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Them: Adventures With Extremists (Hardcover)

by Jon Ronson (Author) "IT WAS A BALMY Saturday afternoon in Trafalgar Square in the summertime, and Omar Bakri Mohammed was declaring Holy War on Britain ..." (more)

4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (41 customer reviews)

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Product Details

Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster (Jan 1 2002)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743227077
ISBN-13: 978-0743227070
Product Dimensions: 22.1 x 14.6 x 2.7 cm
Shipping Weight: 459 g

Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (41 customer reviews)

Amazon.ca Sales Rank: #456,938 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

From Amazon.com

In Them, British humorist Jon Ronson relates his misadventures as he engages an assortment of theorists and activists residing on the fringes of the political, religious, and sociological spectrum. His subjects include Omar Bakri Mohammed, the point man for a holy war against Britain (Ronson paints him as a wily buffoon); a hypocritical but engaging Ku Klux Klan leader; participants in the Ruby Ridge and Waco, Texas, battles; the Irish Protestant firebrand Ian Paisley; and David Ickes, who believes that the semi-human descendants of evil extraterrestrial 12-foot-tall lizards walk among us. Despite these characters' disparities, they are bound by a belief in the Bilderberg Group, the "secret rulers of the world." In a final chapter, Ronson manages, with surprising ease, to penetrate these rulers' very lair. He writes with wry, faux-naive wit and eschews didacticism, instead letting his subjects' words and actions speak for themselves. --H. O'Billovitch

From Publishers Weekly

U.K. journalist Ronson offers a look into the world of political, cultural and religious "extremists" who dwell at the edges of popular culture and the conspiracy theorists who love them. His only criteria for groups' inclusion as extremists is "that they have been called extremists by others," which may explain why the Anti-Defamation League is profiled along with the modern-day KKK, radical Northern Ireland Protestant spokesperson Dr. Ian Paisley and a former BBC sportscaster who believes the world is ruled by a race of alien lizards. The best as well as most timely and unsettling of these essays follows Omar Bakri Mohammed, a radical Islamic militant, on his often bumbling effort to organize British Muslims into a jihad. (Bakri was arrested after September 11.) Ronson's journalism is motivated less out of a duty to inform the public than a desire to satisfy his own curiosity. At the heart of the book is Ronson's quest to find the Bilderberg Group, a secret cabal said to meet once a year to set the agenda of the "New World Order." Fortunately for the reader, his efforts lead somewhere: an informant tracks Bilderberg to a golf resort in Portugal; later, a prominent British politician and Bilderberg founder discusses it on the record. Once viewed up close through Ronson's light, ironic point of view, these "extremists" appear much less scary than their public images would suggest. It is how he reveals the all-too-real machinations of Western society's radical fringe and its various minions that makes this enjoyable work rather remarkable. (Jan.)Forecast: In the U.K., Ronson's book was accompanied by a five-part BBC documentary, which helped make him into a star. If he can capitalize on media appearances here, this may turn into a quick cult hit.

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IT WAS A BALMY Saturday afternoon in Trafalgar Square in the summertime, and Omar Bakri Mohammed was declaring Holy War on Britain. Read the first page

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Customer Reviews

41 Reviews

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
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4.0 out of 5 stars (41 customer reviews)

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4.0 out of 5 stars Sometimes creepy, mostly silly, May 27 2004

By	Edward Sunder (Chattanooga, TN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Them: Adventures with Extremists (Paperback)

Jon's account of visiting with extremists of various sorts is engaging in the sense that he makes you wish you had the time to do what he did in writing the book. His style is glib and easy to read, which keeps the book flowing along. While the book seems to be written for humor, Jon also manages to make the folks he meet seem less scary because of how silly they all are. In a strangely comforting way, you find that many bullies really are cowards - and that's not a bad thing. Overall, a fun, easy read.

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4.0 out of 5 stars An Expose' on the Polarization of Thought, May 6 2004

By	Jacob Reidt (Pullman, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a book that makes me wish I could give 'half stars'. Because it really is a three and a half star book. Oh well. As to the text itself, I found the style to be enjoyable to read, very dialogue centered, with lots of wry construction. The content of the book is an interesting journey into the world of those who think like nobody else. That the author is able to expose himself to such diametrically opposed viewpoints with such aplomb is a good life lesson for us all: would that we were all able to see beyond the rhetoric and see the 'others' as what they are: people. It is a little disarming to see that there are those who would give this book such low ratings (mainly due to blatant subscription to the worldview being exposed within the book), kind of lending credence to the idea that people believe what they want, regardless of any evidence. If you're not convinced that a secret New World Order runs the world, be sure to pick this book up for a light, entertaining read.

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5.0 out of 5 stars A must read!, April 6 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Them: Adventures with Extremists (Paperback)

As a confirmed bibliophile I buy on average 5 books a week (mainly second hand, mainly for reference purposes). I generally skim over the content before filing them for future reference. This is the only book that I have ever bought which I was hooked right into and compelled to read it from cover to cover. At every opportunity I was catching up with Ronson's latest escapade. Having enjoyed his t.v. series I didn't think that this book would add much to it. It not only adds to it but explains the background & context for much of want went on in Ronson's hilarious tv programmes. The difference with the book is that it is much more unsettling. We get a deeper clearer picture of "Them" and come to realise what a strange and somewhat disturbing place the world is. For this reason alone (apart from Ronson's excellent writing and sharp wit) this book is a must read - in particular for those with no inkling about conspiracy theories! Outstanding.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious, entertaining, and informative.
Ronson, a British journalist and documentary filmmaker, has written a book that is hilarious and entertaining. Read more

Published on April 2 2004 by James J. Lippard

1.0 out of 5 stars Ignorance is Bliss
Jon Ronson makes an attempt to get you "sympethetic" about so-called extremists, that they're just trapped in their own minds, when he really has no evidence that... Read more

Published on Oct 24 2003

4.0 out of 5 stars Meeting the Masters of the World
With an open mind and some charming naivete, Ronson went on an expedition to find not only those who obsess about the secret masters of the world but, just maybe, the masters... Read more

Published on Oct 23 2003 by Randy Stafford

1.0 out of 5 stars Faux naif not always good idea
It is interesting that Jon Ronson comes out on top in all of these encounters. This is the problem with the faux naif style. Read more

Published on Aug 1 2003