Reviews tagging 'Drug use'

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell

18 reviews

montybonty's review

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funny informative reflective relaxing medium-paced

4.0

Pretty interesting read! I found that the pace dragged in the middle and end and overall, the information felt pretty surface level, especially if you are already familiar with the groups the author discusses, but I was never disinterested. Nothing felt particularly groundbreaking but it was enjoyable nonetheless!

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bootsmom3's review against another edition

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funny informative medium-paced

4.0


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toofondofbooks_'s review

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dark informative slow-paced

5.0

This is a solid nonfiction book that is an examination of different types of cults within our society and how those who lead them use language to manipulate their followers. On the other hand, this book is also about how many of us have already fallen into cultish groups/dynamics. The inside flap reads, "We secretly want to know, 'could it happen to me?' Amanda Montell's argument is that on some level, it already has." From Instagram to Heaven's Gate, Montell describes cults and cult victims with both sensitivity and great intelligence.

I really enjoyed this one. It read easily for a nonfiction. I feel like even if you aren't a nonfiction person, you might like this. Anyone who has spent any time immersed in internet culture, interested in true crime, language, and obviously, cults will find something for them within these pages. I don't really have anything smart to say about it other than I really liked it.

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yeojinqueen's review

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informative reflective slow-paced

5.0


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eldritch_flower's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

 I've always had an interest in cults. Not joining one, so don't freak out. But I am an active listener of the Cults podcast and I spend a lot of my free time watching documentaries on cults in general.

This book does talk about some of the more well known cults to give foundation to the points Montell makes later in the book, but what I found most interesting was the parallels between those cults and the groups she brings up as "cultish" like MLMs and certain gym groups, and even some influencers.

The book has a heavy focus on language, which I'm sure you can gather from the title. The language of conversion is incredibly compelling and interesting.

But beyond that, the book is topical as it was written and released after June of 2020, so the anti-masker idiocy and QAnon bullshittery is also included in this with poignant commentary.

If you have ever had even a passing interest in learning about cults, it's worth the read. I definitely had fun with it and I feel like I came out of it with new knowledge(as someone who's been reading about cults for more than a decade, I think that's a pretty big feat). 

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hubristicbitch's review against another edition

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dark informative

4.0

starting out this year with the queen of language: amanda montell is truly a genius and never disappoints. even though i loved “wordslut” a bit more, “cultish” was an eye-opening experience and more people should read it! it’s so important to know how powerful language can be when the wrong people know how to use it to their benefits. nowadays, being able to dissect cultish language seems to be more important than ever.

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cjblates's review

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informative medium-paced

5.0


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sjanke2's review

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funny informative lighthearted fast-paced

4.0


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