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Anne Schwartz Books
April 29, 2025
978–0593480069
Ages 12 and up
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After you’ve read Death in the Jungle, try this book:
Death in the Jungle
Murder, Betrayal, and the Lost Dream of Jonestown
How did Jim Jones, the leader of Peoples Temple, convince more than 900 of his followers to commit “revolutionary suicide” by drinking cyanide-laced punch? From a master of narrative nonfiction comes a chilling chronicle of one of the most notorious cults in American history.
Using riveting first-person accounts, award-winning author Candace Fleming reveals the makings of a monster: from Jones’s humble origins as a child of the Depression… to his founding of a group whose idealistic promises of equality and justice attracted thousands of followers … to his relocation of Temple headquarters from California to an unsettled territory in Guyana, South America, which he dubbed “Jonestown” … to his transformation of Peoples Temple into a nefarious experiment in mind-control.
And Fleming heart-stoppingly depicts Jones’s final act, persuading his followers to swallow fatal doses of cyanide — to “drink the kool-aid,” as it became known — as a test of their ultimate devotion.
Here is a sweeping story that traces, step by step, the ways in which one man slowly indoctrinated, then murdered, 900 innocent, well-meaning people. And how a few members, Jones’ own son included, stood up to him … but not before it was too late.
Resources
Reviews
“Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple have remained a subject of fascination long after the horrifying, infamous events in Guyana in the 1970s, and Fleming brings her trademark deep research and thoughtful approach to this account of Jones’ ascension and violent downfall. Working roughly chronologically, she begins with Jones’ early life in the Midwest, the initial idea behind the Peoples Temple in Indiana, the opportunistic ways he used rhetoric of social justice and spirituality to attract followers, and the increasing paranoia and conspiratorial thinking that led him to uproot (and, in some cases, kidnap) his followers to Jonestown. Fleming focuses largely on Jones’ increasingly unsettling behavior, but she clearly works hard to give voice to many survivors of Jonestown, allowing them to describe their own reasons for following Jones and how they have dealt with the aftermath. Notably, Fleming emphasizes that Jones’ final violent act was not, as it is often assumed, the consenting suicide of almost 1,000 people; rather, she carefully notes the many documented dissents of his victims. It’s inherently a gruesome story, but she does a skillful job of balancing the need to satisfy readers’ curiosity about the details with empathetic attention paid to the survivors and their families. Teens fascinated by cults will find plenty of that here, but they’ll also come away with a more nuanced understanding of a highly sensationalized historical event.” (Sarah Hunter, Booklist, starred review)
“An account of the pathology and charm of Jim Jones, who led 918 people to their deaths in the Guyanese jungle in 1978. Neglected young Jimmy learned the art of manipulation early — pathos and compliments could earn him a meal from mothers in his small Indiana town. He studied both local preachers and Adolf Hitler to learn persuasive oratory skills and was fascinated by death and power. Marrying in 1949 at age 18, he worked in a Methodist church before hitting the revival circuit as a fraudulent faith healer until he’d attracted enough attention to start his own church. At first, Jones seemed to be a powerful force for good—encouraging full racial integration and providing church members with material as well as spiritual assistance. As his Peoples Temple grew, he began preaching socialism, coercing members to obey nonsensical commands, and convincing them that nuclear annihilation was imminent. He relocated to California and then Guyana, where, despite his heavy drug use, dismissal of the Christian “sky god,” and assumption of the mantle of “earth God,” he held enough sway over his followers to cause their deaths, many by suicide (hundreds of others were murdered). With her trademark precision, absorbing writing, and meticulous research, Fleming leads readers to understand not only what Jones did but how. Her heart-stopping, heart-wrenching work with its substantive backmatter draws heavily on survivors’ memories, both from her own interviews and archival transcripts, and shows how cults strip their victims of autonomy. Extraordinary and illuminating. ” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review)
“In riveting detail, Fleming (The Enigma Girls) recounts the murder of more than 900 Peoples Temple followers in Guyana by American cult leader Jim Jones (1931–1978). A prologue poses complicated questions (“What caused seemingly ‘normal’ people to get caught up in something so fanatical?”), provides historical and contemporary cult definitions, and includes examples of their potentially destructive values and demands. Searing accounts of Peoples Temple survivors and defectors go on to examine Jones’s personal history, which a quote from the subject’s son Stephan asserts one must know to understand the formation of the organization. Frank text notes Jones was “bossy and controlling. And always got his way” during his upbringing in Indiana. Struggling to make ends meet in adulthood, Jones earns money and gains his initial following by traveling with the revival circuit, a nomadic group of preachers who ‘claimed to have been called by God to spread the Gospel.’ An author’s note highlights Fleming’s hope that this fascinating and disturbing work will help readers ‘recognize the destructive groups in their own midst.’ Includes b&w photographs, biographies of key players, and source list.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review)
“Fleming tackles the harrowing story of the Jonestown massacre, at which over 900 people, one-third of whom were children, died in a mass murder-suicide at the direction of Peoples Temple cult leader Jim Jones in Guyana in 1978. She covers how by preaching racial equality and faith healing, Jones, a white, charismatic Pentecostal preacher, founded his church in a poor, segregated section of 1950s Indianapolis. His ministry quickly became popular, particularly among African Americans. Fearing nuclear attack, in 1965, he moved his church and followers to northern California, where he started a communal living compound. He soon expanded, amassing a few thousand followers who signed over everything from their property to even guardianship of their children. Some members became disillusioned, and a few managed to leave, but overall numbers grew. By the early 1970s, Jones renounced all religion, was an avowed socialist, and lived a drug-addicted, paranoid life, controlling every aspect of his followers’ lives. In 1978, reports of financial misconduct and physical abuse led to a Congressional visit and the murder of visiting officials, the antecedent to Jones’s order for “revolutionary suicide.” Fleming’s writing is riveting as she adeptly chronicles Jones’s motivations, appeal, and downward spiral of his mental state while compassionately portraying the heartbreaking account of many victims. Extensive documentation shows her detailed research, including interviews with survivors interested in seeing their story told as a cautionary tale for young people. VERDICT Gripping and wrenching. A must for all libraries.” (Karen T. Bilton, School Library Journal, starred review)
“By no means an easy read, this is an engrossing exploration of just how easily good intentions can drag people down the wrong path if led by a charismatic speaker with a skill for manipulation.” (Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, starred review)
“On Saturday, November 18, 1978, more than nine hundred members of Jim Jones’s Peoples Temple died at Jonestown in Guyana. Though the event was originally described as a mass suicide, it eventually became known that many, including infants, children, and the elderly, were murdered. Early chapters present a biographical treatment of Jones, covering his boyhood, marriage, and early Christian ministry in Indiana. Uncharacteristically for the time, his congregations were racially integrated, and they appealed to many as the civil rights era dawned. Eventually, in 1965, he moved Peoples Temple to California, shed Christianity in favor of socialism, and began steadily to exert control over every facet of his group, including members’ property, income, and relationships. Jones often used gross manipulation and deception to do so, and increasing scrutiny drove him to Guyana. When Congressman Leo Ryan came for an investigative visit, it set the tragic events in motion. It’s a testament to Fleming’s storytelling prowess that the book becomes more and more compelling despite our knowledge of the outcome. If some of her recent titles have contained elements of true crime, this one (along with Murder Among Friends, rev. 3/22) also dabbles in another genre: horror. Black-and-white captioned photographs are gathered in the middle and at the end of the book. An annotated list of key people prefaces the volume, while an author’s note, sources, a bibliography, and an index are appended.” (The Horn Book, starred review)