The first book to tell the full story of the most secretive religion in America

Scientology, created in 1954 by a prolific sci-fi writer named L. Ron Hubbard, claims to be the world's fastest growing religion, with 10 million members in 159 countries, and real-estate holdings valued in the billions of dollars. Its celebrity believers keep its profile high, and it sends teams of "missionaries" to minister at disaster sites like Haiti and Katrina. But it is also a notably closed faith, spending millions of dollars squelching journalists and others through litigation and intimidation, even infiltrating the CIA and other government organizations. Its attacks on psychiatry and its insistence that believers must pay into the tens and even hundreds of thousands of dollars for salvation (known as "being clear") have drawn scrutiny and skepticism. And ex-members use the Internet to share stories of harassment and abuse.

Now Janet Reitman offers the first full journalistic history of the Church of Scientology in an even-handed account that at last establishes the truth about the controversial religion. She traces Scientology's development from its conception to the present day, following its metamorphosis from a pseudo-scientific self-help group to a worldwide spiritual corporation with profound control over its followers and even ex-followers. Based on five years of research, unprecedented access to church officials, and extensive interviews with current and former members of Scientology, this is the defining book about a secretive world.