The Fourth R: Conflicts Over Religion in America's Public Schools

For me, the biggest eye-opener from reading this book was just how different the beliefs are, even within different Christian denominations -- even concerning something as seemingly innocent as prayer. The history of the violence between denominations in America was eye-opening, too. It made me realize that while it's nice to have the whole "God is good, God is great" thing reiterated at school, there's no way I would want my son's religious understanding influenced by the theology of whichever public school teacher he happened to be assigned to that year. A religious education is something to be provided at home and at church, not at school. (Unless you'd like to specifically send your child to a religious school, which is your choice.) This book really made me understand why this is so important, and I fear my review doesn't do it nearly justice enough.