a crisis of faith, decides to create his own religion: Chutengodianism. At the root of this new religion is the worship of the "10-Legged-One," which in reality is the town's monolithic water tower. Jason recruits several members for his church: his best friend Shin, a science geek who may be too easily persuaded; Dan, a local pastor's son; Magda, the town hottie; and Henry, a some-time bully that Jason both fears and admires. As the teenagers become more involved with the new religion and their parents become aware of their possible turn from God, events occur that will ensure this is a summer they will never forget.

A thought-provoking dark comedy about a teenage boy who decides to invent his own religion involving worshipping water towers. Although the "religion" is not taken seriously by Jason, the main character, it soon escalates into something he didn't intend as others join the group. The book could be interesting to raise questions about faith and belief in a classroom setting. I kind of disliked Jason by the end, because he didn't seem to have a real guiding moral compass--he just did what he felt like in the moment. Sometimes we worried about other people, but mostly he just worried about himself.

The book could be read as anti-religion, but at the end Jason says, "I envy everyone who has a religion they can believe in." It really comes down to the fact that faith is complicated concept.

"You can't really understand something until you believe in it."

Terecht dat dit boek na 20 jaar in Nederlandse vertaling is verschenen. Intrigerend plot over een onderwerp waar je niet zo gauw een jongerenroman over leest; het beginnen van een eigen religie. Vlot geschreven (en vertaald), met fijne humor. Je vraagt je lang af waar dit allemaal toe gaat leiden. De twijfels van de hoofdpersoon aan de wereld zijn invoelbaar, en ook kwesties als ergens bij willen horen, eigenlijk niet durven, verliefdheid, en de gevolgen van een grap niet kunnen overzien zijn herkenbaar. Uiteindelijk heeft iedereen zijn eigen waarheid want 'je kunt iets pas begrijpen als je erin gelooft'. Hopelijk worden er meer van zijn boeken (her)uitgegeven.

felt like this was very clearly written by a man with an incel-like atttitude. the one woman he writes about doesn’t have much dialogue besides widening her eyes and having big boobs. to the end of the book, the protagonist is upset that she dates another character and the protagonist’s violent behavior in reaction to that seems to be rewarded? not impressed

In the book titled "Godless" that was written by Pete Hautman, you get a look into the teenage mind and the trouble of understanding who you are and who you believe in. Jason Bock decides he isn't going to be a Catholic anymore, he doesn't believe there is any one true religion anyways. He makes up a religion called the "Chutengodians" and is even able to recruit followers. Unfortunately his whole fake religious he has created really turns out bad. His best friend ends up becoming obsessed with the "ten legged one" aka their God who just happens to be a water tower. He gets so religious crazy he is almost killed two different times. His other follower, Henry, ends up slipping off of the top of the water tower and falls down about thirty feet and breaks his leg. Realizing how stupid it was to go on top of the water tower, Jason vows to never go up again. They all get into a lot of trouble but it really ends up letting Jason know that, it doesn't matter what religion he chooses to follow, they are all true, it just really depends on what feels right to you. So he is exploring what feels right to him but until then I think that he is going to stay as a "Chatengodian." This story was very creative, unique, and had a lot of humor in it. I think the this book did an awesome job at capturing the creativity that is trapped inside of us all, but especially during that time of adolescents when we all have mega day dreams.

***3.5 Stars*** As someone who identifies as an atheist but who chose to deeply involve herself in church and religion as a young adult, I really appreciated this book. It is rare to come across a book so openly about atheist young adults or young adults working through their religious doubts. I have read many books that delve into religious persecution but not so many that explore atheism as a result of a lack of faith. I think that’s an important viewpoint to represent, especially for kids who may not be exposed to openly atheist or agnostic adults with whom they can converse. The plot itself is not particularly satisfying, but the analysis of religion certainly makes up for it.

It's five stars in a way that it would have been five stars to me as a youngster picking it out on Thursday library night and not wanting to put it down at the end of SSR or to eat supper. Of course, as an adult, I would only read it "professionally" (wink).

Godless by Pete Hautman

‘’I refuse to speak of the Ten-Legged One…but the more I think about it the more I like it. Why mess around with Catholicism when you can have your own customized religion? All you need is a discipline or two… and a god.’’

The day he got punched in the face was the day a new religion was found. Starting with two members, the religion started growing until they made a huge mistake by climbing the water tower. The moment they got caught was the moment he destroyed himself and his friends. Inventing a religion is easier than controlling it.

Jason Bock recruits an unlikely group of worshippers: his snail-farming best friend, Shin, cute-as-a-button Magda Price, and the violent and unpredictable Henry Stagg. While Jason is struggling to keep the faith pure and safe, Shin is obsessed with writing their bible, and Henry plans to make Chutengodianism even more exciting and dangerous.

I liked how the book is actually based on actual events that can happen. It’s also a fast-paced and entertaining book. The way it describes the place, the characters, and the scene makes you feel like you are in the book, next to the characters.

When I read Godless, I noticed that most of the things in the book are connected to real life. This book was about creating a new religion, which I have wanted to try. Creating a new religion is hard, and now at this time, in modern society, It would be impossible to create one.

I would recommend this book to young teenagers, who like to read realistic fiction and fast-paced books. This book is perfect for anyone who is looking for some adventure. Overall It’s an interesting book which makes you want to keep reading because you never know what’s going to happen next.

When I first started to read Godless I was excited and determined, because I thought it would be about something paranormal, or an evil entity trying to murder Jason and his friends, and that they would have to fight it. Instead it wasn’t at all how I planned it. I feel like it was mainly in their imagination. I liked it, because I can relate to Jason when he doesn’t like his parents religion, because when I was younger i didn’t want anything to do with going to church or dealing with any religion. So I liked how I could relate to him, I didn’t like his parents tho. I feel like they were forcing him to be a catholic like them. It’s as if they didn’t want him to be himself or express himself. And his mom was super annoying when she thought that even the slightest thing, meant that something big was wrong with her family. I liked the fact how they decide to worship the water tower instead of God, because that was their choice. I didn’t like how Jason left Shin behind, I mean yes he was scared to go up the tower, but still, that's was his best-friend. You don’t leave someone behind like that. I was hoping to find more action in the book, like some kind of supernatural entity towards the middle, but nothing happened. I would recommend this book to people who would like to read a book about a teenage kid dealing with his parents religion.

Jason Bock faces the possibility of eternal hellfire and brimstone, at least, that's what his friends and family all seem to believe. He is agnostic, bordering on atheist, in a religious family, in a religious town.
Then, struck upon the head (literally) he finds a way to interface with divinity--creating his own religion, devoted to the town water tower. Together with a ragtag group of almost friends, he forms a tongue in cheek cult devoted to The Ten-Legged One. As the religion grows, so do the stakes, and some members take things too far.
I thoroughly enjoyed Godless and its satirical critique of religion. I didn't find myself fully agreeing with every point, but I did relate to it, having been raised religious, and having found my own truth at different times in life.
Godless explores zealotism, the faithful observance of multiple forms of principles, and adolescence in a read as refreshing as swimming in the mind of a demigod water tower.

This book was very clever and thought-provoking without ever crossing over into that territory where I feel like an author is patting himself on the back the whole time he's writing, thinking "I'm SOOO smart to think of this." No, Godless is smart and funny without being arrogant. I enjoyed reading it very much, and it's a book I will recommend to readers as well as writers as being an example of great writing. The author does an amazing job at showing (rather than telling) everything from the characters' social status to their beliefs. It's also a thought-provoking exploration of finding and losing faith. It might make you uncomfortable or make you question your beliefs, but in the best possible way. After all, if you're not willing to question and examine your beliefs, how strong can they be?