A relevant book for the holiday season

Ehrman's Jesus Interrupted taught me more about christianity than I had learned in the preceding 50 years. I had long doubted the veracity of religious teachings, especially christian ones. But I didn't realize just how phony christianity really is. The claim that Jesus of Nazareth was born in Bethlehem, for example, was a pure invention by the gospel writers. Bethlehem was where the kings of ancient Israel were born. To make Jesus appear more exalted, Matthew and Luke contrived tales of how he was born there. We can be sure such stories are false because e.g. there is absolutely no historical evidence that Augustus ordered people to return to their places of birth for a census. Not only do the historians make no mention of such a census, the notion can be dismissed since it would've caused too much disruption.
Ehrman stresses that the views he presents are standard among scholars and are routinely taught in colleges and seminaries. But generally they have been withheld from the masses, no doubt to help preserve christianity.
In light of all the obvious falsehoods concerning the birth of christ (among other things) nativity scenes are worse than ludicrous. More people should become aware of the truth: that the nativity stories are as fake as santa claus.