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Reclaiming My Decade Lost in Scientology
- Narrated by: Sands Hall
- Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins
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Publisher's summary
In this audiobook, Sands Hall chronicles her slow yet willing absorption into the Church of Scientology. Her time in the Church, the 1980s, includes the secretive illness and death of its founder, L. Ron Hubbard, and the ascension of David Miscavige. Hall compellingly reveals what drew her into the religion - what she found intriguing and useful - and how she came to confront its darker sides.
As a young woman from a literary family striving to forge her own way as an artist, Hall ricochets between the worlds of Shakespeare, avant-garde theater, and soap opera, until her brilliant elder brother, playwright Oakley Hall III, falls from a bridge and suffers permanent brain damage. In the secluded canyons of Hollywood, she finds herself increasingly drawn toward the certainty that Scientology appears to offer.
In this candid and nuanced memoir, Hall recounts her spiritual and artistic journey with a visceral affection for language, delighting in the way words can create a shared world. However, as Hall begins to grasp how purposefully Hubbard has created the unique language of Scientology - in the process isolating and indoctrinating its practitioners - she confronts how language can also be used as a tool of authoritarianism.
Hall is a captivating guide, and this audiobook explores how she has found meaning and purpose within that decade that for so long she thought of as lost; how she has faced the "flunk" represented by those years, and has embraced a way to "start" anew.
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Tracy K. Smith has a fairly typical upbringing in suburban California: the youngest in a family of five children raised with limitless affection and a firm belief in God by a stay-at-home mother and an engineer father. But after spending a summer in Alabama at her grandmother's home, she returns to California with a new sense of what it means for her to be Black: from her mother's memories of picking cotton as a girl in her father's field for pennies a bushel to her parents' involvement in the Civil Rights Movement.
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Simply spoken - poetic
- By CarolynneRHarris on 04-27-15
By: Tracy K. Smith
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Expecting Adam
- A True Story of Birth, Rebirth, and Everyday Magic
- By: Martha Beck
- Narrated by: Joyce Bean
- Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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From the moment Martha and her husband, John, conceived their second child, all hell broke loose. They were a couple obsessed with success. After years of matching IQs and test scores with less driven peers, they had two Harvard degrees apiece and were gunning for more. But the dream had begun to disintegrate. Then, when their unborn son, Adam, was diagnosed with Down syndrome, doctors, advisers, and friends in the Harvard community warned them not to keep the baby.
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True Life Fairy Tale
- By Desarae on 11-27-13
By: Martha Beck
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10:04
- By: Ben Lerner
- Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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In the last year, the narrator of 10:04 has enjoyed unexpected literary success, has been diagnosed with a potentially fatal heart condition, and has been asked by his best friend to help her conceive a child, despite his dating a rising star in the visual arts. In a New York of increasingly frequent super storms and political unrest, he must reckon with his biological mortality, the possibility of a literary afterlife, and the prospect of (unconventional) fatherhood in a city that might soon be under water.
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A novel worth reading
- By Bradley Paul Valentine on 01-29-15
By: Ben Lerner
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Nearly Normal
- Surviving the Wilderness, My Family and Myself
- By: Cea Sunrise Person
- Narrated by: Cea Sunrise Person
- Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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In her best-selling memoir North of Normal, Cea wrote with grace about her unconventional childhood - her early years living in a tipi in Alberta with her pot-smoking, free-loving counterculture family. But her struggles do not end when she leaves her family at the age of 13 to become a model. Honest and daring, Nearly Normal reveals the many ways that Cea's unconventional childhood continues to reverberate through the years.
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This one is just not for me
- By Pamela Plimpton on 03-15-19
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Full Circle
- By: Michael Thomas Ford
- Narrated by: Blake Somerset
- Length: 17 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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History professor Ned Brummel is living happily with his partner of 12 years in small-town Maine when he receives a phone call from his estranged friend - Jack - telling him that another friend - Andy - is very ill and possibly near death. As Ned boards a plane to Chicago on his way to his friend's bedside, he embarks on another journey into memory, examining the major events and small moments that have shaped his world and his relationships with these two very different, very important men.
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To Every Season...
- By Donald on 10-01-13
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Cartwheels in a Sari
- A Memoir of Growing Up Cult
- By: Jayanti Tamm
- Narrated by: Jayanti Tamm
- Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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In this colorful, eye-opening memoir, Jayanti Tamm offers an unforgettable glimpse into the hidden world of growing up cult in mainstream America. Through Jayanti's fascinating story, the first book to chronicle Sri Chinmoy, she unmasks a leader who convinces thousands of disciples to follow him, scores of nations to dedicate monuments to him, and throngs of celebrities (Sting, Pope John Paul II, Nelson Mandela) to extol him.
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A Must-Listen
- By Lauren on 04-14-10
By: Jayanti Tamm
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The Unspeakable
- And Other Subjects of Discussion
- By: Meghan Daum
- Narrated by: Meghan Daum
- Length: 6 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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It's a report tempered by hard times. In "Matricide", Daum unflinchingly describes a parent's death and the uncomfortable emotions it provokes; and in "Diary of a Coma" she relates her own journey to the twilight of the mind. But Daum also operates in a comic register. With perfect precision, she reveals the absurdities of the marriage-industrial complex, of the New Age dating market, and of the peculiar habits of the young and digital.
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Complaining about her dead mom.
- By Erik Hermansen on 11-23-14
By: Meghan Daum
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Scale
- A Novel
- By: Keith Buckley
- Narrated by: Keith Buckley
- Length: 5 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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As a hopeless and struggling indie rock musician, Ray Goldman's best chance of discovering any beauty and purpose in his dysfunctional life will come only when he ceases to struggle against life itself. Scale chronicles Ray Goldman’s journey downward through the adversarial trials that sometimes prove necessary in facilitating an eventual ascent into truth and happiness. The odd chapters of the novel find Ray, now a 31-year-old guitar player, seeking fulfillment in the wake of a life-altering tragedy.
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Poor Presentation
- By mmacedonia on 04-16-19
By: Keith Buckley
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One Amazing Thing
- By: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
- Narrated by: Purva Bedi, Soneela Nankani, Neil Shah
- Length: 7 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Winner of a Pushcart Prize for poetry and an American Book Award for her short stories, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni explores themes of women, immigration, and her vibrant Indian culture to great effect. Divakaruni expands on these ideas in One Amazing Thing, a project long in the making and full of electric prose.
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An ok way to kill some time
- By R.Reader on 11-07-12
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The Opposite of Loneliness
- Essays and Stories
- By: Marina Keegan
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 5 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Marina Keegan's star was on the rise when she graduated magna cum laude from Yale in May 2012. She had a play that was to be produced at the New York International Fringe Festival and a job waiting for her at the New Yorker. Tragically, five days after graduation, Marina died in a car crash. Even though she was just 22 when she died, Marina left behind a rich, expansive trove of prose that, like her title essay, captures the hope, uncertainty, and possibility of her generation.
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Probably buy the book too.
- By Soupergirl on 09-14-15
By: Marina Keegan
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I'm Supposed to Protect You from All This
- A Memoir
- By: Nadja Spiegelman
- Narrated by: Nadja Spiegelman
- Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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For a long time, Nadja Spiegelman believed her mother was a fairy. More than her famous father, Maus creator Art Spiegelman, and even more than most mothers, hers - French-born New Yorker art director Françoise Mouly - exerted a force over reality that was both dazzling and daunting. As Nadja's body changed and "began to whisper to the adults around me in a language I did not understand", their relationship grew tense.
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Aweful
- By Haley Abreu on 07-05-17
By: Nadja Spiegelman
What listeners say about Reclaiming My Decade Lost in Scientology
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Beth Eden
- 11-20-22
Excellent
It explains the warning signs of cults and families. It presented my experience as a former Mormon with similar characteristics.
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- Jillian
- 02-22-21
excellent memoir
Author was authentic, honest, & captivating in the telling of her story. from her familial relationships to her friendships within the Church, she eloquently shares her experiences, emotions, & thoughts are she grappled with finding her own path in life. so well done.
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- Anonymous User
- 09-27-21
Book about the beginning levels of Scientology
This is an interesting book about a normal person‘s experience in Scientology. I feel the author gives an honest account… the good, the bad and the ugly. The author admits that she still sees value in some of the things she learned through Scientology coursework, but is also able to acknowledge the things she didn’t agree with, including the things that ultimately led her to stop practicing Scientology.
I liked that this book discusses,
in detail, what low level classes are like and what they teach. She was a student and eventually a course instructor. She sees value in the lessons of Scientology (at least in the lower levels) but warns it is not worth the journey due to the harsh practices of upper management and the “all or nothing” stance the religion takes.
I saw some reviews saying this book wasn’t even about Scientology, but it is. Actually it’s about 70% her life in Scientology and 30% about her life before and after Scientology. I think the background, including her childhood, is important to the story, as it helps to explain what drew her to Scientology in the first place.
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- Barbara Verster
- 11-26-21
A must for the curious.
Thought provoking.
Answer a lot of questions. A must for the spiritual and those wanting to give Scientology a chance.
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- Victoria JD.
- 02-16-22
Quite Interesting /Interesting Subject
I found this to be very interesting. as stated above. It's very well written and narrated by the author. I knew little about Scientology. I think this is a very thorough description of it. I love English, words, spelling, etc., but it sounds like it's much more like school rather than to learn about God, our Creator.
It's sad that money is such a necessary thing. I suppose that "they" didn't care about those who are physically disabled, on disability, which would mean that there would be very little money. In fact, it would be impossible.
It seems that God and His son, Jesus, are not at the forefront of this group. Matthew 10:8 says "You received free, give free"
Jesus didn't force people to pay to learn about the Bible, which many believe is God's Holy Inspired Book. He was content to preach his Father's Word freely, to whoever wanted to learn about Him.
Anyhow, I had no idea there's so much online and in other forms about Scientology, exposing it for what it is, appeared to be to those that gave it a try.
I'm glad that the author was able to finally see what was behind the scenes.
Learning about words, is fine, but it's got nothing for the most part, about God. I couldn't imagine the amount of money "they" require. to learn. There are probably some college courses about the English language that would be do much more affordable.
This is so interesting and very informative however. Cheers to the author for such a complete description about it. Thank you.
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- J. Gossard
- 11-01-23
Well written travelogue of authors emotional journey
The author narrated her book and did it exceptionally well. I did enjoy her literary style and her wrestling with many facets of her life but eventually tired of the slow progress of the story. I have read many books on Scientology and Hall’s telling comes from an unique perspective.
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- Lisa Martin
- 05-24-18
Thoughtful!
Excellent exploration of the author’s experiences, touching on deep themes such as the need to find meaning in one’s life. Enjoyed the narration and sprinkling of song. Well done!
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1 person found this helpful
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- Susan M. Winfree
- 10-04-23
Honest and Natural
Great book. I loved the author/narrator and the insights into Scientology. A bit drawn out at the end, but the body of the story was very interesting and entertaining.
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- Cheri
- 11-07-20
Not Quite What Was Expected
It was...interesting, in its way. I found the constant shifting between backstories and characters to be confusing at times, and the subtle self-promotions inserted throughout began to illicit some eye-rolling on my part after the third or fourth one.
Still, it was important to hear another take on the ludicrousness of Scientology, albeit more lukewarm than I felt it should have been, but Sands did challenge my objectivity several many times.
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- Blue777
- 03-03-21
Great Book. Thank you....look at that wall ;)
The most amazing thing about Scientology is why it has not been closed down. Scientology has become a sad social experiment kept alive because people have freedom of choice. Unfortunately after joining a cult your freedom becomes dramatically diminished.
Once you understand cults you move very quickly to the idea that cult + time = religion. It will be interesting to see if Scientology one day becomes a "real" religion.
This book is Sands Hall biographical story of life as a Scientologist. She is surprising positive about group that destroys lives. She includes some of the semantics used in Scientology designed to reconstruct the person's cult reality.
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