This book surprised me SO much. I went into Going Clear wanting to read it because it was being made into a documentary on HBO and also because I definitely need to pick up more nonfiction, especially on topics very outside my comfort zone. It was a National Book Award Finalist written by Lawrence Wright who had won a Pulitzer Prize for another book, The Looming Tower. I figured it was definitely the book to read if I wanted to learn more on this subject but I was really dreading it. I expected it to be very dry and hard to understand and because I knew NOTHING about Scientology, I was going to be super confused. I'm not sure why I thought all this but I can honestly say my expectations were blown out of the water. I seriously can't believe how much I enjoyed this book.
It is written in a way that made me want to continue reading it, but was still able to convey all the information it needed to. And Wright did a great job of trying to put both sides of the story in when it was clear the Scientology side was not cooperating. I learned so much from this book and it was great to see the full evolution of this religion. I was also shocked how, by the end, I found myself starting to understand how followers can get sucked in and how they can whole-heartedly believe that what they are doing is not only important for themselves but for the world. When Wright compares Scientology to other religions, I felt I really grasped what he was trying to emulate when it came to the religion's followers.
I would absolutely recommend this book if the subject interests you even a little bit. This is a nonfiction that is very readable and I'm looking forward to picking up more of Wright's books.
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