Join Me!: The True Story of a Man Who Started a Cult by Accident by Danny Wallace

From the Publisher

On a lark, journalist Danny Wallace placed an ad in a small London paper that offered two simple words: "join me." What followed was astounding. From all over the world, thousands of replies poured in, effectively "joining" Danny-but in what, he had no idea. When "Joinees" began referring to him as "The Leader," Danny quickly understood one thing-he had just created a cult.

Join Me quickly became a phenomenon. With the help of a few trusted Joinees and the crackpot leader of a well-established cult, Danny promulgates his uncle's dreams of a Utopian society, struggles to keep his girlfriend, manages to stay humble amidst the newfound celebrity, and remarkably provides a sense of purpose and belonging to Joinees everywhere.

Publishers Weekly

In between jobs as a comedy producer for the BBC, 20-something Wallace would "sit around for hours in my pants" in his London apartment. After a great-uncle's funeral, he was struck by a story about his relative's failed effort to start a 100-member commune. Inspired to start his own group, but not sure what he wanted to do with it, he set up an ambiguous Web site requesting others to "join me." As the chapter headings maintain a running tally of his confused but mostly eager followers, Wallace recounts his misadventures scurrying across Europe while trying to keep the project hidden from his girlfriend, who he knows will think the idea is crazy. As he gradually elects to have his collective devote itself to making others happy, a certain degree of clich creeps in, but never without a weird undercurrent (e.g., advice about "following the little voice inside" comes from Wallace's e-mail buddy, the "President of the Galactic Government"). The story's pretty silly, and Wallace's plan is strongly reminiscent of the theme of Pay It Forward (which he acknowledges), so he lets readers in on the joke right away, dragging them into his confidence. As Wallace recounts awkward encounters with "Joinees," his bemused tone won't completely distract readers from wondering why he doesn't just ditch his girlfriend if he can't even remember what food she likes, but his mission is entertaining nonetheless. Wallace's decidedly British sensibility might be a barrier to some, but fans of BBC America programming or other Britcoms will probably follow up by rushing to Wallace's site, aimed at recruiting more U.S. members to his offbeat cause. Photos. (Mar.) Forecast: Wallace's book was published in the U.K. earlier this year, after the author gained a fair amount of media coverage for his campaign. Whether his crusade will gain momentum in the U.S. remains to be seen. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Idiosyncratic memoir of a London journalist's experiences forming a "karma army." In 2002, Wallace placed a small ad in a London paper exhorting readers to "Join Me!" by sending him a passport-sized photo, but giving no other details about his reasons or intentions. He was inspired to this eccentric project by boredom and a great-uncle's death; at the funeral, he learned that the uncle had been much mocked in youth for attempting to form a farming commune and impulsively decided to revive the project. Wallace was so pleased to meet the first iconoclasts who joined-each of these early meetings is recreated in exhaustive detail-that he began to obsessively propagate Join Me, spreading the word online and with flyers, still without divulging any specifics. While this alienated some, resulting in a bit of hate mail, a surprising number of high-spirited nonconformists continued to join this collective (or "cult," as many wags dubbed it), leading its instigator to set a thousand joinees as an ostensible goal. The organization's purpose amounted to vaguely defined minor philanthropy: "They wanted to do good," Wallace enthuses about his joinees, "they just never had enough of an excuse before." Yet the "good" seems limited to random acts of kindness directed toward elderly pensioners, while the rambling narrative becomes increasingly subordinate to the ego-demands of its author's exhibitionistic and hectoring personality. (Even his shabbily treated, long-suffering girlfriend finally wises up and dumps him.) For a sense of movement, the joke-heavy prose relies principally on disingenuous false surprise and wisecracks that refer back to the preceding paragraph, tactics that quickly become tiresome.By the time we reach the minor-key denouement-Wallace intends to relinquish Join Me, but is voted the collective's "Leader"-only the most guileless readers will think the journey worthwhile. An odd tale, reflecting the motivations of contemporary group-think, but otherwise skippable. Agent: Daniel Greenberg

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