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3.43 AVERAGE
3.43 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
I feel incapable of rating this book for various reasons.
So, this book delves into the same polygamist cult described in [b:The Sound of Gravel|25332115|The Sound of Gravel A Memoir|Ruth Wariner|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1436200674l/25332115._SY75_.jpg|45067930] (which I read last year.) In fact, the authors are cousins. Though leading the lives they did, it was basically impossible for them to meet until they were adults. If you choose to read The Polygamist's Daughter, I recommend at least reading a wikipedia page on the LeBaron branch of polygamist Mormonism. The book does very little to situate the reader.
The writing is exceedingly barebones. It takes you along a timeline, you're told how the author felt about. And so it goes until the end. This is fine for a memoir, in my opinion. It would be boring if all memoirs are in this style, but it can make sense some of the time. In this case, the shock of a mom sending her children dumpster diving (and the children finding it a fun treat) kind of speaks for itself, you know? Other times, though, the style falls short. A relative takes LeBaron in after she runs from the cult and we're told said relative was sometimes passive-aggressive and didn't allow for negative emotions. "I could send you back to your mother" was apparently wielded as a threat to make LeBaron behave. However we're told all these things happened. All the dialogue we get with this relative is very kind. Consequently there was a disconnect for me.
Like I said in my status update, I had alarm bells going off in my mind when the author started namedropping churches that follow Bill Gothard. Gothard's teachings have led to institutionalized abuse as well, and there have been credible claims of molestation made against him. As the book progresses, the author expresses a style of Christianity that, for various reason to personal to get into in public on Goodreads, I really shy away from. Looking at this books genre listings on amazon, I see that it's categorized under things like "inspirational" and "Christian living."
At the end of this book I realized I'm not really the intended audience for this book at all. LeBaron is witnessing (both in terms of the neutral meaning of the word, as well as the Christian meaning of the word.) As a result, I have my own experiences that make it basically impossible for me to rate this book fairly. I need to be clear I don't think the author should have told it any other way. I was the same age as the author when I experienced a spiritual enlightenment (hell, I was also at a bible camp when it happened.) Consequently I understand the power of such a moment, even if I ended up on a very different path. And no one should have to clean up their life story to make it politically correct. The author escaped the LeBaron cult and found meaning/solace in Christianity. That's what happened, and she should tell what happened. The world is always better when there are things shining lights on the abuse and neglect of children. All that being said I don't think I can fairly rate this book, so I will not.
So, this book delves into the same polygamist cult described in [b:The Sound of Gravel|25332115|The Sound of Gravel A Memoir|Ruth Wariner|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1436200674l/25332115._SY75_.jpg|45067930] (which I read last year.) In fact, the authors are cousins. Though leading the lives they did, it was basically impossible for them to meet until they were adults. If you choose to read The Polygamist's Daughter, I recommend at least reading a wikipedia page on the LeBaron branch of polygamist Mormonism. The book does very little to situate the reader.
The writing is exceedingly barebones. It takes you along a timeline, you're told how the author felt about. And so it goes until the end. This is fine for a memoir, in my opinion. It would be boring if all memoirs are in this style, but it can make sense some of the time. In this case, the shock of a mom sending her children dumpster diving (and the children finding it a fun treat) kind of speaks for itself, you know? Other times, though, the style falls short. A relative takes LeBaron in after she runs from the cult and we're told said relative was sometimes passive-aggressive and didn't allow for negative emotions. "I could send you back to your mother" was apparently wielded as a threat to make LeBaron behave. However we're told all these things happened. All the dialogue we get with this relative is very kind. Consequently there was a disconnect for me.
Like I said in my status update, I had alarm bells going off in my mind when the author started namedropping churches that follow Bill Gothard. Gothard's teachings have led to institutionalized abuse as well, and there have been credible claims of molestation made against him. As the book progresses, the author expresses a style of Christianity that, for various reason to personal to get into in public on Goodreads, I really shy away from. Looking at this books genre listings on amazon, I see that it's categorized under things like "inspirational" and "Christian living."
At the end of this book I realized I'm not really the intended audience for this book at all. LeBaron is witnessing (both in terms of the neutral meaning of the word, as well as the Christian meaning of the word.) As a result, I have my own experiences that make it basically impossible for me to rate this book fairly. I need to be clear I don't think the author should have told it any other way. I was the same age as the author when I experienced a spiritual enlightenment (hell, I was also at a bible camp when it happened.) Consequently I understand the power of such a moment, even if I ended up on a very different path. And no one should have to clean up their life story to make it politically correct. The author escaped the LeBaron cult and found meaning/solace in Christianity. That's what happened, and she should tell what happened. The world is always better when there are things shining lights on the abuse and neglect of children. All that being said I don't think I can fairly rate this book, so I will not.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
I got this one for free on audible. It was better then I expected! It was interesting and kept me engaged. She had a very different childhood then most!
reflective
medium-paced
I usually love memoirs and it takes a lot of courage to tell someone’s story, the public in no way has a right to these stories- but this book reads (and the narration) very juvenile. There are gaps the the story line and it was very hard to keep the wives / siblings and cult followers in order.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Sexual harassment
I read this during winter break of my senior year of college while in Florida with my family
If you’re looking for a great culty memoir, this ain’t it.
While I appreciate the courage it takes to tell this story it fell flat for me. It doesn’t really tell much about the cult or the self-appointed prophet compared to other biographies by former members of LDFS. This feels more like someone’s journey from one end of Christianity to another.
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced