All the power in the world /

In style and substance, Unger (philosophy, NYU) has written a book against the mainstream of American analytical metaphysics. Stylistically, Unger eschews the aloof, quasi-mathematical exposition of much contemporary philosophy in favor of a conversational, slangy, and playful tone, making more palatable the 600 pages worth of highly abstract thought experiments--a candy coating on mental jawbreakers. Substantively, many of the book's positions are unpopular: for instance, Unger argues that color is essential to matter, not a Lockean "secondary" quality; he also defends free will and mind-body dualism. By the end of chapter 4, after 300 pages of arguments involving hypothetical universes composed of nothing but colored solids, all but the most addicted to metaphysics will feel surfeited. But having exhausted the topic of the nature of physical reality, Unger turns to a discussion of freedom, the soul, and the afterlife that will be of more general interest. Although creative and bold in the aforementioned ways, the book nevertheless tries to hammer out a "humanly realistic" philosophy that relies more on common sense than Humean skepticism would allow. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students and faculty/researchers. C. S. Seymour Wayland Baptist University