Hardcover
$13.67

Paperback
$25.99

FREE delivery Sunday, January 7 on your first order. Details

Or fastest delivery Tomorrow, January 4. Order within 10 hrs 41 mins. Details

Delivering to Montreal H3A – Update location

In Stock

$$25.99 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Payment

Secure transaction

Payment

Secure transaction

We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more

Ships from

Amazon.ca

Ships from

Amazon.ca

Sold by

Amazon.ca

Sold by

Amazon.ca

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.

Read full return policy

Details

Add gift options

FREE delivery Sunday, January 7 on your first order. Details

Or fastest delivery Tomorrow, January 4. Order within 10 hrs 41 mins. Details

Delivering to Montreal H3A – Update location

Used: Good | Details

Sold by Papalazius Mercantile Inc.

Fulfilled by Amazon

Add to Wish List

Added to

Unable to add item to Wish List. Please try again.

Buy new:

$25.99

FREE pickup Friday, January 12 on your first order

BP PLACE LONDON LIFE

233 m | MONTREAL H3A 2A0

How pickup works

In Stock

$$25.99 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

The enhancements that you chose aren't available for this seller. Details

${cardName} not available for the seller that you chose

${cardName} unavailable for quantities greater than ${maxQuantity}.

Payment

Secure transaction

Payment

Secure transaction

We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more

Sold by

Amazon.ca

Sold by

Amazon.ca

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.

Read full return policy

Details

Follow the author

Jon Ronson

Follow

Them: Adventures with Extremists Paperback – Jan. 7 2003

by Jon Ronson (Author)

4.4 2,541 ratings

See all formats and editions

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$25.99","priceAmount":25.99,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"25","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"99","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"qo4kg6uSLh6oDW6gX5LzigE4aAVRAZq8EeEPO%2BfOeCdK26%2BTJUEDMnI8vLgKsqXBuRKQKX%2FKSVw46SjZD67OtLm5pG3d%2B0dsdIO0OmtKeubFMuGb6q7S7%2Fh1HIie9tU2","locale":"en-CA","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$18.21","priceAmount":18.21,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"18","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"21","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"qo4kg6uSLh6oDW6gX5LzigE4aAVRAZq81c83CgUpSWeFWc4VU%2BRSHgDMx%2FiLGbbZ9PSZAdUygPHa5tpuFCXp6GxxHFuSj1z4Kbvq8dgnvXVt5cgjxFdd2Dpb0ajJ62bjmV0AKPzfLSCQOOpm9jmjsQP3sZ9lTBUSdoztU8D%2BDEtFIqfu2%2FixFRD7cqCj%2FJRe","locale":"en-CA","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}],"desktop_buybox_group_2":[{"displayPrice":"$25.99","priceAmount":25.99,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"25","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"99","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"qo4kg6uSLh6oDW6gX5LzigE4aAVRAZq8EeEPO%2BfOeCdK26%2BTJUEDMnI8vLgKsqXBuRKQKX%2FKSVw46SjZD67OtLm5pG3d%2B0dsdIO0OmtKeubFMuGb6q7S7%2Fh1HIie9tU2","locale":"en-CA","buyingOptionType":"PICKUP","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":2}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

From the bestselling author of The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry and So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed.

A wide variety of extremist groups -- Islamic fundamentalists, neo-Nazis -- share the oddly similar belief that a tiny shadowy elite rule the world from a secret room. In Them, journalist Jon Ronson has joined the extremists to track down the fabled secret room.

As a journalist and a Jew, Ronson was often considered one of "Them" but he had no idea if their meetings actually took place. Was he just not invited? Them takes us across three continents and into the secret room. Along the way he meets Omar Bakri Mohammed, considered one of the most dangerous men in Great Britain, PR-savvy Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard Thom Robb, and the survivors of Ruby Ridge. He is chased by men in dark glasses and unmasked as a Jew in the middle of a Jihad training camp. In the forests of northern California he even witnesses CEOs and leading politicians -- like Dick Cheney and George Bush -- undertake a bizarre owl ritual.

Ronson's investigations, by turns creepy and comical, reveal some alarming things about the looking-glass world of "us" and "them." Them is a deep and fascinating look at the lives and minds of extremists. Are the extremists onto something? Or is Jon Ronson becoming one of them?

Print length

336 pages
Language

English
Publication date

Jan. 7 2003
Dimensions

13.97 x 2.29 x 21.43 cm
ISBN-10

0743233212
ISBN-13

978-0743233217
See all details

Frequently bought together

$25.99

In Stock

Ships from and sold by Amazon.ca.

+

$19.71

Only 7 left in stock (more on the way).

Ships from and sold by Amazon.ca.

+

The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry

$22.42

In Stock

Ships from and sold by Amazon.ca.

Total price:

To see our price, add these items to your cart.

Try again!

Details

Added to Cart

Some of these items ship sooner than the others.

Show details Hide details

Choose items to buy together.

Jon Ronson
9,360
Paperback
$19.71
Only 7 left in stock (more on the way).
Jon Ronson
10,869
Paperback
$22.42

Product description

Review

Jonathan Yardley The Washington Post Unlikely though it certainly will seem to most readers at this difficult hour...Jon Ronson has managed to write a hugely amusing book about the lunatic fringe.

Ron Rosenbaum The New York Times Book Review Often entertaining, more often disturbing...[Ronson] has gotten closer to these people than any journalist I can think of.

The Boston Globe A tremendous and discomfiting achievement.

Esquire A remarkable book.

The Nation I've never read such a delightful book on such a serious and important topic.

The San Diego Union-Tribune It takes a funny man to see the humor in all the conspiracy theories that float hatefully across the land, and Jon Ronson is a funny man. It takes a brave man to chase that humor right into the belly of the beast, and Jon Ronson is a brave man too.

About the Author

Jon Ronson is a documentary filmmaker and the author of Them: Adventures with Extremists. He lives in London.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Simon & Schuster; Reprint edition (Jan. 7 2003)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0743233212
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0743233217
Item weight ‏ : ‎ 313 g
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 13.97 x 2.29 x 21.43 cm

Best Sellers Rank: #273,779 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,130 in Political Doctrines (Books)
- #1,911 in Political Ideologies

Customer Reviews:
4.4 2,541 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Jon Ronson

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Jon Ronson is an award-winning writer and documentary maker. He is the author of many bestselling books, including Frank: The True Story that Inspired the Movie, Lost at Sea: The Jon Ronson Mysteries, The Psychopath Test, The Men Who Stare at Goats and Them: Adventures with Extremists. His first fictional screenplay, Frank, co-written with Peter Straughan, starred Michael Fassbender. He lives in London and New York City.

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from Canada

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Seraphina

Couldn’t Put The Book Down!

Reviewed in Canada on December 2, 2020

Verified Purchase

Although written about 15-20 years ago, this book is timeless. Jon covers such a dark topic with humour and without dismissing the seriousness of the impact of extremism. I don’t consider myself an avid reader (I don’t have a lot of free time), but I found myself up late still reading and completely engaged. I cannot recommend this book enough!

Helpful

Randy Stafford

Meeting the Masters of the World

Reviewed in Canada on October 23, 2003

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 themselves.
Like others who have actually done honest fieldwork amongst these political exotica, Ronson meets a lot of kind, polite, and charming people -- as long as you happen to be the right race or creed. Many are reasonable and tolerant too -- at least when they don't have any power to realize their visions.
From the vast zoo of modern conspiracy theory, Ronson mostly concentrates on the ZOG/Bilderberg/Trilateralist/Satanist clade which is usually associated with the right wing. But his years of research turn up some surprises.
In pre-September 11th London, Ronson hangs out with Omar Bakri, self-described as Osama bin Laden's man in London. In America, we meet Thom Robb, Grand Wizard of some Klan sect in a world rife with internecine sniping, egomaniacs, and FBI informers. His claim to fame? He wants his disciples to follow his self-help program -- oh, and stop using the "N-word". With Jim Tucker, reporter for the notorious and defunct _Spotlight_ newspaper, he attempts to infiltrate the annual meeting of the legendary Bilderberg Group. Then there's ex-British sportscaster David Icke who insists that, when he talks about a conspiracy of world ruling reptilian space alien Illuminati, he really means space aliens and not Jews.
And Ronson doesn't find extremism just among the conspiracy mongerers. The infamous actions of the U.S. government at Ruby Ridge are recounted as well as the press' general inability to see a distinction important to the Weavers and their supporters -- racial separatism as opposed to racial supremacy. The Anti-Defamation League comes across as far too ready to see anti-Semitism and pass its faulty judgements to a gullible media. Canadian activists try to stop Icke from public speaking -- all in the name of racial tolerance. And when Ronson actually interviews a founding member, Denis Healey, of the Bilderbergs on their history and activities, suspicions are not entirely allayed.
Ronson makes few outright comments and judgements on his subjects, provides no grand summing up of his findings and that may be the book's biggest flaw. The closest he gets is the concluding statement that nobody really controls anything. The book is more reportage than analysis. But that reporting is done with a sharp eye for the humorous and sinister. Bakri tells of what a future Islamic London will be like -- and is chided at a meeting of fellow jihadists about his inept fishing. Who is the man following Tucker and Ronson in Portugal during the Bilderberg meeting? Hollywood, a claimed nexus of the Grand Jewish Conspiracy, comes off as petty, apolitical, and a place of insincere boutique faith as Ronson follows Tony Kaye, director of _American History X_, around. Klansmen argue the merits of silk or cotton robes. Ronson infiltrates the Bohemian Grove -- attended by U. S. presidents and vice-presidents -- and finds a rather silly, decades old frat boy ritual that just doesn't have the same drawing power it used to among the up-and-coming junior world ruler set. And more than once, Ronson, a Jew, finds himself guiltily associating with anti-Semites.
To be sure, some of the books chapters seem extraneous. An auction of Nicolae Ceausescu's relics adds nothing. Neither does a chapter on Ian Paisley taken from an early newspaper article.
Ronson's book reminded me of Phillip Finch's _God, Guts, and Guns_ which went among the American radical right and the works of Laird Wilcox about American political extremists. Its humor and willingness to consider outre theories like David Icke's reminded me of Alex Heard's _Apocalypse Pretty Soon_, the work of Ronson's fellow Englishman Louis Theroux, and the pages of _The Fortean Times_.
Anybody interested in strange beliefs, conspiracy theories, or political extremism should read this book.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Jenna

An absolute joy.

Reviewed in Canada on December 10, 2018

Verified Purchase

Jon's clever writing style and wit made this book utterly enjoyable to read. Very incredible story and well worth the read.

Helpful

Big Reader

Them's some good essays!

Reviewed in Canada on June 26, 2015

Verified Purchase

Smart, funny and insightful. I first read Ronson's essay about David Icke on line and was so amused by it, I had to find the book from which it came. It did not disappoint.

Helpful

Dennis Littrell

Disarming extremists by making them look silly

Reviewed in Canada on June 5, 2002

In this clever spin through weirdo land, nice Jewish Brit humor journalist Jon Ronson uses his modest charm to ingratiate himself into the lives of some pathetic characters so that he might write about them. The underlying theme is something like the benign madness of conspiracy theorists.
The first "them" is Omar Bakri Mohammed, "The Semi-Detached Ayatollah," who billed himself as Osama bin Laden's man in the U.K. He comes off looking like a charmingly pathetic, on the dole, sweet old man who just happens to have this rude habit of declaring jihads on non-Muslim people.
Next Ronson takes us to "Ruby Ridge" Idaho so we can meet the gun-totin' separatists and their Aryan Nation buddies. They come across as the victims of an FBI riot. Next we meet Big Jim Tucker who writes for a daffy underground journal called The Spotlight that is fascinated with "The Secret Rulers of the World," sometimes known as the Bilderbergers. Ronson gets way into the Bilderbergers, who allegedly include such Illuminati as Henry Kissinger, David Rockefeller, Umberto Agnelli, the Rothchilds, etc., chasing after them to Portugal and northern California, where he ease-drops on their "bizarre pagan owl ritual," ultimately seeing their antics as the high jinks of good old college boys who haven't totally grown up.
There's a romp through the jungle (while eating rat) with Dr. Ian Paisley, the anti-Papist from Ireland who comes across as a stern preacher man maniacally spreading God's word to the ignorant masses. Ronson also has some fun with David Icke, who is accused of being anti-Semitic, but is really anti-lizard. After some personal involvement, Ronson finds that Icke is just a guy who sincerely believes that the New World Order is controlled by the likes of George and George W. Bush, the Queen Mother, Al Gore, Kris Kristofferson, etc., who are 12-foot lizards that have cross-bred with humans.
In the middle chapters there are encounters with the Klu Klux Klan, two versions. There's Jeff Berry, Imperial Wizard of the American Knights of the Klu Klux Klan, who behaves like your sensible Klansman, hating everybody who's not white and Christian; and then there's Thom Robb, Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Klu Klux Klan, who doesn't truck with using the "n-word" and kisses black babies as he tries to nouveau-spin the Klan's image. Ronson also visits Tony Kaye, a Hollywood director whose limo has "JEWISH" as a vanity plate. Ronson makes him look blindly self-centered while recalling that "The $50,000 distribution costs of Birth of a Nation (1915) [a film making the KKK look good] were put up...by the twenty-eight-year-old movie novice Louis B. Mayer." Ronson adds, "So Jewish Hollywood was funded, in part, by the heroic positive images of the Klansmen in Birth of a Nation." He also checks in with the Anti-Defamation League in New York and makes them look a little on the prejudicial side since they continue to insist that "lizards" is a code word for "Jews."
There is definitely something to be said for taking the edge off the horror of hate-mongers by turning them into objects of humor. Ronson is clever and he is funny. There's a nice running irony throughout because he is Jewish. The fact that he was able to befriend people who hate Jews is to his credit. What Ronson seems to be saying is that laughter is a good defense against hate, something like "laughter is the best medicine," and I'm sure that's true to some extent. I can't imagine however that Osama bin Laden, for example, has much of a sense of humor.
An interesting sideline here is the realization that newspapers headlines and CNN sound bytes fail to paint a realistic picture of what extremists are like. Ronson, within the limits of his intent, does that. He makes them human, and in that way partially disarms them, recalling to my mind the old saying, "No man is a hero to his valet." Maybe for his next gig, Ronson could find and visit bin Laden's four wives and record their bickering and their (inevitably) less than heroic apprehension of the jihad warrior. I'm sure it would make for some good laughs.

Helpful

Gordon Meyer

Interesting, but could be more

Reviewed in Canada on March 24, 2002

"Them" is pretty well written, and moves at a good pace, but too often just skims along the surface of the interesting groups that the author discovers.
I give Ronson a lot of credit for his work -- spending time seeking out, then "shadowing" these groups is no easy effort. He's obviously a personable and persuasive guy in order to accomplish these objectives.
But this book feels like a series of magazine articles stitched together. Not enough depth, too much "I wonder if they trust me, the jew, the journalist, the white guy". He either didn't have as much access as he'd like us to believe, and is thus reduced to platitudes, or he's holding back on the "in depth" material for another volume.
All in all, a good read. But like fast food, you don't come away totally pleased and full. If you'd looking for the perspective of a social scientist, don't bother. But if you like the 20/20 and Dateline NBC style of coverage you'll love "Them".

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

Conno

Brilliant read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 26, 2023

Verified Purchase

Jon Ronson's Them: Adventures with Extremists is a fascinating and often humorous look into the world of conspiracy theorists and extremists. Ronson's witty and insightful writing style keeps you engaged throughout the book. If you're interested in a quirky, eye-opening, and at times, absurd exploration of subcultures, this book is a must-read

Kindle Customer

Funny with a serious twist.

Reviewed in Australia on August 21, 2020

Verified Purchase

Familar names to any conspiracy enthusiast start to pop up at the end of the book that makes the absurd parts more concerning, but overall, I found the book entertaining with informative parts.

C.Nugues

Ok

Reviewed in France on June 10, 2016

Verified Purchase

J'avais beaucoup aimé The psychopath test (que je recommande). Celui-ci est un peu passé et pas assez fouillé à mon goût.
Un bon livre

Translate review to English

SLEM

Empieza muy bien...

Reviewed in Spain on May 4, 2015

Verified Purchase

Lo compré tras leer sobre el libro (varios años después de su edición) - empieza bien, pero es un poco repetitivo y no se atreve a decir lo que insinúa...

Translate review to English

Abby Normal

Chapeau!

Reviewed in Germany on April 3, 2012

Verified Purchase

Jon Ronson hat die wertvolle Gabe, interessante Bücher unterhaltsam zu präsentieren.

Them handelt von Extremisten. Jon Ronson begibt sich in die Höhle des Löwen. Auf der Suche nach der Bilderberg-Gruppe, die heimlichen Lenker der ganzen Welt, trifft er Fanatiker und geht Verschwörungstheorien nach. Er landet bei selbst bei Neo-Nazis oder im Ku-Klux-Klan. Davor ziehe ich ehrfürchtig meinen Hut - bedenkt man, dass Jon Ronson jüdisch ist.

Jon Ronson zeigt einerseits, wie unberechenbar und blenderisch Extremisten sein können. Andererseits zeigt er aber auch, wie blinde Vorurteile gegenüber vermeintliche Extremisten ebenfalls zu völlig falschen Bildern führen können. Extremisten sind ein beliebtes Thema in den Medien, doch oft geht es vorrangig um Schlagzeilen, nicht um die Wahrheit. Jon Ronson gelingt es, dass man seinen Schilderungen Vertrauen schenkt. Sie wirken ehrlich und Jon Ronson hat keine Scheu, auch schonungslos ehrlich über seine eigenen Gedanken zu schreiben.

Allerdings schrieb er Them bereits vor dem 11. September 2001. Seitdem hat sich vieles verändert. Seine Reise wäre heute aufgrund verschärften Sicherheitskontrollen so vermutlich gar nicht mehr möglich. Und manches klingt heute, über zehn Jahre später, unglaublich.

Them ist ein fantastisches Buch, das tiefe Einblicke in geheime und private Organisationen bietet. Es zeigt einige sehr interenssante Beispiele von Extremisten.

Aber, ich muss gestehen, dass mir seine beiden anderen Bücher ( The Men Who Stare at Goats , The Psychopath Test ) sogar noch besser gefallen haben. Ob es daran liegt, dass sich die Welt seit dem 11. September so sehr verändert hat und Them heute anders wirkt, oder ob mich verrückte militärische Experimente oder die Suche nach den Psychopathen unter uns mehr gefesselt haben, ist schwer zu sagen.

Empfehlen kann ich aber uneingeschränkt alle drei Bücher von Jon Ronson.

------------------

Nachtrag:

Das Kindle hat bei diesem Buch Probleme mit Sonderzeichen. Bei Nicolae Ceau'escu zum Beispiel wird das "'" zu groß und in Grau angezeigt. Im Kapitel zu Nicolae Ceau'escu stört das zwar ein wenig, aber man kommt noch gut klar damit.

6 people found this helpful

Translate review to English

See more reviews

Amazon Music Stream millions of songs	Amazon Advertising Find, attract and engage customers	Amazon Business Everything for your business	Amazon Drive Cloud storage from Amazon	Amazon Web Services Scalable Cloud Computing Services

Goodreads Book reviews & recommendations	IMDb Movies, TV & Celebrities	Amazon Photos Unlimited Photo Storage Free With Prime	Shopbop Designer Fashion Brands	Warehouse Deals Open-Box Discounts

	Whole Foods Market We Believe in Real Food	Amazon Renewed Like-new products you can trust	Blink Smart Security for Every Home