The Call of the Weird by Louis Theroux

The Call of the Weird is a book by Louis Theroux. It is presented as his first book.

Key details

• Author: Louis Theroux
• First book by the author

Synopsis

After ten years making documentaries about unusual figures on the margins of US society, Louis Theroux returns to America to revisit the people who most intrigued him. This time, he sets out on a reunion journey without cameras, aiming to move beyond the performance that filming can create and to understand what drives his subjects, as well as what has changed since their earlier encounters.

His travels take him from porn sets in Los Angeles to gangsta rappers in Memphis, from a convention of UFO contactees in Arizona to a festive neo-Nazi gathering in Northern Idaho. Along the way, he reflects on what so-called “weird people” might reveal about hidden aspects of human nature, and asks whether beliefs are chosen or whether they take hold of us.