Structure

Unfollow is Megan Phelps-Roper's account of growing up in the Westboro Baptist Church and choosing to leave at age 25 when she found she no longer believed in their dogma. The book is divided into nine chapters, each titled after a biblical reference that relates specifically to the events recalled within that chapter. For example, the title of Chapter 4 alludes to James 3:6, “The tongue is a fire. These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also” (95). This quote and this chapter are about the tremendous power of words, as Phelps-Roper recalls some of the more controversial and outright hateful expressions of Westboro dogma.

Phelps-Roper adheres to a relatively traditional structure in her memoir, recounting her life story in a linear fashion beginning around age five and ending with the events of her mid-to-late 20s after she left the church and met Chad Fjelland. The author...