Cults are simultaneously intriguing and horrifying, even just from a scholar’s perspective. The ability to hold others to certain beliefs and turn them into unsuspecting puppets is powerful food for the imagination.
Plenty of books about cults tackle the history of these organizations, the beliefs they propagate, and the techniques they employ to keep the illusions going. Add in the fine line between religions and cults and they make for highly entertaining reading material.
Books About Cults
Whether from the perspective of observers or survivors, here are some of the best books to read about cults and groupthink.
1. Seductive Poison by Deborah Layton
Jim Jones’s Peoples Temple is one of the most famous cults in history, mostly because of the mass murder-suicide their founder orchestrated in 1978—resulting in almost a thousand people dead, including a U.S. congressman and his delegation.
Deborah Layton, a high-level member of the group, was able to escape just before the massacre. This is her account of living within the cult, her escape, her warnings that fell on skeptical ears, and the massacre shortly after.
2. Cultish by Amanda Montell
On a surface level, we all have a vague understanding of how certain communities exhibit “cultishness”—brainwashing, magic, and stupidity gets thrown around a lot. What people don’t realize is that language is key to taking control of people’s lives.
And it’s the kind of language we hear every day. From modern startups to social media, Montell explains how many organizations use language to inspire fanaticism.
3. Sex Cult Nun by Faith Jones
Faith Jones is the granddaughter of David Berg, founder of The Children of God—a cult obsessed with preparing for the End Times. Known for its problematic sex practices and accusations of abuse, the COG has remained active since its inception in 1968.
Here, Faith documents the complicated environment she was raised in, the years of abuse and exploitation, and finally, her escape towards a better future in America.
4. Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry
In 1969, a series of brutal murders blaze through Los Angeles, seemingly done at random. The trail eventually leads to Charles Manson, a singer-songwriter living on the fringes of society with his “family”.
From building a case from thin evidence to the examination of the fanaticism that groupthink can breed, Vincent Bugliosi narrates his experience as the prosecuting attorney in a trial that would immortalize Manson’s dangerous ideology.
5. Broken Faith by Mitch Weiss and Holbrook Mohr
In 1979, preacher Jane Whaley built a small congregation with the promise of giving them the best lives they could imagine. Since then, her following has grown to thousands, spread across three continents.
Through hundreds of documents, recorded conversations, and interviews, Weiss and Mohr dive deep inside the Word of Faith Fellowship, where Whaley’s wrath means eternal damnation.
6. Breaking Free by Rachel Jeffs
Rachel Jeffs was raised inside the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, born to its founder and the second of his more than 50 wives. Growing up, she suffered sexual abuse, was taught absolute obedience, and was forced into a polygamous marriage.
Here, she offers an unflinching look not only into the years of physical and emotional abuse she experienced but also the plight of those who still remain trapped in the dark world she has since escaped from.
7. Going Clear by Lawrence Wright
Despite its fame, Scientology and its practices mostly remain a mystery to the uninitiated. And while it’s recognized as a religion in the United States, many other countries classify it as a cult.
Using archival research and hundreds of interviews with current and former Scientologists, Wright lifts the fog that has long covered this controversial organization.
8. Cults Inside Out by Rick Ross
Cults are experts in brainwashing people into obedience and adoration. For more than three decades, Rick Ross has studied these cults, participated in about 500 cult interventions, and provided court testimonies against these groups.
Ross, along with current and former cult members, talks about the history of these groups, the many techniques they use to “persuade”, and most importantly, the methods people can use to get out.
9. Terror, Love, and Brainwashing by Alexandra Stein
Lots of people think they’re too smart to fall for cult tactics but history says otherwise. Alexandra Stein, a Doctor of Sociology, explains how totalitarian states, cults, terrorist groups, and even unhealthy personal relationships engage in brainwashing victims into submission.
10. Underground by Haruki Murakami
In 1995, members of a religious cult released sarin gas inside the Tokyo Subway system. 13 people died, 50 were injured, and more than a thousand were struck with vision problems.
Murakami, more notably known for his fiction, takes a journalistic approach to this event. Through a series of interviews with the victims and members of the cult, he paints a clear picture of not only the attack but also the state of the Japanese psyche.
11. In the Shadow of the Moons by Nansook Hong
Nansook Hong was born into the Unification Church, handpicked to be the founder’s son’s wife, and bore 14 years of abuse under her drug-addicted husband. This is her story, starting from her childhood, her divorce—the Church’s most damaging scandal, and her eventual escape with her children.
Reading Cult Books
As outsiders, it’s easy to look at cults and think them ridiculous to the point of being comical. Who’s stupid enough to fall for such big red flags, right?
Most people think they’re too smart to get fooled but most people have also said that about scams and still fell victim to them. The fact is that it happens—and more often than people like to admit.
From how cult leaders prey on their followers to how these followers are able to escape, these books about cults offer both outside and inside perspectives on the world of cults. You’ll read about plenty of dark things—all necessary to understanding the dynamics of exploitative power, fundamental human needs, and groupthink.
What book about cults did you enjoy reading? Share it in the comments below!
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Cole is a blog writer and aspiring novelist. He has a degree in Communications and is an advocate of media and information literacy and responsible media practices. Aside from his interest in technology, crafts, and food, he’s also your typical science fiction and fantasy junkie, spending most of his free time reading through an ever-growing to-be-read list. It’s either that or procrastinating over actually writing his book. Wish him luck!
