Take Me for a Ride: Coming of Age in a Destructive Cult

A memoir recounts the author's involvement with a charismatic spiritual leader and the community that formed around him, describing recruitment, daily life, and escalating control that blended spiritual promises with material ambitions. The narrative traces the author's gradual disillusionment, attempts to escape, psychological breakdown, and eventual departure, framed by recurring bicycle journeys that mark reflection and recovery. Interleaved chapters and appendices reproduce internal writings, ads, and course excerpts to illustrate indoctrination techniques and group culture, while analysis explores motives driving young people into such movements and the challenges of regaining autonomy.