If there’s one thing history has taught us, it’s that the moment we stop questioning, we stop learning. Yet, too often, we accept the past at face value. We inherit stories, traditions, and ideas without ever holding them up to scrutiny. But can we truly understand the present—or shape the future—if we don’t challenge the narratives we’ve been given?
That’s the core of Blame It on Socrates. It’s a novel about a professor who spends his life teaching students to question everything—only to find himself trapped by the past he never fully examined. Patrick Dolan, once a student radical in the 1960s, now stands in front of a new generation that barely remembers the protests of his youth. But when a philosophy assignment sparks an unexpected revolt, Dolan is forced to confront his own history.
And here’s the uncomfortable truth: It’s easy to question others. It’s harder to turn that lens on ourselves.
Socrates understood this better than anyone. He didn’t just question authority—he questioned his own assumptions, his own knowledge, his own place in the world. He challenged the status quo, not because he wanted to watch it burn, but because he believed truth was worth the struggle. That same spirit runs through the pages of Blame It on Socrates, where philosophy isn’t just something to be studied—it’s something to be lived, fought for, and, sometimes, painfully re-examined.
If we want to speak on subjects that matter—whether it’s history, justice, or the way we live our lives—we have to be willing to dig deeper. To look at the past, not just as a set of facts, but as a series of choices. To ask hard questions about the stories we’ve been told, and even harder ones about the ones we tell ourselves.
Blame It on Socrates is more than just a novel. It’s an invitation—to think critically, to challenge easy answers, and to remember that history isn’t something we inherit—it’s something we shape. But first, we have to be willing to ask the right questions.
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