Losing My Religions: Memoir, Essays, Photos, and More

“As many reviewers have noted, the book is entertaining, funny, and a page-turner, but it is also a series of well-constructed arguments about what is true and what is important, many of which I have found personally relevant to my life in the month or so since finishing the book.

“As a long-time follower of Ball, I was surprised to find myself learning and being convinced of new things about ethics and about life, and I am even more in awe of his bravery to continue to pursue and speak the truth even when it comes at great personal expense, as the book can attest. Few people have a life so worth reading about and learning from.

“Can't recommend highly enough. Please write a sequel when you lose your next religion.”

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Half Failed = Half NOT FAILED

Just finished reading "Losing My Religions" by Matt Ball and wow, what a ride! This book isn't like anything else I've come across. Ball doesn't shy away from life's big themes - love, war, sex, you name it. But it's not just about the big stuff, he also sprinkles in some personal insights and thoughts that really make you think.

The way he talks about sex is refreshingly honest and respectful, not something you come across often. There's no explicit detail or anything, but he manages to spark a conversation that's often avoided or giggled about. Honestly, it's a perspective that more people need to hear, and Ball delivers it with a sincerity that's palpable.

Despite its unique approach, the book managed to keep me entertained all the way through. It's quirky, it's different, but it's also deeply engaging. If you're looking for something a bit off the beaten path that will make you ponder, give "Losing My Religions" a try. It's an experience that sticks with you. Highly recommended!​

The reason not to be a priest

“I received an ARC from Matt and love what he's written. He weaves a non-stop stream of energy, nostalgia, and purpose into a real yet funny read. Passages like the following are the norm, rather than exception, and keep me laughing and on my toes:

from a big-time journalist, at Amazon:

“Losing My Religions is a memoir/coming of age story, but also one deeply engaged in morality. And not in the boring, telling what you to do way, but in the creative, thinking-it-through on the page way.

“The writing, as cliche as it sounds, is lively and pulls you in -- whether it's about Ball's college years, his discovery of activism for animals, the development of his beliefs around various ethical issues, and more.

“A must-read for anyone interested in the surprisingly good combination of memoir and applied ethics!”

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From Amazon (Australia):

At Amazon, with some deep cultural cuts:

“Seriously. You won't be disappointed. Prepare to time travel through another person's life over various periods of time that you will relive even if you didn't exist in that time and/or in that space! It will take you through many different emotions as you experience Matt's life in a very open and humorous story. Regardless of whether or not you know Matt, now is your chance. He's literally an open book! Sure, he might not be some famous astronaut or teen idol. He might not live in a van down by the river. He may or may not have been duped when served Colombian decaffeinated coffee crystals when he just ordered regular coffee. Live, Laugh, and treat yourself to a fun read! You're guaranteed to experience something and possibly learn some new things!”

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Also at Amazon

“I read your book cover to cover and not only has my admiration for you deepened, but I genuinely loved your writing style and found myself laughing out loud and quite moved and inspired. I particularly enjoyed reading your thoughts on EA/longtermism. 

“The first time I picked it up I intended to just leaf through and read the Animal Asylum bits and then read the full book later – but I just couldn’t put it down. Like nothing I've read before - in the best possible way!” 

From Amazon, a financial guru and Democratic operative:

A Truly Novel Mind, A Truly Pure Heart

“You're in for a treat. This guy is so smart, so eclectic, so well-meaning, so uninhibited. Sample it! This is a book no artificial intelligence could ever have written.”

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“What I most appreciated about Losing My Religions was his connection to his soulmate, Anne Green, and how such connections can transcend the most brutal physical and career calamities. Matt has written what could be a comedy or life advice, but in the end is probably an ode to love.”

“What a fun read! It's the type of book that when you sit down, start getting into it, an hour will go by and your don't even realize it. Highly recommend!”

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“The hard copy of Losing My Religions arrived here in New Jersey yesterday and I am, as those "across the pond" like to say... GOBSMACKED! 

“In addition to carrying my cellphone and my reading glasses, I am now carrying Losing My Religions. I am riveted. For the next 36 hours, I want to curve myself into a comfy chair and read every word, every quote, gaze at every photo...and then read it again.

“I am already so friggin' overwhelmed by the strength and beauty of your writing skills, compelling story, your insights, your queries, your... EVERYTHING. I am shaking my head in humble wonder-amazement.

“I HAD told [my spouse ] that I'd give him my copy in two or three days after I'd finished reading it....but NO WAY!  This hard copy is MINE!”

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“It’s only just after 7am now and I read the first 70 pages. It’s very unusual writing and I have found it efficient in that I couldn’t put it down - even though I repeatedly thought I’d only just read one more page.”

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“I'm halfway through my read of Losing My Religion, and can already say it should be in my library. 

“The author ... has always written and spoken with a distinctive perspective on suffering, animals, and even politics.

“Here in his memoir, he plays with quotes, stories, and a wily, at times even serious irreverence. He lets us into the world of his own joys, realizations, and daily suffering. Family, religion, consciousness, health, life, reality, and everything are given a series of pulsating reflections and staggering vulnerabilities that are hard to put down.

“Read it, but just don't tell his mum.”

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“Matt Ball mixes humor with thoughtful insight on a variety of topics, including challenging relationships, religion, travel, illness, and climate change. This was a fast and entertaining read that still has me thinking. Music lovers will appreciate all of the references to song lyrics, too.”
(Originally posted at Amazon.)

“I finished your book last night.  It was great!  I did a straight-through read because if I stopped to do something else, it felt like I was interrupting you!  There is something about conversationally-written pieces that are a breath of fresh air, and you did an excellent job.  I also love how you sometimes anticipate a reaction in a section and basically explain what the reader might be thinking at that point.”

Can you spot your charming narrator?

“Your writing style is rapidly addictive. I’m having a hard time putting the book down, and I am no bookworm.”

Yes, that's a Mac SE! Anne working on her dissertation, 1992. Love the hat. Too bad it was wool.  :-(

“I am really enjoying the book!  It makes me laugh, want to travel, and most importantly, makes me think! I am looking forward to reading your blog, as well. 

“All three of your books have helped me to be a more relaxed, more accepting, and happier vegan. Thanks for helping me to see that the most important thing is to reduce as much suffering as possible and not to obtain some ideal of vegan perfection.  And thanks for all that you do for the animals!”

“You had me awake until 3:00 a.m....Losing My Religions is THAT compelling!” 

“I found it to be a compelling read, and it struck me mainly as a love letter to Anne despite the many tribulations you went through and describe.”

Yet another of my three fav pictures.

“I love a good memoir and this one did not disappoint. Matt Ball’s writing is entertaining, poignant, and colorful. Highly recommended!”

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“Feels like I’m peering into your head and watching your home movies from childhood and college years. Interesting, relatable, and difficult to stop once I got started! You have influenced my life in such a positive way ... Thank you for being YOU and for your transparency. Your journey is inspirational and impactful.”

From Amazon: 

“Thought-provoking and heartwarming. Great page-turner!” 

“I've followed Matt through his animal advocacy and had the chance to meet and hang out with him and his family several times. I knew some of his history, but this book showed me how much I didn't know! He is honest (VERY honest), and it was really inspiring to see how much adversity a person can have in their life and still be committed to reducing suffering in the world. This book also reminded me that most people have a lot more going on in their life than we ever know about, unless we are very close to them. I think the saying is something like "treat people kindly because most of them are fighting a battle you don't know about." If you know Matt through his work, you may find this interesting because it is all about what made him who he is and the personal stories you won't find through casual following.”

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Two new reviews at Amazon (June 2023):

Quite a book - never boring!

This book is both a memoir and an anthology of pieces about many topical issues. It is never boring and filled with information and ideas that provide so much food for thought that I will be rereading it. Matt is very bright and an independent thinker who doesn’t just go along with accepted dogma. This has cost him jobs, and made him the target of a lot of hate and attacks. I admire him for his courage to stand up for what he believes in and his goal of how to best reduce suffering. Subjects covered include having children, GMOs, plastics, animal rights, suffering, climate change, nuclear power, and more. Matt’s life has been filled with terrible lows and wonderful highs. Quite a book, a very interesting and thought-provoking read.

Photo by Kevin Drum

Shows the value of personal connections

Laughing at Matt's tragedies in Losing My Religions is a learning experience. And maybe the lesson is not to take oneself, or even one's convictions, too seriously. And to appreciate the things in life we still have - like love, if we are lucky. That sentiment - modest commitment - is not something you expect from an activist - especially an animal rights activist that many admire and follow. But Matt's full life, and the way he examines it to date, is full of modesty.

He could have easily written a biography about many of the good things he did, but he's telling a more accurate story with all of what it means to keep going and still be glad to be alive, and that's a more valuable thing.

“I don’t even know what to say about what you’ve endured. But I’m hearing it through your words.”

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I am the author, co-author, secondary-author, ghost-author, and non-author of articles, speeches, book chapters, and even entire books! 

Before Losing My Religions, the most recent was my blockbuster* The Accidental Activist. (Please check out these notes. Currently, I am the President of One Step for Animals; previously, I was shitcanned from so many nonprofits that I can’t list them all here. Before my unfortunate encounter with activism, I was an aerospace engineer who wanted to work for NASA to impress Carl Sagan. (That's him here; I'm down below.)

My hobbies include photography, almost dying, and                      . (Hey! This is a family-friendly site! -ed) I live in Tucson with my wife and reluctant editor Anne Green, along with no dogs, no cats, no guinea pigs, and only the occasional snake or scorpion.

Blog (Subscribe for even more!)  |  Facebook (Feed the beast) 
Twitter (If you like being depressed) |  LinkedIn (But why?)

*JK      |     Back to top

In the newspaper. Also in Wikipedia.

Anything for Her Laugh  + Warnings & Notes

Day 1: One Love, One Hate + Carl Sagan

Parentheticals & Grammar & Memory

Day 1 Continued: Up Shit Creek

Day 1 Concluded:  The Tyranny of Money

Harold and Ed

SportsBall!

The three tips for you  but not my enemies  (you know who you are)

Day 2: Bullet in a Bible

Day 2 Concluded: Zero to Sixty

What’s Dick Got to Do with It?

Day 3: Funeral Suit

Day 3 Concluded: Ready … Aim …

Day 4: Losing My Religion

Day 4 Concluded:  “Just one more.”

Worse than Hitler

Day 5: The End of Innocence

God, the Greatest Murderer of All Time

Day 6: Adventures in Wine,  Wings, and Women

Day 6’s Wild and Crazy Ending

Sex Is Gross

“Don’t Threaten Us”

Day 7: The Bullet Is Fired

Day 7 Continued:  “We’re here, we’re queer,  we don’t like the government”

Day 7 Continued:  Inevitably, the cops came.

Day 7 Concluded:  The Bullet Is Dodged

Day 8: Soulmate.  Literally. Not Figuratively.

Day 8 Concluded: Stone Cold

Day 9: The (Two Hour) Courtship  of EK’s Mother

Day 9 Continued:  The Road to Perdition (and Prague)
The Giddy-Up Courtship becomes  Time the First

Day 9’s Surprise Conclusion!

Why Reason Is Needed

Day 10: “Not comin’ all that way  just to eat vegetables.”

Travelog Erfurt

Day 11: Remembering Perfection while Flying Coach

Day 11 Concluded: Won’t go naked,  but open to party.

Brains! BRAINS! (There is a self! But no free will.)

My Brain Flaps Again

Day 12: Hot for Teacher

Day 12 Concluded:  I Used to be Smart … and Dumb(er)

Very Little Really Matters

Day 13: The Puritans were Assholes

Day 13 Concluded: Freezing, Snuggling, and Wine Undrunk

How to Be a Stud: Relationship Advice

Day 14: Prelude to  The End of Happiness

Fight the Power Part 1:  “To breed or not to breed”

Day 14 Concluded:  Worst the First

More Unpopular Opinions

Day 15: A Lot of What?

Fight the Power Part 2: Family Feud

Day 16: “Who eats animals?”

The End of Veganism

Day 16 Continued: Test Your Marriage!

Day 16 Concluded:  Money might not buy happiness,  but lack of money can  bring unhappiness

Money makes the world go ’round,  but your time will run out. 
Lessons from a lifetime of bad decisions.

Day 17: To the Exurbs – and Beyond!

Day 17 Continued: Time the Second

Brains! Redux: The Mind Is Fragile

Day 17 Concluded:  Dazed and Delirious in Deutschland

Day 18: Time of Your Life

Day 19: Wolf Park, Dog Camp,  and Time the Third

Bonus Tips

Day 20: “That’s a high math score!”

Day 20 Concluded:  Running to Stand Still (SportsBall! redux)

Day 21: Sowing the Seeds…

Day 21 Concluded: “You’re Matt Ball?”

Biting the Philosophical Bullet

My Expected Value  Is Bigger Than Yours
I welcome our robot overlords and you should, too!

Day 22: The Shocking Inevitability

Day 23: Flashback to Worst the Second

Day 24: Prelude to Worst the Third

The Interesting Life of  an Uninteresting Person 
(but really: Drug-Aided Meditation)

A Personal Request from Me to You

Day 25: The One Who Got  (Inside) My Heart

Day 26: The Green Party Fucks Us Again

Climate activists are to blame for some of the suffering  caused by climate change

Greta Thunberg’s misery is the result of child abuse.

Extinction Is No Big Deal

I Take the Colbert Questionert

Day 27: Burn the Heretic

Travelog for Introverts

Day 28  2021: A Suffering Odyssey

Day 28 Continued:  “Maybe I’m paralyzed”

Day 28 Concluded: Free-Falling

Day 16 Revisited: Karma, Money, and a Bread Machine

Mindfulness, Meaning, & More Drugs

Day 29: Good Times!  Literally. Not Sarcastically.

Day 29 Concluded:  Even with a Soulmate, Life Can Become Not Worth Living

Day 30: The Foreshadowing Pays Off “Where is his heart?”

Day 18 Revisited: So Happy It’s Scary

Day 31: And In The End

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