Lost Boy: The True Story of One Man's Exile from a Polygamist Cult and His Brave Journey to Reclaim His Life

By Brent W. Jeffs and Maia Szalavitz

Book Overview

In the polygamous Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS), girls can become valuable property as plural wives, but boys are expendable, even a liability. In this powerful and heartbreaking account, former FLDS member Brent Jeffs reveals both the terror and the love he experienced growing up on his prophet's compound--and the harsh exile existence that so many boys face once they have been expelled by the sect. Brent Jeffs is the nephew of Warren Jeffs, the imprisoned leader of the FLDS. The son of a prominent family in the church, Brent could have grown up to have multiple wives of his own and significant power in the 10,000-strong community. But he knew that behind the group's pious public image--women in chaste dresses carrying babies on their hips--lay a much darker reality. So he walked away, and was the first to file a sexual-abuse lawsuit against his uncle. Now Brent shares his courageous story and that of many other young men who have become "lost boys" when they leave the FLDS, either by choice or by expulsion. Brent experienced firsthand the absolute power that church leaders wield--the kind of power that corrupts and perverts those who will do anything to maintain it. Once young men no longer belong to the church, they are cast out into a world for which they are utterly unprepared. More often than not, they succumb to the temptations of alcohol and other drugs. Tragically, Brent lost two of his brothers in this struggle, one to suicide, the other to overdose. In this book he shows that lost boys can triumph and that abuse and trauma can be overcome, and he hopes that readers will be inspired to help former FLDS members find their way in the world.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0767931785
• ISBN13: 9780767931786
• Release Date: July 2010
• Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.2" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

Emotional, profound, inside info

If you’re wanting go to read about the FLDS but also get an idea of how it was ran, this is the one to start with. You can get a closer look at what he was like.

Lost Boy is a revealing story of the trouble in the FLDS.

Lost Boy is such a sad story of sexual abuse and what happens to people when they are kept in isolation and subjugation. People leaving this cult must indeed be very strong people to want lead a new life of freedom.

Sadly But Remarkably Englightening

Lost Boy is an easy but most informative read. It is written in first person and in a way that is soft spoken. Young Brent Jeffs, the author, tells it from his heart and the reader can feel his honesty. It is the testimony of a loving family whose life was manipulated by a a "man-made" belief system that stripped them of all human dignity and independence. The saddest part was that Brent's family, such as it was with many family members, were decent and caring peope, but who were deceived by a charismatic and obsessed self-proclaimed prophet, in the name of Warren Jeffs. The family of young Brent showed great courage in their escape from this self-serving religious sect. But most remarkably was the courage and fortitude of Brent, who found the will and strength to cross over into the world of self-determination. I found his story to be forthcoming and inspirational. Brent Jeffs is an admirable young man. I read his book in a short time because it is easy to read. It makes one appreciate the freedom of the mind to make one's own decisions about their journey in life.

The Lost Boy - A sad but inspirational story

A deep inside look at the fears, pain and confusion of one of the Lost Boys - this one a nephew of the leader of this cult. It was a gripping story from start to finish and I understand a lot more now about the lives of these people.

A very honest honest look at the FLDS

Although I have nothing against the Mormon faith, I am against abuse of power. And yet again we have a very honest look at the total abuse of power within the FLDS. It may be hard to read, but it was one thousand times harder to live thrugh it. I for one, am very glad that Brent Jeffs did survive to tell his story. Others in his family were not as lucky. I'm sure even now there are family members who think what he has done is so wrong. I believe, like Brent Jeffs, it will help them in the long run.

Preying on Ignorance, Fear and Innocence

Hard as it was to read, I finished this book in one day. Told with a tenderness mixed with outrage, Brent Jeffs' reflections on growing up in the FLDS opens a window to the secret teachings that hold such sway over ignorant but well-intended "faithful" FLDS households. Knowing nothing else, and kept confined in compounds of like-minded believers whose main duties are to be obedient to the prophet's teachings and to "stay sweet" (i.e. go along to get along), it is hard to garner the courage to leave when one knows leaving means loss of family contact and eternal damnation - not easy consequences to bear for leaving the only lifestyle and belief system one has ever known. The saving grace in Jeff's book comes from his brutal honesty tempered by a compassion which, thankfully, the crimes committed against him and others in this sect by those in authority over them could not stamp out. Paramount is his mother's constant love and his father's ultimate decision to choose his family over his church. It is a riviting tale exposing the heartache of polygamos marriage and the sick society that accompanies it. The trial and ultimate conviction of Warren Jeffs is hardly recompence for the damage done to Brent Jeffs and other "lost boys." Highly recommend this book.