Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell

23 reviews

lemonsforyu's review

challenging informative reflective fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Cursing, Hate crime, Pandemic/Epidemic, Bullying, Self harm, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Suicide

stardustdreamer's review against another edition

informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Classism, and Murder

Moderate: Child death, Suicide, and Racism

mi7sma's review

adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

4.0

It was a very insightful book. You know those types which you're intrinsically aware of the things being discussed but you don't actively think about when it actually happens irl. Amanda retold a very profound series of accounts from survivors of various cult groups and presented them in a very digestible manner. The premise of the entire book revolves around cult affiliation(group affiliation), human psychology, brainwashing, unjustified prejudice, glossolalia, genocide and language performativity theory. It also tells us how everyday people end up in cults just to find a meaningful connection as we(humans) are programmed to be seekers of the unknown and social communes are a way to satisfy our emotional and religious needs. The book was written in the light of the writer's father's experiences which gave it a personal and professional outlook. Overall it was a good read but it was long overdue due to uni. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Murder, Emotional abuse, and Genocide

Moderate: Confinement, Fatphobia, Physical abuse, Cursing, Mental illness, Sexual content, Body shaming, Bullying, Classism, Gaslighting, and Racism

zosiablue's review

informative medium-paced

3.0

I think the author's thesis was: Cults (like Heaven's Gate) and cult-feeling orgs (like SoulCycle) are different, but share similar language, and listening for cultish language is our best chance at not getting sucked in. Which is a cool premise but she doesn't land it. There are a lot of contradictions, tons of meandering,  and occasional strong political statements that I enjoyed but were then dampened by weaker language. It was messy but it did get me thinking about how pervasive cult language is. I think this book would be most eye-opening for anyone who feels conflicted about MLMs or Instagram influencers and things like that (this will talk them out of following). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Cultural appropriation, Murder, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Mental illness, Classism, Child death, Drug use, Kidnapping, and Suicide

remimicha's review

funny hopeful informative lighthearted mysterious reflective fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic, Gaslighting, Murder, Mental illness, Homophobia, Violence, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Racism, Suicide, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, and Fatphobia

brindolyn's review against another edition

challenging funny informative medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Mental illness, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, and Suicide

cady_sass's review

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

I don’t know who needs to hear this, but don’t join that MLM. 

In all seriousness this is EXPERTLY done and I’m blown away. I’ve always been drawn to cult history and I really, really appreciate the work the author did here to include “cultish” behavior (hence, the title) of non cult entities- MLMs, fitness & CrossFit culture, MAGA, etc.- along with the obvious identifiable cults like Jonestown, Heavens Gate, and Nxivm, among others. 

Super important to give language to the behaviors and vernacular that are big red flags 🚩 so people can engage carefully and make informed decisions. Highly, highly recommend.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Sexism, Classism, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Racism, Sexual harassment, and Suicide attempt

missrosymaplemoth's review

4.0

Informational and educational. Would have rated it higher if it 1. Didn’t trigger my anxiety 2. Didn’t include the author patting herself on the back every few pages for being too good and enlightened to join a cult, & 3. Had regular page formatting instead of a skinny indented body of text.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Violence

Moderate: Physical abuse, Suicide, Death, Mental illness, Drug use, and Suicide attempt

ramhog's review

dark funny informative fast-paced

4.5

This put into words so many conversations and thoughts I've had with my partner and friends! I don't feel like I particularly learned anything groundbreaking or new but having this exploration of the language of cults laid out so neatly and in an engaging way makes it a must-read imo. Bought at Firestorm Books.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Bullying, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Homophobia, Murder, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Suicide, Mental illness, and Misogyny

Since this is all about various cults and their abuses I'm sure I missed some warnings. From my memory none of the descriptions longer, but it does deal head on with dark themes.

questingnotcoasting's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

4.0

I love books about language and I find cults fascinating so this was a real hit for me. I enjoyed Montell's previous book so I knew I liked her type of pop science. The information was quite basic, but since I didn't know that much about the cults and organisations covered I found that quite helpful. I did occasionally lose track of the structure but that might just be because I listened to the audiobook. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Bullying, Death, and Suicide

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Violence