Ex-Scientologist Mike Rinder has memoir out in September

NEW YORK (AP) — A former top Scientologist has a memoir coming out this fall. Mike Rinder’s “A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology” is scheduled for release Sept. 27. Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, announced the book deal Tuesday. Rinder held numerous positions within Scientology, from spokesperson to head of the Office of Special Affairs, the division that took on the church’s critics. He left the church in 2007, having spent virtually his whole life there. He now is a popular commentator and podcaster.