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A review by siobhanward
When the World Didn't End by Guinevere Turner
emotional
medium-paced
3.5
If I had a nickel for every book I read this year about a young person's experience in a cult and their escape from it, I'd have two nickels, which isn't a lot, but I'm impressed that I read two.
I really liked that Turner's book focused so much on her time after leaving the Lyman family, from her struggles to realizing that she was happier and better off in the real world. I didn't know anything about the Lyman family before reading this, and wish there had been a bit more about what it was and its history but I also understand that from Turner's child POV, not a lot of that was relevant.
This was a solid read and mostly well-written, although at times it felt like the pacing was off. I appreciated Turner's honesty throughout the book, and the use of diaries was interesting and really reinforced how real a story this was.
I really liked that Turner's book focused so much on her time after leaving the Lyman family, from her struggles to realizing that she was happier and better off in the real world. I didn't know anything about the Lyman family before reading this, and wish there had been a bit more about what it was and its history but I also understand that from Turner's child POV, not a lot of that was relevant.
This was a solid read and mostly well-written, although at times it felt like the pacing was off. I appreciated Turner's honesty throughout the book, and the use of diaries was interesting and really reinforced how real a story this was.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, and Physical abuse