Reviews tagging 'Sexual harassment'

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell

39 reviews

rainbopagn's review against another edition

lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

While there is something endearing about the way Montell breaks down all things “cultish,” there wasn’t anything really I didn’t already know. It was neat to hear about the origins of things like MLMs though I do think she oversimplified by describing everything cultish as a result of Protestant reforms and changes. I do recommend as an “intro” to thinking critically though. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide and Religious bigotry

Minor: Emotional abuse and Sexual harassment

unluckycat13's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

4.0

This is not a true crime book, this is a sociological look at how cults and the rhetorical/linguistic techniques affect the average things in life; and when it becomes a problem. 

I'm unsure what people want in regards to intersectionality. You could probably go into depth in a lot of topics, but the author does talk about a lot of things that affect minorities of all sorts even when she's not directly shouting that group out. She does directly shout out minority groups often though.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Body shaming, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

aysha_blake's review

adventurous dark informative inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

courto875's review against another edition

dark informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Mass/school shootings, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

rfl_in_stl's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Minor: Sexism, Suicide, and Sexual harassment

cady_sass's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

I don’t know who needs to hear this, but don’t join that MLM. 

In all seriousness this is EXPERTLY done and I’m blown away. I’ve always been drawn to cult history and I really, really appreciate the work the author did here to include “cultish” behavior (hence, the title) of non cult entities- MLMs, fitness & CrossFit culture, MAGA, etc.- along with the obvious identifiable cults like Jonestown, Heavens Gate, and Nxivm, among others. 

Super important to give language to the behaviors and vernacular that are big red flags 🚩 so people can engage carefully and make informed decisions. Highly, highly recommend.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

yogomagpie's review against another edition

informative fast-paced

4.0

I couldn’t put this one down. Some other reviewers wrote that some parts became repetitive, and I agree, but it was overall a very interesting and informative read on cultish language and how it translates in various spaces.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Gaslighting

Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual harassment

daniellekat's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

2.25

As a fan of the author’s previous book, Wordslut, I was convinced that I would love this. The writing, wit, and humour were in style with Montell’s previous book, but this was just way too repetitive. The repetition was nearly unbearable and there were many times I considered DNFing. By the end of each section I was basically just skimming looking for new anecdotes. A personal pet peeve that really irritated me with this book was the constant call to upcoming content  (ex. “More to come on this in part 4, we’ll revisit this in the next chapter, we’ll see so and so again in part 2, etc.). It was so obnoxious and it caught my attention and took me out of the narrative every time. 
Although I’m complaining, the content was really quite interesting. I just think this book could have done with a more thorough edit. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide

Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Religious bigotry, and Sexual harassment

casually_booking's review against another edition

challenging funny informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

If you listen to the Sounds like a Cult podcast, you will like this book. Amanda’s tone is the same- caked in sarcasm and random quips about all things culty. I enjoyed the brief chapters because they provided some nice shape and guidance throughout the book. I also enjoyed how she wove in her personal experiences with cults and culty things along with interviewee’s stories and of course historical facts and academic sources. We are all a part of certain societal “cults”  but some “cults” come with deadly consequences and financial ruin. By sharing her own experiences with cults, she adds a layer of relatability. Definitely recommend for a digestible read about some difficult topics. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Addiction, Body shaming, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Cursing, Racism, Sexism, and Injury/Injury detail

ramhog's review against another edition

dark funny informative fast-paced

4.5

This put into words so many conversations and thoughts I've had with my partner and friends! I don't feel like I particularly learned anything groundbreaking or new but having this exploration of the language of cults laid out so neatly and in an engaging way makes it a must-read imo. Bought at Firestorm Books.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

Since this is all about various cults and their abuses I'm sure I missed some warnings. From my memory none of the descriptions longer, but it does deal head on with dark themes.