• Going Clear

  • Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief
  • By: Lawrence Wright
  • Narrated by: Morton Sellers
  • Length: 17 hrs and 24 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (4,592 ratings)

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Going Clear  By  cover art

Going Clear

By: Lawrence Wright
Narrated by: Morton Sellers
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Publisher's summary

National Book Award Finalist

A clear-sighted revelation, a deep penetration into the world of Scientology by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Looming Tower, the now-classic study of al-Qaeda’s 9/11 attack. Based on more than two hundred personal interviews with current and former Scientologists—both famous and less well known—and years of archival research, Lawrence Wright uses his extraordinary investigative ability to uncover for us the inner workings of the Church of Scientology.

At the book’s center, two men whom Wright brings vividly to life, showing how they have made Scientology what it is today: The darkly brilliant science-fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, whose restless, expansive mind invented a new religion. And his successor, David Miscavige—tough and driven, with the unenviable task of preserving the church after the death of Hubbard.

We learn about Scientology’s complicated cosmology and special language. We see the ways in which the church pursues celebrities, such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta, and how such stars are used to advance the church’s goals. And we meet the young idealists who have joined the Sea Org, the church’s clergy, signing up with a billion-year contract.

In Going Clear, Wright examines what fundamentally makes a religion a religion, and whether Scientology is, in fact, deserving of this constitutional protection. Employing all his exceptional journalistic skills of observation, understanding, and shaping a story into a compelling narrative, Lawrence Wright has given us an evenhanded yet keenly incisive book that reveals the very essence of what makes Scientology the institution it is.

©2013 Lawrence Wright (P)2013 Random House Audio
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

Critic reviews

“Brings a clear-eyed, investigative fearlessness to Scientology . . . a rollicking, if deeply creepy, narrative ride, evidence that truth can be stranger even than science fiction." (The Washington Post)

“A hotly compelling read. It’s a minutiae-packed book full of wild stories.” (The New York Times)

“An utterly necessary story. . . . A feat of reporting.” (The Wall Street Journal)

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What listeners say about Going Clear

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Interesting and scary

I saw the documentary first but it awas still really eye-opening and scary. good job

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

THRILLS AND CHILLS

This expose, written in thriller novel style, was so intense I had to stop listening a few times and "shake off" the woogies. Terrifying that systems like Scientology can suck people in...like quicksand...the harder they struggle, the deeper they get. And the Hollywood conspiracy of silence is sickening. The most unexpected revelation was the homophobia of Scientology...didn't see that coming.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding Account, Exceptionally Reaserched

Wonderfully detailed account of what this organization is all about. The epilogue is outstanding. Very long but worth the time to finish.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Investigative journalism at its best

Any additional comments?

I am a fan of Lawrence Wright, whose specialty is investigative journalism focused on religion. As with his other works, Going Clear is meticulously researched relying on interviews with Scientology spokespersons, former members, church documents as well as the public record. What you get is a history of Scientology, a bio of its founder L. Ron Hubbard, and insight into its tenets, practices, and purported abuses. There is a particular focus on the church’s cultivation of celebrities and the story of screenwriter/director/disaffected member Paul Haggis provides a narrative focus. The audiobook is critical of Hubbard and Scientology though Wright takes pains to present both sides where possible and to his credit approaches the material with a journalist’s impartiality. One criticism I have of the book is that it quickly leaps from Hubbard’s writing of Dianetics to Scientology having been established, leaving me to fill in the details of how the movement took hold/expanded and Hubbard grew rich. Despite this, Going Clear is a fascinating and entertaining read that demystifies Scientology, though its adherents will probably feel otherwise.

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Needed to be edited down

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Cut it in half. I got that he and they were all nut jobs.

Have you listened to any of Morton Sellers’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

It is a documentary, and from what I hear a good one.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Fascinating but very long

Fascinating but very long. Hard to follow all the characters and story sometimes but enlightening! I recommend others to listen!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Changed my life

after reading this, I realized that my faith, Mormonism, is as much a cult as any other. Now I'm free!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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A must read

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

One of the best books I've listened to on Audible. It completes the HBO documentary by putting faces with names.

What did you like best about this story?

Lays the "church" to bare and illuminates how a cult/mafia operates.

What about Morton Sellers’s performance did you like?

Provides the perfect tone and tenor for the narrative.

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

My wife told me I'd say, "You've got to be s****ing me" for about every 10 minutes of listening.

Any additional comments?

After you read this book, you'll understand why the Germans wouldn't allow Scientology to establish there. One Hitler was enough.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great book!!

Really interesting insight into this secretive cult, its creator and current leader! Maybe now IRS will reinvestigate their tax status.

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  • TP
  • 04-30-15

Shocking story of man manipulating men

It is amazing how gullible people can be. To be controlled by a man with no moral compass is indeed perplexing and disappointing.

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