Jamie Condliffe, contributor
FORGIVE me, reader, for I have sinned: I overslept, argued, and stuffed my face with food.
The
concept of sin is so ingrained in our culture that it is difficult for
most people, myself included, to go a day without indulging in one of
the seven deadliest. But in The Joy of Sin, Simon Laham aims to
convince us that, contrary to what folklore, Christianity or even
Hollywood may tell us, activities often branded sinful may in fact be
good for us.
His evidence draws largely on experimental
psychology, and it is clear that Laham has an impressive understanding
of the material. In particular, he has a knack for describing complex
social science with great lucidity. His writing is witty, edgy, itself
almost sinfully provocative at times, promoting the occasional wince
and, more frequently, an approving chuckle.
The only
problem is that sometimes you feel his case studies have been
shoehorned in. While some chapters provide a convincing argument,
leaving you in little doubt that a small dose of anger or greed is good
for you, others read like a round-up of research loosely related to the
sin under discussion, and end up providing no firm conclusions. Laham
certainly encourages us to reject a simplistic approach to sin - but at
times, just a little too much is left to the reader.
Ultimately,
this struggle to convince isn't a function of any sloth on Laham's
part; rather, it's the result of the need for the content to fit the
title.
Fortunately, even if such ambition makes for a
slightly dissatisfying read at times, the enviably good writing and
thorough research make this book difficult to dislike.
http://www.newscientist.com/
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