Skipping Towards Gomorrah: The Seven Deadly Sins and the Pursuit of Happiness in America is a non-fiction book by Dan Savage, first published in 2002 by Dutton. The book examines the concept of happiness in American culture, as obtained by indulging in each of the Seven Deadly Sins.

Skipping Towards Gomorrah was selected for inclusion in The Best American Sex Writing 2004, Skipping Towards Gomorrah examines the concept of happiness in American culture, as obtained by indulging in each of the Seven Deadly Sins. In each chapter, Savage explores a different subculture in an attempt to understand how its participants gain happiness, and contrasts this with religious conservatism. Regarding his experience of gambling, Savage notes, "You know the only thing worse than losing big the first time you go into a casino? Winning big." Savage writes, "The truly revolutionary promise of our nation's founding document is the freedom to pursue happiness-with-a-capital-H". The author asserts he is pointing out hypocritical behavior in the book, "Young people have finely tuned bullshit detectors, and nothing annoys people more than adult hypocrisy".

Publication history

The book was first published by Dutton in 2002 in hardcover format. A subsequent edition was published by Plume, in 2003 in paperback format. Savage appeared on The O'Reilly Factor as part of the marketing for the book, and supported sex education.

Reception

Skipping Towards Gomorrah was selected for inclusion in The Best American Sex Writing 2004, and won a 2003 Lambda Literary Award in the humor category. A review of the book in Publishers Weekly was positive and the review concluded, "On the whole, however, Savage hits the mark and gives advocates of personal and sexual liberty the hippest, sassiest voice they've had in a long time." A review in Library Journal noted, "His real strength is in blending pungent social commentary with the personal narrative. At least one of these pieces will undoubtedly land in an anthology for future students of the essay." Kirkus Reviews wrote, "Common sense is Savage’s strong suit, and he makes more of it than a preening moralist ever could." Kelly Darrah of The Gonzaga Bulletin noted, "'Skipping' does a powerful job of taking a raw look at the embarrassing facets of our society that we often will ourselves not to see. Savage forces us to reexamine what we've been taught about morality and what constitutes an 'ethical' decision."

A review by Flagpole Magazine writer Jyl Inov concluded, "This book wanders. It talks more about some sins than others and often takes a long time to get to a particular point. But in the end, it is wildly amusing and makes a lot of sense. Skipping Towards Gomorrah is not going to make converts of conservatives, but if they are willing to read, it just might make them think. As for everybody else, it is reaffirming and potentially motivating." In his book Reordered Love, Reordered Lives: Learning the Deep Meaning of Happiness, author David K. Naugle commented, "This book is an irreverent attack on the 'virtuecrats' who hypocritically impose their moral values on others."

See also

  • Savage Love: Straight Answers from America's Most Popular Sex Columnist

References

Further reading

;Book reviews

  • Labyrinth Library 69: Skipping Towards Gomorrah, Internet Archive
  • Excerpt from book, The Portland Mercury
  • Well Endowed, excerpt, at The Stranger