Zealot

A book about cults

De: Jo Thornely

Narrado por: Jo Thornely

'a smart, daring and refreshing book.' - Weekend Australian

'deliciously sinister' - Herald Sun

Why would anyone join a cult?

Maybe they're unhappy with their current religion, or they want to change the world, or they're disappointed with their lives and want to find something bigger or holier that makes sense of this confusing, chaotic and dangerous world. Or maybe they just want to give themselves the best possible chance of having sex with aliens.

Whatever the reason, once people are in, it's usually very difficult for them to leave. Cults have ways of making their followers do loopy, dangerous stuff to prove their loyalty, and in return they get a chance to feel secure within the cult's embrace, with an added bonus of being utterly terrified of the outside world.

From the tragic JONESTOWN Kool-Aid drinkers to the Australian cult THE FAMILY to the fiery Waco climax of THE BRANCH DAVIDIANS, this book is a wide-sweeping look at cults around the world, from the host of the popular podcast ZEALOT.

'a piss-taker of rare boldness.' - Weekend Australian

Reseñas de la Crítica

prose where every sentence is alive with individuality and intelligence. ... She has opened the creaking lid of the vampire's coffin and let in a good old blast of fresh daylight.

Written with a wonderfully irreverent sense of humour, the book has a serious aim, to instil irreverence in the reader, because, after all, an excess of reverence was what got many of these cult members into danger in the first place and then kept them there.

I don't normally feel compelled to write a review

This book is awesome! It is narrated by the author and it is just so funny and such a joy. It reminds me of listening to My Favorite Murder the podcast because the topic is so horrifying but the experience of listening is enjoyable because it's told in such a hilarious way.

Educational and fun

I’d only heard of 3 of the 10 cults and was able to learn quite a lot. Obviously plenty are missing like Scientology and the Mansons, but the selection presented was good. I enjoyed the snark and humor as cult leaders absolutely deserved to be mocked. It made the book fun too instead of reading like a generic textbook.

Encyclopedia of Cults

Very interesting. Learned about cults I didn't know existed. Recommend this download. You won't be disappointed.

Thoroughly entertaining

If such a thing is possible…an excellent lighthearted look at various cults. Author is an excellent narrator.

I feel bad for laughing so much!

Like anyone else considering this book, I'm fascinated by cults and other such things. The tragedy of Jonestown and the like are heinous, what cult leaders do is abominable... but Jo Thornely literally had me snorting coffee out my nose on one occasion and waking my dogs up so many times laughing out loud that they left my office in disgust.

So, buy this book. Enjoy this book and don't sweat the cuss words. It's all icing on the cake of this delightful ride through cults. I hope she does a part 2!!