Wow!  This book was very interesting and gave a perspective that isn't known to too many people.  I feel for Wallace and everything that he had to go through.  I can't imagine the pain of not having a close relationship with his family as a little child and then losing on and off his wives and children.  I don't know much about this religion and what happened with Warren Jeffs but I do remember hearing bits and pieces.  I am glad that Wallace was able to write his story and tell his side of what he believes was right and what was wrong.  Props to you Mr. Jeffs.

Received this book as an ARC for my honest review.

Destroying Their God by Wallace Jeffs from Zarahemla Books is an enlightening look into the FLDS.   At times it was disturbing, maddening, frightening, confusing, and heart wrenching. Wallace Jeffs along with Shauna Packer and Sherry Taylor presented an informative look into the world of a cult.  Families are brainwashed from birth, abused by the head of the family and the head of their church and kept locked away from the rest of the world. These members are completely controlled and accept it as this is all they know. The extreme measures the members of this God loving religion (?) go to, to "punish" Mr. Jeff's for speaking out against the FLDS ordered by the church leader and Wallace's own half brother is unbelievable. 
This very well written book is a very interesting, hard to believe, hard to put down and a very worthwhile read.  
Thank you Netgalley, Wallace Jeffs, Shauna Packer, Sherry Taylor and Zarahemla Books for a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.

I couldn't put this book down. It tells of the FLDS church from the perspective of Warren Jeffs half brother Wallace Jeffs. It gives you a look at his life from childhood to adulthood. I highly recommend this book. 

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

A quick, captivating read that offers an inside look at FLDS church.  Very disturbing but it is a compulsive read. Most books written about FLDS are from a woman's prospective and this is from the half brother of Warren Jeffs, it is nice to get a male view on the subject.

Warren Jeffs is the current and infamous leader of Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS). He is also the half-brother of Wallace Jeffs, the author of 'Destroying Their God.' FLDS is an offshoot of Mormonism, though the Mormon Church does not recognize it. Polygamist Mormons formed FLDS after the Mormon Church renounced polygamy in 1890.[1]

Warren Jeffs is currently serving a life sentence for child sexual assault. He married and raped young girls, forced his wives to have sex with each other, and built a creepy ranch to keep his followers from having any contact with the outside world. 'Destroying Their God' is a fascinating glimpse into the insular FLDS community and how Warren Jeffs used fear, exploitation, and isolation to consolidate power and commit loathsome crimes in the name of God.

Summary of 'Destroying Their God'

'Destroying Their God' is also Wallace Jeffs’ personal story. 

In 'Destroying Their God,' Jeffs chronicles his life as a “plyg kid.” The book begins with Jeffs’ 2011 car accident that he assumes is a murder attempt, punishment for leaving the FLDS church. It sets the stage for the fear and deception we see later in the book.

Jeffs goes on to tell the story of his childhood. It gets particularly interesting in chapter 5 when Jeffs moves into the big house with all his father’s wives and children. Later his father, Rulon Jeffs, becomes profit, the leader of FLDS—a living God.

As a child, Jeffs is a loner and a little too curious. He questions his religion on and off throughout his childhood because he isn’t happy with his home life.

The FLDS community has always been insular and distrusting, but over the course of Jeff’s childhood, it becomes worse. 'In Destroying Their God' Jeffs explains, “As members of the church, we had access to computers, television, and newspapers, but we were told not to believe anything we heard, read, or saw because everything reported by the media was a complete lie.” When Jeffs is in sixth grade, Rulon takes all his kids out of public school and sends them to a school of his own creation in the basement of the big house. By the time Warren gets full control of the church, everyone is completely paranoid and there is almost no contact with the outside world.

Polygamy and the Law of Sarah

For me, the most interesting part of the book is the polygamy and the Bible cherry picking that the FLDS church uses to justify it.

To sum up Wallace Jeffs’ view of polygamy, it is no fun. Although, he might be biased given that his father forced him into polygamy. (He had two wives and 20 children.)

Jeffs explains, “sex was a chore—if you weren’t trying to impregnate your wife, she could report you to the prophet… it was a job you must do to be exalted.” He estimates that “ninety percent of FLDS men marry multiple wives out of fear for their livelihoods and families, not for any perverse sexual reasons.” 

He also explains how jealous the wives become of one another: “fights between the mothers often turned physical resulting in kicking, slapping, and ripping out each other’s hair. The arguments usually started in the kitchen but soon moved to Father’s office for him to settle the dispute. Father would generally speak to the disputing wives quietly and use scriptural doctrine to diffuse the situation. Then he would send the women, shamed and humbled, on their way.” To mitigate these arguments, Rulon encourages his wives to live the Law of Sarah.

Genesis 16:3, which Jeffs quotes in the book, says, “and Sarai Abram’s wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.” This is the scriptural basis for what the FLDS church refers to as the Law of Sarah. Sarai is later called Sarah in the bible, hence Law of Sarah. It’s all very Handmaid’s Tale like, though Atwood used a later verse from Genesis as the basis for The Handmaid’s Tale.

Jeffs says that the Law of Sarah is “the highest order a woman can achieve in the FLDS religion…Under the Law of Sarah, mothers sacrifice by generously sharing their husband among them and allowing their children to be nurtured by all the women in the household.” In 'Destroying Their God,' we see Rulon use the Law of Sarah to guilt his wives into getting along. 

Later, Warren creates a new covenant called the “Fullness of the Law of Sarah.” It states, “The wives must ‘yearn for each other equally,’ accept each other sexually, and watch as other wives performed heavenly comfort on him.” 

It’s obvious by this time that Warren has absolute power. In 'Warren Jeffs: Prophet of Evil' former FLDS member Elissa Wall says, “In our religion, we had a prophet. And he was the one man on earth who was God to us. For many generations any logic or any reasoning or thinking. These were slowly weeded out, all in the name of religion. I look back on it and Warren didn’t just appear out of nowhere. An entire society created him. They all prepared the pathway that he came on.” [2]

Who Should Read 'Destroying Their God'

'Destroying Their God' is an interesting book for any adult. It’s well written, clear, and conversational. Jeffs didn’t have to do any research for his book since most of it is his own first-hand experiences with FLDS. But if you’re a skeptic like me, there is plenty of news coverage online to back up his story. How could the media not report on a polygamist splinter religion turned child molesting cult? 

'Destroying Their God' also brings up important points about indoctrinating children and using of fear to consolidate power. If you’re concerned about the adult content in this book and you are an adult, fear not. It is pretty tame, especially compared to the A&E documentary I referenced.

1. "The Polygamists."
2. "Warren Jeffs: Prophet of Evil."

For a full bibliography, visit https://pickingbooks.com/blog/destroying-their-god

When I was first approached to review this novel, I wasn’t certain about how I would get on but it has completely captured my attention, and I raced through it in less than a day!

Not only a true story, this a humbling tale of a truly decent man indoctrinated from birth to believe in the right of one human to create the rules he must live by. It is a rare insight into the lives of those in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and a riveting read. Wallace Jeffs tried so hard to follow the teachings of the church he loved, even though he didn’t always agree with all the instructions handed down. He didn’t walk away lightly – in fact, he almost didn’t walk at all ever again.

I believe in having a strong respect for other faiths and religions; ever since watching the TV series ‘Big Love’, the lives of polygamists has fascinated me (not that I would ever want to be one!). This is not a light-hearted novel; rather, it is a serious read full of distasteful events – but not on the part of the author. Once I began reading, this book just swallowed me up, heart and soul. It is thought-provoking in the extreme, and it’s certainly not a story I’ll forget in a hurry. It would seem the situation is ongoing and that, for the families involved, is a real tragedy. If you have any interest whatsoever in justice being served, this is a novel I fully recommend.

My thanks to Zarahemia Books for providing my copy. This is my honest, original and unbiased review.

This is a engrossing and enlightening book written by the brother of Warren Jeffs about the devastation caused by that “leader” to his believers and followers.  I found it to be quite heartbreaking yet uplifting. I was fascinated from beginning to end.  I highly recommend.
My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Raised in the polygamist FLDS sect, the author Wallace Jeffs and half-brother of the disgraced incarcerated prophet of the sect Warren Jeffs tells his incredible shocking story in “Destroying Their God: How I Fought My Evil Half Brother To Save My Children”. Most of these true stories are told by women from a maternal perspective. Jeffs account offers a rare fascinating insider look of the church leadership and hierarchy from a male perspective, and how Jeffs contacted the FBI and began his battle against his brother and the FLDS church in 2012.

Wallace’s own mother (Sharon) was a registered nurse; her income was greatly needed to support her husband’s Rulon Jeffs increasing number of polygamist wives and children. Wallace was raised by his aunt “Mother Marilyn” (who was his mother’s sister). Marilyn, it seemed was an obnoxious self-important narcissist who believed only her children were of the “chosen seed”.  Warren was raised in spoiled entitlement fostered by both parents. Warren was a liar and bully who constantly tattled on his younger siblings and put them in danger with his cowardice, poor example and terrible leadership. Warren’s youthful hero was Adolf Hitler; he learned German and spoke the language when possible. All of Warren’s misdeeds, glaring problems and fondness for groping young girls was never addressed, and he could do no wrong according to both parents. It’s not surprising Warren seemed to turn into a human monster, his behavior worsened over time as be became ego driven, irrational and fanatical. These traits were particularly noticeable after he assumed the role of the prophet in the FLDS sect.
It was difficult to understand why the author remained in this bizarre FLDS cult. He acknowledged from childhood on, his upbringing had been miserable and chaotic. The relationship with his parents and siblings had been detached, unmemorable and poor. As a teen, Wallace determined early he did not want to raise his future family in the FLDS faith. As a successful adult businessman, he had numerous opportunities and resources to leave and establish himself and his large family in the secular community, yet he chose not to do so. The author seemed to deflect and blame his poor decisions and misfortune on other people. Against his own rationale, he married his half niece and had many children with her. He also turned his back on his half-sister when she begged him for help related to her alcohol/substance abuse issues. According to the author, he was a multi-millionaire at the time, and could have easily afforded treatment for her in a rehab facility. Instead, he dropped her off at a homeless shelter. 

By the time of Wallace’s terrible car accident in George Utah on October 23, 2011, that left him hospitalized for two months-- the doctors in the emergency room gave him a 5% chance of survival. There was no investigative police report or proof that Wallace's car had been criminally tampered with before the accident. Even with notes, it was challenging to follow the ever changing events, situations and people involved in the storyline, or fully understand the decisions and choices of the author. In addition, this book might be helpful in future study and research of cult influence and activity.  3* GOOD. **With many thanks to Zarahemla Books via NetGalley for the DDC for the purpose of review.

After watching Wild Wild Country on Netflix I was hungry for more stories of lives from inside radical belief systems. Destroying Their God was just what I was looking for! A very brave story with a unique perspective from child through adulthood. It helped me understand how people can becomw trapped in these worlds and truly believe in their “captors.” Would definitely recommend.

This book provides a very intense and disturbing first-hand account of the FLDS sect led by the tyrant that is Warren Jeffs.  I don't recommend to those who are disturbed by child and spousal abuse, as well as bullying. However, this is an important book regarding the machinations that cult leaders and the like exhibit.

Wow. Will need more time to digest what I've just read ... but ... wow! I have previously read Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer so I have some knowledge of the FLDS but this inside, very subjective view was brutal and shocking. 
The book is written from the point of view of Wallace Jeffs, half brother to the current FLDS prophet (and convicted child sex offender) Warren Jeffs, son of the previous FLDS prophet Rulon Jeffs, and tells his story from childhood and teenage years, growing up in a household of numerous 'mothers' and siblings, through to adulthood, his plural marriages, and his final banishment from the 'Church'. It is a deeply personal account of life within the confines of the FLDS theocracy and the constant conflict individuals experience as they grapple with a leader whose lust for power and control seemingly knows no bounds. 
At times I couldn't believe what I was reading, and it begged me to wonder if some things had been 'sensationalised' for publicity purposes, but whilst there are no sources cited in the book to verify what was written, a simple Google search was all that was required to gather relevant evidence. 
It is clear that Warren Jeffs is evil beyond measure and is more than deserving of his life in prison sentence but what I simply don't understand, even more so after reading this book, is the level of blind obedience given to him by his followers. How is one man able to dominate such a large group of people and basically bend their lives to his will? What is it about him that makes fathers hand over their pre-teen daughters to much older men in marriage? And how is he still able to exert this power and control from behind bars? 
This book certainly raised more questions for me than it answered but I commend the bravery and courage displayed by Wallace in never giving up on his children whilst seeking to expose the FLDS for what it truly is, a despotic, autocratic regime hiding in plain sight in modern day America.
This book will stay with me for a long time and I am thankful to NetGalley for the opportunity to read it.

Destroying Their God is a very informative book by the author Wallace Jeffs, brother of so called FLDS prophet. In his book you will find out much of what goes on in this religion, by his experience. I have heard and read some of the religion, but I still hadn’t learned it all. By itself alone, it is a religion I wouldn’t trust as far as I could throw it, but then, you learn about Warren Jeffs, the authors brother .   I haven’t read anything this horrible in a while that is real and true. And I remember when all this went down. I didn’t know or learn about it all, though. In this book the brother tells it all. All about his brother and all the terrible things he did. And that’s all I’ll say because I want , if you read the book itself, to learn on your own what was actually done by this so called prophet. Don’t be lead astray people. Would I recommend this book? Yes, to adults, because they need to know what’s going on in this religion, so they will not be lead astray by those who obviously doesn’t know the voice of God and especially, by a man, only a man, who was sick and insane by power that he gave to himself and that others gave him, when it was clear that they probably shouldn’t have. It’s a really great book for those who are interested in learning about different religions and especially, how many of them are false.

3 stars

Wallace Jeffs is the half-brother of convicted pedophile and leader of the FLDS church Warren Jeffs. Mr. Jeffs shares his story of what it was like growing up with Warren, his father Rulon who served as “the prophet” of the church, a houseful of siblings and sister wives.


Jeffs offers an insider perspective from the male point of view. I have read a number of books on the FLDS community from women who have managed to escape. I was intrigued to read what a man had to say about polygamy, the various practices of the church and their leaders.

 

This book was well written and very enlightening. I learned a great deal about the FLDS church, their community of believers and the mind control that contributes to almost total obedience to their prophet. A truly frightening look at the horror of mind control experienced within a cult.


I feel like there could have been easily another 100 pages or more added to the book to offer more details. Much of the book is spent in the early years of the author’s life and his eventual struggle with polygamy. I wish more details were included about his leaving the church and struggle to rescue his wives and children. Many details were left out about Jeffs children and their current status.

I am giving this book a 3-star rating due to the many missing pieces of the story.


I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

The mix of religion and current events is always enticing.  This book is an easy and engaging read to provide further insight into the mis-deeds of Warren Jeffs and the disgraceful way he treated people in the name of God.  It is a great reminder that religion can be bad when people give too much authority to a person and follow him or her instead of being led by the Holy Spirit and what God actually says about his character and plan in His Word.  Hoping this book will cause the reader to seek out the truth after exposure to how bad it can be to follow otherwise blindly.

#DestroyingTheirGod #NetGalley

This book grabs you and holds you till the end. Very informative and engrossing. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it.