I just finished both Rachel Jeffs' book,
Breaking Free and her brother Ammon Jeffs' book
Texas Raid. Both of the authors are former members of the FLDS church and they are children of the FLDS leader Warren Jeffs. I'm going to start Charlene Jeffs' book,
Tell Your Heart to Beat Again probably today. I've been interested in these stories for years now and there was a Netflix documentary series called Keep Sweet: pray and obey that was really interesting and it led me to other interviews and former members' stories. Obviously, this is all non-fiction, so I get that it's not for everyone, but I'm particularly interested in religious cult-like communities and those who have left them. I read
Daughter of Gloriavale by Lilia Tarawa a few years ago, and it's about a group in New Zealand that is a similar very strict community where TV, books, movies, music are not allowed, etc. And I read Megan Phelps-roper's book
Unfollow, and found that one really fascinating, because she talked about how her now-husband challenged her beliefs and how that led her out of the church. They had never met, but they played a game online....I don't remember if it was chess, or scrabble, or what, but as they played, they talked about her views, and he would challenge them and eventually it got her to change her thinking in a way that the more combative protesters never could. It was really fun to read about. Anyway, it's not for everyone, but if you like some non-fiction, there are TONS of books written by former members of these communities. I know a few of us read
Educated by Tara Westover, and that's a similar situation and also a really interesting read.
I will say that Ammon's book was a bit difficult to follow at times. He writes in short bursts and there's not always a real flow to his stories and every once in a while he throws in a short memory that doesn't seem to relate to the anecdote he's sharing, but I still enjoyed the book overall.
In this searing memoir of survival in the spirit of Sto…
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This is the story of the 2008 raid on the Yearning For …
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