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Let's sell these people A Piece of Blue Sky: Hubbard, Dianetics and Scientology

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Let’s sell these people a Piece of Blue Sky: the new, unexpurgated, unabridged version of the classic history of L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. Exposing Hubbard’s false claims to be a war hero, a nuclear physicist, an explorer and a protégé of Eastern gurus, and showing the true malevolence of Scientology.“Invaluable for its history and insight into the character of its founder, L. Ron Hubbard.” Lawrence Wright, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, & the Prison of Belief “If you only have time to read one book about L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology, this landmark work is the one.” Miles C. Ferguson“This is the best book I have read about Scientology.” Steve Cannane, ABC Lateline, Australia“A Piece of Blue Sky is the standard reference among serious students of authoritarian belief systems. Newer books about Scientology have been released, but none reproduce the detail and narrative clarity of Atack’s book.” Christian Szurko, DialogCentre UK“Since 1976, I have met, interviewed and counseled countless former officials and ex-members of Scientology. Of everyone I have ever met, and every book I have ever read, Jon Atack is the definitive resource of all things ‘Hubbard.’” Steven Hassan, author Freedom of Mind “When I first read Jon Atack's amazing book A Piece of Blue Sky it was a series of revelations. I had been on the receiving end of the false promises, heavy ethics pressures and greed-motivated financial stresses for decades without being able to reconcile these things with Hubbard's writings. Jon's book gave me considerable relief as to what was really going on behind the facade” Michael Pattinson, ex-OT 8.“As someone who has been at the top of organized scientology, and seen much of what really went on there, I would like to express my appreciation for what Jon Atack has done to get out the truth when it was not safe to do it.” Denise Brennan, former Watchdog Committee Member“Throughout my professional life, I have seen so many victims of poisonous ideologies from communism and scientology to Saddam Hussein’s “return to faith” and Al Qaeda’s “martyrdom”. In my attempts to help those sufferers, I applied a lesson learned from Jon Atack’s writings that freedom cannot be delivered, granted, or enforced. The true and complete freedom comes only with the freedom of mind and Jon Atack’s book is the best guide for all who want to achieve that freedom.” Professor Khapta Akhmedova, expert on terrorism“Honestly written, amazingly accurate, and beautifully assembled, which is why it stood the test.” Gerry Armstrong, former Hubbard aide“This book is fascinating.... and fresh. I've read every expose and this one is on the top of my list.” Paulette Cooper, author The Scandal of Scientology“A Piece of Blue Sky was my first introduction to the real truth about L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. It's still the most reliable of the many books on the subject. No one seems to have worked harder to get things right by relying so carefully on rare and crucial documents that spell out the history of Scientology's abuses.” Tony Ortega, former editor, Village Voice “All future scholarship on Scientology will build upon his contribution.” Professor Stephen Kent“When I first read A Piece of Blue Sky, it became more than instrumental in helping me to understand my experiences and put them into a meaningful context that changed my life.” Bonnie Woods, ex-OT3“Atack’s book displays mastery of his material and subtlety of analysis and discussion that would be praised at the typical final doctoral examination.” Richard de Mille, ghost author of Hubbard’s Science of Survival“This book delivers like none other. We used it extensively during the fifteen years we helped families retrieve their loved ones from the cult of Scientology, and we still recommend it today to those who want to know the truth about Scientology.” Jerry Whitfield and Hana Eltringham Whitfield Read more

Publisher ‏ : ‎ CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 2nd edition (February 5, 2013)


Language ‏ : ‎ English


Paperback ‏ : ‎ 478 pages


ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1482023032


ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 39


Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.7 pounds


Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.08 x 9 inches


Best Sellers Rank: #668,004 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #43 in Scientology


#43 in Scientology:


Customer Reviews: 4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 234 ratings


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Top Amazon Reviews

    • Very informative and eye-opening!
In Jon Atack’s “A Piece of Blue Sky”, Atack addresses the issues within Scientology such as the pseudoscience of Dianetics, the corruption of the Church of Scientology, and the cynical L. Ron Hubbard. The author, a member of the church turned skeptic, holds an objective view on these matters and provides details from many sources, making him a reliable resource of information on an otherwise mysterious subject. The book starts off with a credulous tone as the author relays his experience with the church when he was a young adult but slowly transitions into a skeptical tone as the cracks begin to show in the reasoning of Dianetics and Scientology. This book reveals the ugly truth about what seemed like ideas that were meant help people but were actually just scams supported by pseudoscience that L. Ron Hubbard created. Believers and skeptics alike should read this book as it provides a lot of insight into one of the most successful scams of all time. Atack does an impressive job of conveying his experiences with the church in a logical, chronological manner without compromising the objectivity of his writing. In the beginning, the author finds himself feeling dejected and is able relieve his pain through the comforting atmosphere of Scientology. Scientology, or more so Dianetics, offered him a cure to all of his pain so naturally he accepted these ideas with open arms. Throughout the book, Atack begins catching some startling subtleties that begin to alert him to some disconcerting aspects of the ideas of the man he practically worshiped, L. Ron Hubbard. As he progresses further and further through the church’s levels of initiation, he notices more flaws such as his experiences of mental abuse, the outrageous price fluctuations of different Scientology amenities and Dianetic auditing, and the scientific shortcomings in the background and evolution of Dianetics. Atack even explains the numerous fabrications Hubbard provides in his background from the specifics of his service in World War II to the data he provided in his “scientific research” on Dianetics. Atack effectively exposes the errors in Hubbard’s background and his concepts of Dianetics and Scientology; Atack uses personal experiences to prove his points and remains unbiased so as not make it seem like he is attacking the views of Scientologists. Atack successfully connects his personal experiences to the facts pertaining to Hubbard and Scientology. This connection makes the book easy to read and the points supporting the main idea easy to put together. Atack goes into great detail about each subject-Scientology, Hubbard, and Dianetics-which allows the reader to make a confident, informed decision about each. Atack could definitely be considered an authority figure on the matter but he chooses to keep his opinions out of it, letting the reader feel like they are in control. At a glance, this book may not seem like it is debunking pseudoscience but more like the author is uncovering a scam. The author is mainly uncovering a scam but this scam would be nothing without the support of Hubbard’s made up pseudoscientific jargon that made these ideas so convincing. Atack gradually dissects the components of Dianetics and Scientology, revealing absolute nonsense when Hubbard’s actual scientific terms are put into context. If it were not for the original ideas of Dianetics-a classic example of pseudoscience-Scientology would have never succeeded because Dianetics contained all of the so-called “reasoning” for the religion. The book contains dialogue of actual statements that Hubbard made about the church and Dianetics that are absolutely outrageous. Even the book’s title is a quote straight from Hubbard’s mouth that excellently represents his intentions in creating Scientology and Dianetics. This book is great point of reference for a psychological study because it shows people’s willingness to believe in something so far fetched if it just has some big complicated words to back it up. Atack includes astonishing statistics about the prices of Scientology and Dianetic services and how much the Church of Scientology collected due to the gullibility of the followers of a retired science fiction writer. The author reveals how the church would deceive people by producing false statitistics on how many people joined the church, how many people had been cured through Dianetics, and how much people would have to pay to progress through church. The book includes details about smaller, yet important aspects of Dianetics and Scientology such as engrams, auditing, Operating Thetan Levels, and the use of the E-Meter. Nearly everything Atack includes in this book contributes to the main idea of the book, which is the exposure of Hubbard and his creation of Scientology and Dianetics. This book is a must read for anyone interested in Dianetics, Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard, or anyone who is a member of the Church of Scientology. This book gives you the cold, hard facts with information directly from the church and Hubbard himself. Atack’s interactive approach to this book is very effective in helping the reader feel apart of the story and motivating the reader to read and learn more about the subject. He tells you his complete story, gives you all facts, and makes the writing objective enough for the reader to form their own opinion on the matter after reading. The book does not feel like it is forcing you to think one way or another; it just informs the reader on what Hubbard tried to hide from his followers for decades. This book provided the thrill of a fiction novel but with all the facts and first hand experience detail of a true story. “A Piece of Blue Sky” is a truly great book that is well written on an interesting topic and is sure to provide new, eye-opening information to anyone who reads it. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2014 by Courtney Dawn
    • If deciding whether to buy or contemplating joining Scientology read this now
My Review of ...a Piece of Blue Sky by Jon Atack I was led to explore Scientology after reading a biography of Tom Cruise. I remembered vaguely reading a bit of Dianetics in 1982 or so, which was given to me by an acquaintance and true believer who insisted it would change my life. I found it boring and somewhat off the wall. Then a scandal about Scientology in Toronto appeared in the news, but I didn't give it much attention until I saw that the 'religion' had been started by a science fiction writer, the same individual who had written the book. Again, although slightly interesting and amusing, I forgot about it as I went on with my life. Cruise's biographer mentioned that Scientology was a very big part of his life and he was using his celebrity status to proselytize. That did catch my interest and so I began reading some books on the subject, pro and con, including this one. I chose it first because it was written prior to the others. I was horrified and sickened by what I read, about the crimes and atrocities that were committed, in particular by its core membership, the Sea Org. Not only exposed were crimes such as espionage, malicious libel, infiltration of government bodies and persecution of organizations and businesses, but also harassment of individual private citizens, including writers and reporters who dared to criticize Scientology. These, and perhaps even more maliciously, were also perpetrated against the cult's own membership. This begged the question: If the religion was so wonderful, so liberating, so superior spiritually, why would it persecute its members who wished to leave it for one reason or another? Why engage in such activities such as kidnapping, imprisonment, unlawful detainment, physical violence - even toward its executive command, and why would its membership condone and excuse this? I found this shocking, revolting and reminiscent of the former Soviet Union and Maoist China. I could never understand that practice. If communism was such a superior way to live, why did many of its citizens continually try to escape? Why would the leaders of their countries punish, imprison, torture and even kill those who wanted to leave? The same frame of mind and the virtually identical practices also seem to apply to this cult. Why do they do this? Shame. Embarrassment . Fear of ridicule in the eyes of the world and of their leaders starkly and undeniably being viewed as 'emperors without clothes', revealed in naked abhorrence and their systems of government as corrupt to the core and unsustainable. They also did not want the crimes perpetrated on their own citizens and their espionage in other countries exposed to the world. This scenario applies to Scientology almost exactly. As I continued reading, it was revealed that many of its members were afraid to leave Scientology and chose to remain - if it could be said that such a choice existed - simply because they live in fear of their own leader and his vicious vindictive temper. They are coerced to stay through the threat of being separated, often permanently, from their own families still inside, and worst of all, from their own children. They fear incarceration and violence, physical and emotional. They also live in terror of their deepest most shameful secrets being released publicly, including being mailed to their neighbours and posted on poles and in businesses in the main streets of the towns that they and their children live in. At first, I didn't know whether to believe all this or not, as these accounts were so unbelievably outrageous, so I continued reading other books and watching videos, including Scientology's own. Some members, like Tom Cruise and other celebrities had embraced it on their own, their treatment being completely differently from the rank-and-file members, while some had been brought into it by parents and had no choice in the decision. This would explain why certain celebrities deny such criminal abuse occurs. All members are directed not to read or watch anything about Scientology in the media, including them. This book is a shocking expose, but long overdue at the time, a stark and courageous attempt by the author to reveal the worm of corruption at the organization's heart. As I began reading other books, namely Janet Reitman's and Lawrence Wright's, both of which are excellent as well, I sometimes thought I was back reading this author's book since much of their work seemed taken directly from this one, and, sometimes it seemed to me, almost verbatim in some sections. I kept thinking haven't I just read this recently? He's done a remarkable job. His research is top notch. His courage is to be commended for even undertaking such an expose. There are so many things I want to comment on, but this isn't the place. If you are interested in learning more about this corporate business (I cannot bring myself to call it a 'church'),and and are contemplating whether to buy this book, do it, and do it before you read other accounts. If you are contemplating becoming a member of this cult, read this first. It was written and published a few decades ago and this is the revised version that many agree is better even than the first. In fact, after having read a few other, also very well written accounts, I still think this is the best of the lot. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2014 by Ailsa S
    • Definitive and Damning Classic
Jon Atack spent nine years trying to tamp down his cognitive dissonance as a Scientologist, even when he was most firmly enmeshed in the cult's airless, blinkered world. But he is telling Scientology's story, as opposed to his own, which he touches on only glancingly, and he does it masterfully. His approach is certainly informed by his experience, and his depiction of L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology's huckster Maximum Leader, is devastating. There's been some discussion about "objectivity," comparing this book to Janet Reitman's. I've read them both, and Lawrence Wright's superlative book (I'm on something of an anti-Cult kick). Mr. Atack's factual underpinnings are as solid as either of the later books, which both owe him an enormous debt. Ms. Reitman has called her book "the first objective history of the Church of Scientology," which I think unfortunate and unfair to Mr. Atack. The evidence he piles up chapter by chapter is unlikely to lead any sensible reader anywhere that his rousing summation doesn't go. His declaration as a Suppressive Person means that he wasn't likely to get cooperation from the "Church," and his experience as a member gives him more than enough authority on anything a pro-Scientology spokesman would be likely to say. He also provides a penetrating analysis of the ugly, heartless core of Scientology, a "religion" that devalues compassion. Atack's exposé was published in a different, more dangerous time, and he was persecuted for it. It's a comprehensive history and a gripping read. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2013 by Mrs. Polly

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