A Lost Argument by Therese Doucet

The summer after her freshman year at all-Mormon Brigham Young University, Marguerite Farnsworth falls in love with philosophy by way of falling in love with an atheist philosophy student. Her search for Truth (with a capital T), God, the meaning of life, and a boyfriend leads her away from religious belief, but along the way she learns there are things even atheists can have faith in.


This is an intriguing book. It was a fun and thought-provoking story that surprised me with its sharp psychology as well as with its take on philosophy.

I enjoyed the main character, Marguerite, a complex young woman searching for Truth, and, possibly, for love. Her diary entries were my favorite part, since we got an honest look into the psyche of someone struggling with faith and with life in general. She had some moments where her indecisiveness made the reader want to throttle her, but I suppose that’s something that we all go through, so in that manner, is portrayed realistically. The rest of the characters are also well-written, especially John, who is just as interesting. I actually wish we’d learned a bit more about him as the novel progresses, but it doesn’t really deter from the plot as a whole.

The writing is clear, with very little grammatical mistakes. Although there is a lot of philosophy, it is clearly written, even, I think for a lay-person to grasp without too much problems. I found myself engrossed in the existential crises that Marguerite faces, nodding my head at some of her thoughts and feelings. I can easily recommend this for those of you looking for something that will provoke a very heated discussion with your own head.