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Since 1987, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled creationism wasn't science, Christian fundamentalists have been waging a covert battle in the public schools, trying to sneak religion into science classrooms under the guise of secular-sounding concepts-like "intelligent design." In 2004, this behind-the-scenes battle erupted into all-out war when the rural school board in Dover, Pennsylvania, voted to teach intelligent design in ninth-grade biology classrooms. Eleven concerned parents (among them a Girl Scout leader, a single mother who was a devout Catholic, and a physics teacher who taught summer bible school) sued, sparking a federal constitutional challenge. The reverberations were felt around the world.

In The Devil in Dover, local journalist Lauri Lebo traces the compelling backstory of this pivotal case, described by some as a perfect storm of religious intolerance, First Amendment violations, and an assault on American science education. In a community divided across unexpected lines, the so-called activist judge-a George Bush-appointed Republican-eventually condemned the school board's decision as one of "breathtaking inanity."

Lebo follows the story through its surprising twists, pondering whether this was a national war playing out in a small town or a small-town political battle playing out on the national stage. As a "local girl" with a fundamentalist Christian father, Lebo provides an account that is both fascinating and moving, as she thoughtfully probes one of America's most divisive ongoing cultural conflicts-and the responsibility journalists have when covering such controversial stories.

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