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Kenneth Neufeld (who has also published under the name "K. Gordon Neufeld) is the author of "Heartbreak and Rage: Ten Years Under Sun Myung Moon, A Cult Survivor's Memoir" (2002; revised second edition released 2019), "Cult Fiction: One Writer's Creative Journey Through an Extreme Religion" (2014) and "Prophet and Loss: Stories of Extreme Beliefs", all released by Virtualbookworm.com. He is the author of many newspaper articles, short stories and opinion pieces about cults that have appeared in publications such as the Vancouver Sun, First Things magazine, and The Windsor Review. He is a graduate of The Humber College Correspondence School for Writers in Toronto, and holds a Master's degree in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia. He is currently working on a follow-up story collection to "Prophet and Loss," which is tentatively titled "On Holy Ground: Stories." Mr. Neufeld resides with his family in upstate New York.
Reviewed by Sarah Stuart for Readers' Favorite
Prophet and Loss: Stories of Extreme Beliefs has been cleverly titled by K. Gordon Neufeld. The first account, the title story, opens with a flashback to a woman following a man who acknowledges her only to insist she keeps up with him, despite her desperate thirst. They are intent on fasting as Christ did for forty days. The following background and denouement are intense.
Joe is drawn into a religion in A Higher Plane – "Lord, lift me up, and let me stand; By grace, on heaven's tableland; A higher plane than I have found, Lord, lead me on to higher ground!" Merciful Flight, written in the present tense, is a real heartstopper. Will Hugh and Tamar escape to Vancouver?
The aspect I loved most about the stories comprising Prophet and Loss: Stories of Extreme Beliefs is K. Gordon Neufeld’s ability to bring his characters alive so vividly that I not only suspended belief, I had to remind myself that, although some are based on actual events, they are works of fiction. Favorites are very personal, and readers will choose their own, but mine was So You Want To Be A Cult Leader! – a tempting offer at only $499, followed by the exhortation not to delay. Of course, I read on, and Lesson 1 is fascinating – "Nothing matters except what I want; everyone else exists only to serve me; anyone who opposes me is a loser." Yes, well, keep that in mind; Prophet and Loss: Stories of Extreme Beliefs by K. Gordon Neufeld is a must-read.
