Falling from Disgrace

Foreword Reviews: ""A sensitive and beautiful memoir, Falling from Disgrace is about perseverance, doubt, and the importance of claiming one's identity.... Told via evocative and descriptive passages, Falling from Disgrace brims with powerful metaphors and vivid images.... Throughout the book, the prose mirrors Dietz's maturation well: as she covers each era of her life, the book's language and style grow with her. It includes interior monologues during critical moments to deepening effect, resulting in powerful scenes.... The result is a book that achieves fantastic balance throughout-between reflection, confusion, and understanding. Even the cover image of a rose proves integral to the larger story."" Kirkus Reviews: ""Dietz explores her religiously conservative upbringing in this debut memoir.... The author's childhood commitment to her family's faith is juxtaposed with her later ostracism as a young adult.... 'Shamed and shunned' by her family and church as a sexually active teenager, she became disillusioned with the hypocrisy of a religion founded by a man who she describes as 'a cheating, polygamous, predatory hoarder of wives.' ... ""The author is a skilled writer whose engaging narrative effectively reveals how religious standards of devotion and piety can be abused by those in power.... ""A poignant, absorbing story of overcoming religious trauma."" US Review of Books: ""The writing in Dietz's memoir displays the hand of a practiced professional. The text is clean, and the sentences and pace flow easily throughout the work.... Dietz is also unafraid to be honest about her growth as a person.... Most readers will have gone through some form of crisis of faith, and this work should resonate with them due to its honesty and universal experiences.""