Ever heard the phrase "Don't drink the kool-aid"? It is a common phrase that is often said in reference to people who blindly follow someone else. As the years' pass, the younger generations don't know where the phrase comes from, as I recently found out. I knew that it was in reference to Jim Jones and his cult of followers that died after drinking cyanide-laced Flavor-Aid (a knock-off of Kool-Aid because the cult could not afford the real stuff). The Road to Jonestown is exactly as it sounds, author Jeff Guinn goes back to the beginning and examines the life of Jim Jones and how he was able to lead a group of nearly a thousand people to kill themselves in the jungle of South America.
Jim Jones got his start in Indiana and from the sounds of it was always an odd little dude obsessed with religion. No, I think he was obsessed with the adoration that people thrust upon their religious leaders. For being such an odd duck, he had very progressive views in regards to civil rights and equality. Whether it was because he truly believed in equal rights or he thought that minorities were "easy targets" I don't know. The author alludes to several instances of inequality within his own church. The author follows Jim Jones to California, where they were seeking a sanctuary away from the promised nuclear annihilation. It is in California where things get really weird. Jones stopped referring to God and the bible and even praying unless there were people in attendance not from his church. Jones turned into a sexual deviant not to mention a drug addict. Using corporal punishment on the members of his church, rather than bring in the authorities for serious infractions. He made his followers turn over everything from 25% of their income to their children and property. All in the name of living a socialist lifestyle. When Jones felt things closing in on them he led his followers to the jungles of Guyana, in the hopes of escaping scrutiny from the US authorities. Guinn gives such a detailed account of those final days, weeks, and months in Jonestown that I was captivated. I just couldn't stop. In fact, I went right to my friend, Google, and was led to the actual recording of that final day. You see, Jones always recorded his sermons and even that last day, you can listen as he encouraged his followers to their death, you can listen to it all. Warning: Explicit Content
Bottom Line - You know me, I love to read a good psychological thriller. Even though I knew with 100% certainty how The Road to Jonestown was going to end, I just couldn't stop. Jeff Guinn has written a book that can only be defined as a page-turner. You don't want to miss it, really.
Details:
- The Road to Jonestown by Jeff Guinn
- On Facebook
- Pages:544
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster
- Publication Date:4/11/17
- Buy it Here!
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