The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple

I like to think I can handle reading just about anything but man oh man, the end of this book made me so nauseated. I had obviously heard things about Jonestown before - the “Kool-aid” joke being the crux of them. This book, while a slow, meticulous slog through the the mundane beginnings of Jonestown, is a thorough introduction to the group and their story. Guinn did a masterful job of in-depth research and somehow maintaining distance from this story with a horrific end. It was hard to reconcile the group at beginning of this book to the group at the end - how did things go so wrong and how did Jones become so unhinged? I appreciated Guinn's ability to stay removed and give us a full picture of the ups and downs of Jones and Peoples' Temple prior to the ubiquitous final tragedy. Objectivity with a case surrounding a tragedy of such tremendous proportions must have been difficult. I'm left dumbfounded and intrigued by the psychology of Jones in his years.

This was so fascinating and creepy and sad. It was so interesting how Jones convinced people he really cared about equality and integration - and maybe he really did?! - and how you could see how people could believe in him.

I appreciated how much time was spent on his easy life and before the tragedy at Jonestown. The context makes it all the more awful and yet intriguing.

Whew, I thought I already knew a lot about Jonestown but this was still very informative and compelling. Guinn did a ton of interviews with survivors and former members and comes across as so compassionate to a group that really was so well-meaning. It's so horrifying to see how this all went off the rails.

Really in-depth, the author did his research.

If I were to recommend a book to someone about the whole history of the Peoples Temple and the Jonestown massacre, this would be it. It has everything, from the history of Jim Jones parents to the aftermath of the Jonestown massacre, and it isn't too dense or boring.

For anyone who knows me, you know I am a true crime queen hell my best friend can tell you I yell at my books while I read them half the time. Some of the things that have transpired in the world we live and has been printed on paper is horrifying. That being said I wish to thank NetGalley Simon and Schuster for my advanced copy of. The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple by Jeff Guinn. This book made me feel like I was back in college in one of my Psychology classes trying to figure out the mindset of a killer and I loved it. This book will stay with you long after you are done reading it and it is worth the time, it is very well researched and well put together that you get a crazy insight of Jim Jones but you get a good sense of the broken people that fallow him. I don't say that lightly or with any disrespect it just saddens me to see that so many people fallowed such a crazy man to have a place to fit in and feel wanted. The author does a remarkable job of laying out the slow transformation of Jim Jones, from weird kid with a true devotion to social justice to the 47-year-old cult leader who murdered more than 900 of his followers. I don't know how many ways I can praise this book other than to say it's a must read for true crime lovers.