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maric83ava's review against another edition
3.0
Reading this novel was unsettling -- not because of the subject matter but because of the structure and juxtaposition of fact and fiction. I "think" that some, if not all, of the primary source documents were authentic, but, not knowing for sure made me constantly wonder if I was reading a novel or a historical account. The treatment of Ann Eliza's side of the story was stronger, more skillfully written and more compelling. The Jordan Scott side of the story felt limp, almost an after-thought, and sometimes not realistic.
mmrscobey's review against another edition
4.0
Wish I could give this 3.5 stars. Very interesting read. I learned a lot about polygamy and the history of the Mormon church. It was a little long/slow at times though.
amyschoon71's review against another edition
2.0
That was about 300-too-many pages of horny polygamist men and their blindly following sister wives. I'm glad it's over.
cindy6312's review against another edition
3.0
Listened to the audiobook - the historical segments were fascinating!
britt_brooke's review against another edition
3.0
This was an interesting book because it combined excerpts from the memoir "The 19th Wife" by Ann Eliza Young (Brigham Young's - you guessed it - 19th wife and apostate who lobbied to end polygamy in the US) with a modern day fictional murder story involving a polygamist city. Some spots were slow but all in all, I'd say it's worth a read.
lu57's review against another edition
5.0
I enjoyed this book very much. If you are one interested in the story behind some polygamy, this is the book for you. It is richly detailed with the lifestyle of the families caught up and living The Principle in a way that is shunned by even other polygamists. Disturbing, engrossing and very interesting.
moon110581's review against another edition
4.0
Read this one for book club and I enjoyed it for the most part.
This book explored the Mormon church and its fundamentalist offshoots. It follows the story of Ann Eliza Young, the '19th' wife of Brigham Young. It also follows the modern day story of a young gay man who was kicked out of the polygamist cult he was born into and comes back home after his mother, another '19th' wife, is accused of killing his father.
I was frequently annoyed with the changing narrators and formats. One section would be modern day, then the next would be excerpted from a book, the next diary entries from someone else, the next modern day again, then maybe some library records. i did, however, appreciate that all of this gave us more background on the Morman church itself and a more thorough look at the situations being discussed. It was similar for the main character in the modern parts of the book. I didn't really care for him, but as a member of book club pointed out, he acted like someone with a history of abuse. I appreciated later in the book the hope that he might open himself up to love.
I also appreciated that this main modern story had a gay protagonist, who meets someone and neither one of them end up dead by the end of the book and neither one are a collection of stereotypes. The least interesting thing about the main character is the fact that he's gay. He's not defined by his sexuality, it's just another part of who he is. He's also a 'lost boy' of a polygmist cult, someone who has an unnatural love of dogs, and someone with an innate kindness despite the hardship he's endured. He's a complex and interesting character, and despite the fact that things move awfully fast between him and the young man he becomes involved with, it's nice to be able to hope that they make it despite the awful crap in this world.
It is sad and fascinating to read about these polygamy groups, what life is like for the people that live there, and the terrible things that can happen there. The book is also interesting in a historical standpoint, the founding and the evolution of the Mormon church, and the development of these fundamentalist polygamy offshoots. It's interesting in that it also emphasizes that planned or not, the Mormon religion is something that has been evolving for a very long time and continues to do so.
This book explored the Mormon church and its fundamentalist offshoots. It follows the story of Ann Eliza Young, the '19th' wife of Brigham Young. It also follows the modern day story of a young gay man who was kicked out of the polygamist cult he was born into and comes back home after his mother, another '19th' wife, is accused of killing his father.
I was frequently annoyed with the changing narrators and formats. One section would be modern day, then the next would be excerpted from a book, the next diary entries from someone else, the next modern day again, then maybe some library records. i did, however, appreciate that all of this gave us more background on the Morman church itself and a more thorough look at the situations being discussed. It was similar for the main character in the modern parts of the book. I didn't really care for him, but as a member of book club pointed out, he acted like someone with a history of abuse. I appreciated later in the book the hope that he might open himself up to love.
I also appreciated that this main modern story had a gay protagonist, who meets someone and neither one of them end up dead by the end of the book and neither one are a collection of stereotypes. The least interesting thing about the main character is the fact that he's gay. He's not defined by his sexuality, it's just another part of who he is. He's also a 'lost boy' of a polygmist cult, someone who has an unnatural love of dogs, and someone with an innate kindness despite the hardship he's endured. He's a complex and interesting character, and despite the fact that things move awfully fast between him and the young man he becomes involved with, it's nice to be able to hope that they make it despite the awful crap in this world.
It is sad and fascinating to read about these polygamy groups, what life is like for the people that live there, and the terrible things that can happen there. The book is also interesting in a historical standpoint, the founding and the evolution of the Mormon church, and the development of these fundamentalist polygamy offshoots. It's interesting in that it also emphasizes that planned or not, the Mormon religion is something that has been evolving for a very long time and continues to do so.
ellemnope's review against another edition
3.0
It was okay...I think my opinion is slightly tainted since I read Escape earlier this year. I had a hard time with the bouncing between Ann Eliza Young's story and Jordan's story. I also struggled because I knew that some of it was based on reality, but it was difficult to know what parts of Ann Eliza's story were fiction and what parts were based on verified events and information.
awbookgirl's review against another edition
3.0
I'm fascinated by polygamy. I don't know why. But it is no surprise that when I saw this title, I had to check it out.
A modern day mystery of a nineteenth wife who is accused of murdering her husband, The 19th Wife is interspersed with the based-in-truth story of Ann Eliza Young, the purported nineteenth wife of Brigham Young.
I found the history of Ann Eliza Young more interesting than the modern murder mystery itself. Even so, the details around the modern mystery were compelling. While polygamy as it is practiced in this novel is not the norm, it is what we think about when we hear stories of men like Warren Jeffs.
Ebershoff highlights two especially poignant side effects to the world of fundamentalist polygamy. Young girls forced to marry men, sometimes more than twice their age, and live a life bearing children to build up credit in the afterlife. And the lost boys, young men cast out of the compounds to not be competition of the older men. Ebershoff's recounting of these gelled well with what I have read in polygamist memoirs.
Ebershoff points out that the recorded history of the Mormon church is ambiguous at best. And modern Mormons will argue that the modern fundamentalist sect portrayed in this book are not real Mormons. Still, there's no disputing that polygamy was a huge part of the church's past.
The story of Ann Eliza Young, manipulated into a marriage with Brigham and then successfully divorcing him and helping fight against polygamy, was fascinating. It was history I was unfamiliar with, and I enjoyed learning more about this story. Ann Eliza's own dubious motivation for fighting Brigham was only a small part of the story. Finding out about what happens to her is the truly intriguing part.
Not as quick of a read as I thought it might be, I still found The 19th Wife an entertaining read, especially if you are interested in the subject matter.
A modern day mystery of a nineteenth wife who is accused of murdering her husband, The 19th Wife is interspersed with the based-in-truth story of Ann Eliza Young, the purported nineteenth wife of Brigham Young.
I found the history of Ann Eliza Young more interesting than the modern murder mystery itself. Even so, the details around the modern mystery were compelling. While polygamy as it is practiced in this novel is not the norm, it is what we think about when we hear stories of men like Warren Jeffs.
Ebershoff highlights two especially poignant side effects to the world of fundamentalist polygamy. Young girls forced to marry men, sometimes more than twice their age, and live a life bearing children to build up credit in the afterlife. And the lost boys, young men cast out of the compounds to not be competition of the older men. Ebershoff's recounting of these gelled well with what I have read in polygamist memoirs.
Ebershoff points out that the recorded history of the Mormon church is ambiguous at best. And modern Mormons will argue that the modern fundamentalist sect portrayed in this book are not real Mormons. Still, there's no disputing that polygamy was a huge part of the church's past.
The story of Ann Eliza Young, manipulated into a marriage with Brigham and then successfully divorcing him and helping fight against polygamy, was fascinating. It was history I was unfamiliar with, and I enjoyed learning more about this story. Ann Eliza's own dubious motivation for fighting Brigham was only a small part of the story. Finding out about what happens to her is the truly intriguing part.
Not as quick of a read as I thought it might be, I still found The 19th Wife an entertaining read, especially if you are interested in the subject matter.