Uncultured was an interesting read, but I wouldn't recommend it. The first half of the book is her experiences as a child in the Children of God cult growing up in communes in Brazil. I have never read any other books about this cult so it was very interesting. The second half of the book is her experiences in the military and she compares those to her childhood in the cult. While her experiences as a woman in the military are so valuable, I think it's important to note that everything is viewed through a lense of abuse and trauma, not psychology. If you are interested in reading about cults, I'd recommend Educated and Cultish instead.

This memoir was a harrowing read. The author recounted traumatic experiences growing up in the Children of God cult and later as an adult in the military with clarity and candor. She draws insightful parallels in her powerful reflections.

Daniella Mestyanek Young' has lived an extraordinary live. Uncultured is a story to inspire all!
The first third of the book describes a fascinating upbringing in Brazil in the cult "The Children Of God." Mestyanek Young's stories of the cult will send chills down your back and also provide more insight on how smaller, lesser known cults operate.

After a traumatic childhood, Daniella escapes the cult and finds herself in the military after completing high school. This new organization shares many similarities to her experience as a child and her experiences as a woman in the military, give light to a broken system. If you like memoirs, stories about cults, or just want to read an incredible story of a strong heroine, Uncultured is for you!
#StMartinsPress #Uncultured #daniellaMestyanekYoung

This is a no holds barred unflinching memoir that details a life spent trapped within circles bigger than oneself. Young's experiences in the Children of God seem unimaginable but they were very real. Her struggles once she was freed are appalling (talk about falling through the cracks). Her life in the US Army was not the haven she thought it would be. Throughout it all, she kept her head up and her eyes focused forward. It's beautifully written and you, like me, should find yourself alternately shaking your head and rooting for her. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Great read.

I do not read a lot of memoirs, but two things stood out to me in the blurb for this one:
1) Daniella grows up in a cult and I’d just finished watching Keep Sweet, Pray and Obey - plus cults are fascinating (in a bad way) and watching someone escape a cult is fascinating (in a good way).
2) The blurb compared it to Educated.

This was a hard read, the things Daniella went through as a child were horrific. Daniella reaches some extreme low points several times in her life. Check the content warnings on storygraph for a full list, most of which is pretty clear from the blurb.

Ultimately, Daniella finds strength from telling her story and thinking about the lengths that people will go to find community, and I think this is a very important read.

In Uncultured, Daniella Mestyanek Young describes her journey from a childhood in the Children of God cult to an adulthood in a different kind of cult, the US Army. Throughout, Young discusses the group behavior that kept her stuck in place, and how that kind of behavior can look benign at first.

This is one of the best memoirs I’ve ever read. Young’s writing is clear, concise, and beautiful. Her story is at times heartbreaking, at times heartwarming, and it builds up the reader’s empathy—an under-appreciated but sorely needed trait. Young never veers into lurid or graphic detail when discussing her cult or Army days, which makes her message about the dangers of unquestioned group behavior stand out even more strongly. Most of all, this book is a beacon of hope. Everybody should read Uncultured. You can’t read it without walking away changed, and that change is, without question, for the better.

As a fan of reading about cults, I went into this book thinking it was only about The Children of God. Imagine my surprise when we were past Daniella’s time in The Children of God and not even halfway through the book. And what a book this was. It was amazing to read about Daniella’s experiences and how each of them informed her next journey in life. As much as this book portrayed the horrifying realities of The Children of God, it also laid bare the terrifying experiences of women in the US Army. Thank you, Daniella, for sharing your story of strength and courage. This is one I highly recommend.

An absolutely fantastic memoir that fans of stories about cults, resilience, and women's rights will love

Uncultured is the kind of book you read straight through because you have to know what happens next. It holds no punches, with Mestyanek Young calling out the ills of groupthink and misogyny based on her harrowing life experiences, moving from an abusive cult to the US military. I'm not American, so some of the military details were a bit lost on me, but Mestyanek Young's writing is clear, so I didn't feel like I missed much -- it was the thought, the voice, and the horror behind it all that mattered, not the specifics of how the armed forces work.

Kudos to Mestyanek Young for writing this, for coming out the other side and breaking cycles.

An absolutely fantastic memoir that fans of stories about cults, resilience, and women's rights will love. I first learned about the Children of God when reading Faith Jones' memoir Sex Cult Nun. Upon realizing that Daniella was also a member, I wasn't sure how similar their stories would be. While the two women experienced equally grueling and awful sexual assault and abuse within the Children of God, their memoirs each offer very different insights and experiences. I found Daniella's commentary on her army service and the parallels to cult life to be extremely interesting and thought-provoking. Daniella's resilience is inspiring, and her story is important.

Read if you like
-The Glass Castle, Educated, Sex Cult Nun
-Inspiring memoirs
-Stories about women breaking barriers
-Cult stories

Wow this was a really great memoir. First of all I learned so much. I did not previously know about the children of god cult so all of that information was new to me. As a military spouse this book also caused to me to think, discuss, and ask questions about the experiences friends of mine have had while active duty (specifically my female friends who have served.)
The memoir is well written, informative, and thought provoking I definitely recommend this one!
Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the e-copy in exchange for an honest review!

This book was sad, inspiring and did I mention sad?

I kept having to close the book and pace my reading because emotions would come up all the time.

Written in such a truthful voice I cannot believe what Daniella has gone through.

She writes of her experiences, almost dreamily and that tone is set for the entire book.

Wonderfully written, at times difficult to read, but wow what a beautiful "memoir".

Wow. I mean, wow, wow, wow. Daniella Mestyanek Young's debut release, Uncultured, is in a category all of it's own. This hauntingly beautiful story of bravery, survival and the sheer will power to break free is one that will stay with me forever. Uncultured is broke into three sections: The Family, The System and The Army.

The deep dive Daniella takes into describing The Children of God cult and The Family, as they call themselves, is hard to read. It's supposed to be hard to read. Children should not have adult responsibilities hoisted onto their shoulders, deprived of an education, or face abuse at every single turn. Where do you go when every adult around you is a monster or an enabler of a monster? More than once I had to flip back a few pages to make sure I had her age right at the time of certain events. The fact that Daniella was able to keep her mind sharp is a testament to her strength and grit. She was simply not born to fit in and our world is a better place because of it.

Daniella's section of The System left me frustrated and hopeful. Frustrated that our social nets are not designed for children like Daniella and the hurdles she had to clear for an education alarming. As a United States citizen it shouldn't have been that hard. The System section of Uncultured stands on its own, not for the shockingly cruel childhood Daniella was born into, but for the mountain she built to overcome and learn to cope with the hand she was dealt in life.

The Army is where the book became so all consuming I could not set it down. My husband was active duty before being medically retired and we too were stationed at Fort Campbell, KY with the 101st Airborne though he was 4th ID. He also did his AIT at Fort Jackson, SC and thank you Daniella for being honest about your experience in boot camp. The system is designed to fail women in the service. I saw that as a former spouse and it was gut-wrenching to see what should have been a long lasting, impact making career be sidelined over absolute garbage. I fumed so loudly reading the final few chapters I woke my husband up from a dead sleep.

If there is any message I want to give the author, Daniella, it's thank your brutal honesty. Thank you for using names and connecting them to real people, some of whom are still waiting the real life consequences they deserve. Thank you for surviving and sharing your story. The underlying message about cults and cult-like groups is incredibly relevant with where we are in the world.

All the stars, all the glitter, this book is amazing and everyone needs to read it!

Content Warnings: Child abuse [physical, verbal, sexual], rape [on page], pedophilia, indoctrination, kidnapping, child brides, forced family separation, conditioning, injury [burn], suicidal ideations, racism, toxic relationships, confinement, sexism, depression, homophobia, sexual harassment, war, violence, and death.

I received an ARC, ahead of release, through St Martin's Press through their influencer program.

Daniella's story is incredibly powerful and inspiring...showing the strength of a woman who's been through so much. As the first memoir, I've ever read it had me extremely emotional and required a few breaks to get through.

There were so many words that I strongly related to...some that reminded me of my teen years when I couldn't possibly fathom surviving until 18. The idea that I could survive my youth seemed impossible...either my abuser would end me or I'd end myself...I saw no other way. As an adult, I'm incredibly happy that some little tiny voice always told me to keep going no matter how much I tried to drown it out. Other words inspired me and had me wishing I read those words when I was going through my own trauma.

Incredibly powerful and moving read... everything Daniella experienced and overcame...unimaginable pain and trauma that she endured and persevered through.

I had to really think about this one before I penned this review. There is so much for me to unpack.
The writing is solid. Mestyanek Young is skilled at pulling the reader into her world with emotion and tension and disbelief. At various times I cringed, I got angry and I was cheering her on. The book is a fantastic examination of life inside and outside of The Children of God cult. I expected the book to give me a big picture of how her pain and suffering affected her whole life, but it was so much more than that. Not only does the book give readers an inside look into the cult, it gives us a shocking look into the culture of the American Armed Forces and what it means to be a woman inside that kind of "cult".
An excellent and riveting account of an abused and brainwashed little girl who takes a long time to realize just how deep her wounds go and her attempt to outrun her pain and trauma.
PS: She wins.
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's press for the ARC.

*Publish date 9/20/22 - Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for the advanced e-copy of this book.

WOW! In her memoir, Daniella Mestyanek Young delivers a heart wrenching look inside two very distinct and very structured organizations. Daniella was born into the Children of God (a religious cult) and shares unthinkable and abhorrent experiences about growing up as a member of "The Family". Her mother moves Daniella and her siblings from commune to commune in various countries such as Brazil and Mexico. She is subjected to emotional, physical, and sexual abuse from those who say that they love her and want the best for her. Despite being told from an early age that this is for her own good and how God's love is shown, Daniella knows that this is wrong and yearns to leave. At 16, she is finally able to do so. She finishes high school in Texas and becomes Valedictorian of her college class. Still trying to find a place to belong, she pursues the intelligence branch of the Army. It seems, however, that she has traded one cult for another one. Men still are the dominant power figures, and she suffers emotional, physical, and sexual abuse - for the greater good. Still, Daniella overcomes. Still ,she has hope. Still, she looks for good.

This memoir is beautifully written, and you will ache with Daniella as she hurts and cheer as she triumphs. This book will live with you for awhile. I would just love to meet her! Highly recommend!

I think it can be easy to lose sight of the impact on the individual when we hear about actions of cults. Daniella’s story gives so much insight not only into her life growing up in a cult, but into how trauma can continue to impact a person’s life and choices. This novel details both her earlier life in a cult and her early adult life in the army. The parallels between the two were not something I had really thought about before, and this novel shed light on the danger of unquestioning group think and the negative impact that can have on group members. Daniella’s story is important and can help people feel less alone.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My Selling Pitch:
Do you want to read a memoir about a girl who survived the Children of God cult and went on to have a career in the military? Do you want to read about systemic military corruption?

Pre-reading:
True crime vibes from the cover.

Thick of it:
Yes, the military is another cult.

God this is so sad. I hate religion. I hate men.

I went to type I hate religion, I hate men again. God like that’s going to be this entire book. Fuckkkk. I just fundamentally don’t understand these fucking idiots and their absolute cruelty.

So heavens girl is on Wikipedia. I hate men. I have no faith in humanity. Holy fuck.

This man is pure evil.

God, the most basic google and there are so many victims.

The Capricorn party must be a nightmare lol.

Chick fil a.

I'd love to read those school papers.

This. Book. Is. So. Hard. To. Read.

It’s very good, just like so upsetting to be a lady.

Oh, John.

Wow, I never knew that about red hair!

What downsides, assholes?

Fuck general order one. Fuck all this. Just stop raping and controlling women. It’s not fucking hard.

Yes. Yes, they do.

I’m hormonal and about to get my period, but fuck that made me tear up.

This book is gonna make me cry at work holy shit.

Mr. President, We’re Not Lesbians is the best chapter title omg.


Post-reading:
Wow, so hard to read. I felt guilty putting it down, but I definitely took breaks with this book. It’s a memoir, so it’s her life experiences, so it’s really hard to critique it. What she went through is horrific. Her story is so valuable. If you go in not knowing about the Children of God cult or much about the army’s corruption you will learn a lot. I think the book misses its 5 star sparkle just because it is a little bare bones. It’s definitely a recount of everything that happened, and she starts to go into how it’s impacted her and her way of thinking, but I think there could’ve been some more depth there. I also feel like it ends a smidge abruptly. We don’t really get any information about how she readjusted to the rest of the world after leaving the army- just that she did. Also, fair warning, it’s just gonna be upsetting to read. I think most women at this point know life sucks based strictly on our sex, but it’s still hard to read about how shitty it is, and how many shitty, shitty people are keeping the world stuck like this.

Who should read this:
People interested in cults
Feminists
People interested in military corruption

Do I want to reread this:
No, I think I’ll just remember it.

Similar books:
* Educated by Tara Westover-memoir about escaping religious extremism
* Excavation by Wendy C. Ortiz-memoir about childhood grooming

WOW. Thank you Daniella for taking the time to write this for the world to see the dangers of cult (and cult think) and learn from her experiences. I am amazed by her bravery and strength- she took hardship and turned it into motivation. She found a way out of the Children of God cult and built her own knowledge and career by sheer self-determination, even when she had both emotional and real-life roadblocks to overcome.

This is a must-read. There is so much to take away from this and I am thankful that Daniella was brilliant enough to overcome and to BE BETTER. She didn't let her childhood or her challenges define her. This is a fascinating story- one that brough real tears to my eyes more than once.

wow, what a powerful memoir. I loved reading her story of growing up in the Children of God cult, followed by her time in the army. Content warnings abound in this book, but it was beautifully written. I rooted for her all throughout my reading.