Deceived

by Mel White

The Jonestown tragedy in the Guyana jungle and the macabre tale of death. An appalling demonstration of the way in which a leader can bend the minds of his followers with a devilish blend of professed altruism and psychological tyranny.

231 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

James Melville "Mel" White is an American clergyman and author. White was a behind-the-scenes member of the Evangelical Protestant movement through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, writing film and television specials and ghostwriting auto-biographies for televangelists such as Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, and Billy Graham. After years of writing for the Christian right, he came out as gay in 1994 and devoted himself full-time to minister to lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender people, also writing extensively on the subject of gay Christians.

Reviews

[Sharon Zink]

This book is about the tragedy in Jonestown, Guyana, led by Jim Jones. It contains biographical statements by people who joined the People's Temple. It is an interesting, well-written, and engaging account. I do wish it had described in a chronological order exactly what happened with the People's Temple.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very powerful and disturbing book about the Rev. Jim Jones and how he brainwashed his cult into committing suicide. It's written not as a documentary, but as a cautionary tale to Christians as he addresses Christian individuals and churches on how to prevent such tragedies. I do wish he had gone into more detail about what life was like in the cult, but what he did provide was sad and scary. He gets into the psychology of the tactics Jones used which is really interesting. i wish it had focused more on the stories the survivors told him.