“Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology” by Leah Remini

My good friend got me into Scientology. Not as in wanting to join it and study it as a religion, but learning about it as much as possible and all the positive/negative press it was getting and why. Then, Leah Remini announced she was splitting with Scientology and we went nuts over that. The minute her book released I bought a copy because I wanted all the tea on the “religion.”

During the time Leah Remini’s book sat on my “To Be Read” shelf until the time I actually read it, her show “Scientology and the Aftermath” came out with a couple of seasons, and of course I watched every single episode. It hasn’t been on in sometime and I was going through some withdrawal, so I finally got down to reading her book hoping it would help.

I did not read the whole title when I picked the book up to buy it or even to read it. I thought it was just specifically about Leah Remini’s time in Scientology, but as you can see by the title of this post, it was also about her time in Hollywood. Both go hand in hand.

It was a very interesting read and there weren’t too many flashbacks. It tended to go in a linear line of growing up to now with little references to her past. I actually enjoy those types of books because sometimes I feel too much back and forth, or too many references to past events, can get confusing. I cannot tell if she had a ghost writer or if she wrote the book herself, but overall I really enjoyed it.

Leah Remini was not born into Scientology. Her mother joined the church when Leah and her sister were young so it was nice to see her life before Scientology vs after they joined. She also mentioned that she thought her Scientology connections would land her a gig, but it was really her own motivation and perseverance that got her where she wanted to be.

She talked about her time in the Sea Organization (a branch in the religion) and how much of a troublemaker she really was. She even was very open about her sleeping with married men and how she came to marry one of those men. She had to be open because the church would use it against her if she wasn’t. She even states that in the beginning: all her wrong doings, because she knows that the church would find any way to discredit her if she did not disclose them.

She even went into the times she was hanging out with Tom Cruise and how the church treats him versus how they treat everyone else. I knew some information on him, but some revelations she brought out really blew my mind.

There were a few issues I had with the book. One being that I think she played up her attitude a little too much. Watching her show I can see how her attitude and personality are, but I really didn’t believe everything she wrote she said was true. I feel like she over-dramatizes herself. It just did not seem all that genuine. But then again, who doesn’t hype themselves up to make themselves look better?

I did question why she stayed so long in the religion. She mentioned that she did not want to bring anyone into the church even when they asked her to get them in. She always seemed to question it, but was still faithful to the message it was trying to teach. I do not know of anyone in my life who is super faithful, but pushes people away from joining. It just did not mesh well with me.

I also understand the reason she talks about her outside-the-church life just as much as her in-church life, but I wanted more. She discussed Tom Cruise’s wedding with so much detail and how everything went down between her and the church and by the end of the book I was questioning why I didn’t get more detail with other stories.

There was very little more I learned about Scientology after reading her book and I was a bit disappointed in that, but I believe that was also my fault. I’m sure all the information she laid out in the book was a big deal when the book was released so now, after watching her show, it’s not as shocking.

If you’re into this kind of stuff like I am or like auto-biographies, I really recommend this book. It was a great read and it was an easy one at that. Everything was explained and there was a lot of information about Leah Remini as well as her struggle with Scientology. The only warning I would give is there’s a lot of cussing in it, which doesn’t bother me, but may bother others.

What are some things you’re obsessed with learning about that may seem odd to others? Do you have any books that “spill tea” on popular topics/organizations? What are some celebrities you would like to see write an auto-biography? Let me know in the comments below!

-K.