Juliana Buhring – författare

DE OSKULDSFULLA är en otrolig historia om tre systrar som växer upp i en religiös sekt, och om deras respektive flykt ifrån detta liv. Juliette, Kristina och Celeste föds in i och växer upp i sekten Guds barn. Sekten grundades i Amerika under sent sextiotal och är nu känd under namnet Family International. En av de mest upprörande aspekterna av sektens religiösa utövande är användandet av sex för att åskådliggöra Guds kärlek, något som i grund och botten betydde sex mellan sektens medlemmar, oavsett deras respektive ålder. Systrarna formades från födseln till att bli Guds soldater. I tidig ålder skilde man dem åt och de växte upp med helt skilda erfarenheter från sin tid i sekten. Celeste var involverad i de högre skikten av armén, Kristina var fotsoldat och Julianna var rebellen som testade den strikta regimens gränser så fort hon fick tillfälle. Gemensamt har de ändå känslan av att det är något som är i grunden fel med den värld de lever i, trots att de inte känner till något annat liv. Vi får följa med på deras livsresa i sekten tragedin, absurditeterna och det slutgiltiga hoppet och deras liv efteråt. De har också tre yngre systrar i Uganda, och de fokuserar nu på att förhindra att deras egna erfarenheter upprepas.

The bestselling, devastating account of three sisters torn apart, abused and exploited at the hands of a community that robbed them of their childhood. It reveals three lives, separate but entwined, that have experienced unspeakable horror, unrelenting loyalty and unforgettable courage.From as early as three years old, Juliana, Celeste and Kristina were separated from their parents and physically and sexually abused by their ‘guardians’ in the infamous religious cult known as the Children of God. They were made to watch and mimic orgies, received love letters and sexual advances from men old enough to be their grandfather, and were forced into abusive relationships. They were denied access to formal schooling and medical care, had to busk on the streets, beg for money, and were mercilessly beaten for 'crimes' as unpredictable as reading an encyclopaedia.Finally, unable to live with the guilt of what had happened to her children, their mother escaped with Kristina and her younger siblings, cutting herself off from Celeste in a bid to save her remaining children. Desperate to save her sister, Kristina eventually began a search to find Celeste,but it would be many years until Celeste found the courage to escape, wanting freedom and a different future for the child she was carrying. The suicide of one of their sisters drove Juliana to exit the group a couple of years later.Now the three sisters have finally come together to reveal in full and horrific detail their existence within the Children of God cult. Their stories reveal a community spread throughout the world and its legacy of anorexia, depression, drug abuse, suicide and even murder. Lives are ripped apart and painstakingly mended with a shared strength that finally enabled the sisters to free themselves from the shadows of their past.

In December 2012, Juliana Buhring became the first woman to circumnavigate the world by bicycle. With only a few months of training and little sponsorship, support or money she left from Naples on 23 July 2012 to cycle the world. Raised in a religious cult as a child, Juliana finally broke away as a young adult and found her soul mate - an explorer seeking the source of unmapped rivers in Africa. When he was killed by a crocodile, her world went dark. To escape her grief, she decided to set herself a challenge. Having never seriously ridden a bike, she set out to ride around the world. 18,000 miles, 152 days, 4 continents, 19 countries, 29 punctures, 6 big mountains, 1 desert and a cyclone later, she made it back just days before Christmas with a Guinness World Record. Empowering, inspiring, often humorous, This Road I Ride is testimony to the power of sheer will to overcome any obstacle. Discover a true story of adventure, blood, sweat and gears.