An Everyday Cult

Written by Gerette Buglion

Narrated by Gerette Buglion and Sarah Edmondson

This true-life story shows how the author's innocent quest for meaning is hijacked by a teacher who recognized her thirst for spiritual knowledge…awakening insight while simultaneously strangling her capacity for critical thinking. An Everyday Cult follows the arc of Buglion's journey through young motherhood into a group that welcomed her but also captured her mind, her heart, and her money. She shows us how a mind and psyche can be compromised by a controlling leader, using techniques that fly under the radar of human awareness—and she implores readers to wake up to these ever-present abuses of power. Gerette vividly describes a personal journey that became increasingly treacherous, culminating in tragedy. In the telling of her story, she exposes the impact of cultic manipulation on daily life. Written in an engaging, self-reflective style, rich with insight into techniques common to cults the world over, An Everyday Cult increases the listener’s understanding and awareness of destructive dynamics that just might be closer to home than anyone ever imagined.

An Everyday Cult audio book is written and narrated by Gerette Buglion with a forward written and narrated by Sarah Edmondson, author of Scarred: the True Story of How I Escaped NXVIM, the Cult That Bound My Life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Author's Republic
• Release date: Jan 19, 2022
• ISBN: 9798985774108

Reviews for An Everyday Cult

[grrllovesbooks · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I am very interested in this topic. Unfortunately the book failed to deliver. Perhaps it was the inability to name sources and individuals involved that caused the book to be not as informative as I had hoped.

[psychomamma · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I work with a lot of cult survivors and am very interested in the topic but I did not really like this book. I think it's important for people to realize that cults can be more than just religious groups - they can be financial, self-help, in this case therapeutic. But as a therapist I just felt like I couldn't understand people not seeing through this one. I couldn't relate to the characters; I understand why they got sucked in based on their own values and the communities they came from. I just couldn't relate.

[lpg3d · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book provides a fascinating view into an "everyday cult," a small group of people following a cult leader. It shows that these very small cults can be just as damaging as the large, rich, well-known cults like the Moonies, the Scientologists, the Mormons, and the Jehovah's Witnesses. I was struck by the fact that in this case, the cult leader didn't appear to be that charismatic, and there seemed to be little sophistication in his nonsensical word salad analysis of the member's dreams. However, he did seem to follow all the steps of asserting unethical and extreme control over his followers. I wonder if there is a cult leader manual somewhere that these guys study, or if they're just narcissists to whom it comes naturally. All-in-all an interesting look into one of these controlling groups that doesn't make the news.[Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher as a LibraryThing Early Reviewer.]

[beachbaby1124 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Very insightful of just how easy it is to fall prey to manipulators out there. The contrast of what Gerette went through and how todays politics compare is frightening. So happy for her and her loved ones she had the support needed to recover from this tragedy.