Banished

Surviving My Years in the Westboro Baptist Church

By: Lauren Drain

Narrated by: Lauren Drain

Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

Banished is an eye-opening, deeply personal account of life inside the cult known as the Westboro Baptist Church, as well as a fascinating story of adaptation and perseverance.

You've likely heard of the Westboro Baptist Church. Perhaps you've seen their pickets on the news, the members holding signs with messages that are too offensive to copy here, protesting at events such as the funerals of soldiers, the 9-year old victim of the recent Tucson shooting, and Elizabeth Edwards, all in front of their grieving families. The WBC is fervently anti-gay, anti-Semitic, and anti-practically everything and everyone. And they aren't going anywhere: In March, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of the WBC's right to picket funerals.

Since no organized religion will claim affiliation with the WBC, it's perhaps more accurate to think of them as a cult. Lauren Drain was thrust into that cult at the age of 15, and then spat back out again seven years later.

Lauren spent her early years enjoying a normal life with her family in Florida. But when her formerly liberal and secular father set out to produce a documentary about the WBC, his detached interest gradually evolved into fascination, and he moved the entire family to Kansas to join the church and live on their compound. Over the next seven years, Lauren fully assimilated their extreme beliefs, and became a member of the church and an active and vocal picketer. But as she matured and began to challenge some of the church's tenets, she was unceremoniously cast out from the church and permanently cut off from her family and from everyone else she knew and loved.

Banished is the story of Lauren's fight to find herself amidst dramatic changes in a world of extremists and a life in exile.

©2013 Lauren Drain (P)2013 Hachette Audio

must read!!!!

this is an amazing insightful story! my boyfriend and I listened to the audible on our car ride from Florida home to Texas and we were hooked!

Wonderful Insight

The book itself is very well written and it is a good study into the life of a WBC member. The author showed a healthy skepticism during her time in the WBC and was met with anger and judgement. I am surprised that she put up with it for so long. She's obviously is an intelligent woman and had it not been her Father that brought her into this I don't think she would have.

The author read the book and it was a little hard to listen to at times since she read like a school girl reading a paper. She did not perform the book like most Audible books are done but it was still and interesting "read".

Needs a professional voice actor

The book is fine, it doesn't go as into detail as it could, but where it really lacks is the actual audio. The author reads it, which should lend a real personal touch, but instead I feel like I am listening to someone read an essay in class.

Still an interesting book!

A shocking story of how inhumane cults can be!

Would you listen to Banished again? Why?

I might read it again, but her narration was pretty bad. I liked the story though!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Banished?

I was appalled by the obvious favoritism the elders gave to their own grandchildren and treated "outsiders" like dirt and called them terrible names.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Lauren Drain?

A professional narrator. Lauren was a horrible narrator, reading it like she was bored and in a tone like students in school where the teacher is making them read aloud and they hate it. There was no emotion or inflection in her voice.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

My extreme reaction was anger at these awful people and the way they use the bible to condone their hatred and haughtiness. Her highly gullible father is a disgrace as a human, and her mother has no spine. I truly believe it is child abuse! I know the reality of cults and how they controlling they are, and it is just so sad. The emotional and psychological abuse they dish out is deplorable! So I guess I also felt fear, because it just demonstrates how easily some people are persuaded to demean and abuse their own children because some "elders" twist the bible and tell them to!

Any additional comments?

This is an eye-opening account of the exact type of thing we as human beings need to watch out for! Every human deserves the right to keep their identity, their dignity and their self-respect. No one should ever have to endure this abuse from people who claim they love them, or from any religion. I feel so bad for the innocent children who are born or dragged into the madness of these degenerate people.

Was looking forward to this but kind of let down

This had the potential to be a great book, similar to 'Escape' by Carolyn Jessop (which was fantastic by the way) but it was kind of boring! I was intrigued for the first half but kind of lost interest after that. Life in WBC is mundane apparently. :)

Amazing!

It's truely amazing how the majority of Americans teach their children how family is everything and never to turn your back on them but then in 2016 there are still educated people who can disown their daughter for speaking to a boy! I am blessed to say Ihave an amazing father and if he abandoned me in my time of need when i was growing and learning I wouldnt be the Mother, daughter, sister, wife, and good hearted person that I am today! Shame on your parents because you are an amazing smart and indepentant women who they should be extremely proud of! Take pride in the fact you did this on your own without the help that everyone thought you needed. I'm proud of you, you inspire me.

Better Than I expected

I don't usually write reviews but I feel compelled to write this one for "Banished". I typically don't like to listen to books read by the author, unless they use their voice professionally, and I know there are others who feel the same. However, I was pleasantly surprised with Lauren's narration, I think she did a wonderful job reading her book.

My heart was/is sad for her and her siblings. Being taught to hate is very damaging to children. I hope her siblings make it out of the WBC.

Overall, I feel the book is well written and gives readers a glimpse into the lives and mind set of the late Fred Phelps and his family.

I recommend this book for anyone who, like me, is curious about the WBC.

interesting

God's greatest quality is Love not Hate. I love how she finally escaped. I wish her family was more respectful about free will. it's a gift God has given many. alot of ppl think I'm in a cult their entitled to their opinion but from my own experience being raised a Jehovah witness it wasn't like that. my parents always gave me a choice. my sister in fact chose not to become one. my parents helped her through nursing school. they love us both. in this book she comments on JWS as being secretive. that's absolutely not true. we have a website and welcome all ppl to visit and go door to door offering Bible studies. it takes alot of effort and commitment to join they only want you to join if your truly interested. many leave without being announced as not being a witness any longer. my suggestion if you don't want to be held accountable don't join. we don't celebrate holidays but are encouraged to love our families that do and spend time with them on different occasions. I loved my childhood and it was nothing like this religion that s full of hate. I hope the author reads this Review.

Intersting glimpse inside this hideous cult

The Westboro Church (I choose to exclude Baptist from the title because their beliefs are far from any Baptist church I have ever known) is a place one would picture the real Anti-Christ being born into. I can't understand how so many well educated, seemingly worldly people would fall into the spell of this hate organization. How they keep the people they have still escapes me. Even Lauren, as she tells the story seems to be sending a message back letting her family know she never wanted banishment. Her activism now regarding human rights may be her way to her own salvation or may be a punishment to those that turned her their back on her. This books leaves that question open. Regardless, it was well written and I could not stop listening to her story.

Get Thee Behind Me Phelps

Firstly, ignore the review by "Jack"; he is a Topeka resident and shill for the Westboro Baptist church. All his review really shows is that, even after all these years, Jesus can still sometimes be seen carried on the back of an ass.

This book is a sobering testament. It is one thing- tragic but comprehensible- for children or even a teenager to be indoctrinated into a ravingly inhumane religious ideology. But for an educated articulate adult, and an atheist no less? The sad fact shown in this book is that the members of this ridiculous church are for the most part highly intelligent people. They have gained the world of pure righteousness, but at the cost of any possibility of self understanding. This was a bargain that Lauren Drain seemed unsuited by nature to keep, so her conflict with the church was painful but inevitable. Go girl! Well read by the author.

The good news is that while this book was in press, two more young women defected from Westboro Baptist. Hopefully with publication, more will follow.