ravensandlace 's review for:

A Place Called Waco: A Survivor's Story by David Thibodeau

4.0

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Title: Waco

Author: David Thibodeau

Genre: Nonfiction

Format: own paperback book

Series: NA

Star Rating: 4 stars

tw: gun violence, burns, illness resulting in lifelong disabilities, child abuse, use of the word retard, child marriage, desecration of a grave, homophobia, statutory rape, mentions of incest, spanking of children, blood, gassing, violent death of children

I don't know a lot about the Waco siege. It happened when I was very young. I’m pretty sure I was only a year old when it happened. I do know that children died during it. It was a sad affair all around. When I started getting more into cults, I learned a little bit about Waco, but not much more, as some other cults took my attention. So when I saw this book, I was excited to learn more about Waco and the Branch Davidians. 

One of the things I found fascinating about this book was watching a cult take over someone in real time. Even though I don't think David fully ever bought into the teachings, you can tell he bought most of it. It truly was so interesting to see him slowly succumb and think that what David Kuresh was teaching was okay with him. Even though he didn’t agree with some of the teachings and Koresh’s view on having wives, he was still committed to the cause and wanted to be there. 

So, keeping in mind that this is from a survivor's point of view, the government messed up. They are at fault for the mass amount of deaths that happened on that compound. There seems to be a lot of lying and violence when it could have easily been avoided, and it’s disgusting that they never truly owned up to what happened during the siege. David was so angry during this part, and rightfully so. He lost loved ones, and he lost a part of himself that day. Even though they were in a cult, they were still people, and those people had children they were trying to protect. It truly seemed like the bloodshed could have been avoided, or at the very least, there could have been very minimal casualties. 

Overall, this was an insightful book, and I learned quite a bit about a cult that I didn’t know that much about. David was a great writer. He laid out facts well, especially during the siege and how the government handled it, even though I could tell he was still very angry about the whole thing. I can tell he still believes in the Branch Davidian teachings, and I can tell he misses Waco very much, even though he says he has moved on with his life. There is also a show on Paramount+  based on this book that I think I will check out as well.