Unfollow: A Memoir of Loving and Leaving the Westboro Baptist Church (Unabridged)
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- $21.99
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- $21.99
Publisher Description
The activist and TED speaker Megan Phelps-Roper reveals her life growing up in the most hated family in America
At the age of five, Megan Phelps-Roper began protesting homosexuality and other alleged vices alongside fellow members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas. Founded by her grandfather and consisting almost entirely of her extended family, the tiny group would gain worldwide notoriety for its pickets at military funerals and celebrations of death and tragedy. As Phelps-Roper grew up, she saw that church members were close companions and accomplished debaters, applying the logic of predestination and the language of the King James Bible to everyday life with aplomb - which, as the church’s Twitter spokeswoman, she learned to do with great skill. Soon, however, dialogue on Twitter caused her to begin doubting the church’s leaders and message: If humans were sinful and fallible, how could the church itself be so confident about its beliefs? As she digitally jousted with critics, she started to wonder if sometimes they had a point - and then she began exchanging messages with a man who would help change her life.
A gripping memoir of escaping extremism and falling in love, Unfollow relates Phelps-Roper’s moral awakening, her departure from the church, and how she exchanged the absolutes she grew up with for new forms of warmth and community. Rich with suspense and thoughtful reflection, Phelps-Roper’s life story exposes the dangers of black-and-white thinking and the need for true humility in a time of angry polarization.
Customer Reviews
Amazing story of courage with beautiful prose to boot
I had no idea how much I would like this book, but Megan’s skill of painting a picture with words had me hook, line and sinker by the second chapter. You will cheer her on as she slowly stumbles to the inevitable conclusion regarding her family’s beliefs, and finds the strength to flee the only home (and way of life) she’d ever known.
I can’t recommend this book enough. If you think you know WBC, read this to
learn just how much you don’t know WBC.
Thank you
As a woman who picketed my Christmas service every year, I never could have imagined you would eventually show the world a love and kindness I didn’t not know was possible. Everything about this book is perfect. I hope that, in time, you will have your family back by your side again.