A review by crywithclaire
Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell

3.0

i want to be clear that this book is not bad. really it’s not. but cults are a hyperfixation of mine and have been for years, and since this book says it talks about the language cults use, i thought it would be about that, and it was….for the first few chapters. the rest of it was just about cults and cult like groups with little discussion of the language they use beyond a very surface level understanding. i get that this was probably because as a linguist the author didn’t want to alienate people by getting too into the weeds, and the book is meant for a popular audience. if you’re curious about cults and enjoy a good culty documentary or two now and then, you’ll probably like this book. but for someone with a deeper interest in this topic, it didn’t do a lot for me.