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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
“But I feel so torn. I know what’s right, so why doesn’t it feel right?”
Gentry lives in a polygamy community where she lives apart from the outside world and it’s “evils”. There are rules upon rules that the Prophet has professed and are strictly enforced by the God Squad. Gentry has always followed them, but resisted within her mind.
•
Gentry and her brother, Tanner, are invited to perform at a local art festival. The night before the event the Prophet calls to outlaw music and says that women are forbidden to leave the compound. Gentry and her brother decide to sneak out and perform at the festival, but are caught causing their entire family to be in danger.
•
Will Gentry fall in line and follow the rules that are laid out or will she keep pushing even though it could cause her to lose her family?
#teacherswhoread
#MGlit
#polygamy
#teachersfollowteachers
Gentry lives in a polygamy community where she lives apart from the outside world and it’s “evils”. There are rules upon rules that the Prophet has professed and are strictly enforced by the God Squad. Gentry has always followed them, but resisted within her mind.
•
Gentry and her brother, Tanner, are invited to perform at a local art festival. The night before the event the Prophet calls to outlaw music and says that women are forbidden to leave the compound. Gentry and her brother decide to sneak out and perform at the festival, but are caught causing their entire family to be in danger.
•
Will Gentry fall in line and follow the rules that are laid out or will she keep pushing even though it could cause her to lose her family?
#teacherswhoread
#MGlit
#polygamy
#teachersfollowteachers
A girl in a cult finds herself in chaos when everything goes wrong.
This was one of my anticipated reads of September, I love books about cults, I am always interested to see how people fall for them, how people act there, and how a cult works. And to see people try to find a way out (as that is often a plot as well).
However, I am disappointed in this one. Since I am quite tired, and I have tried to write a review for the past 6 days, I will just go for a good/not so good review... though I guess most of this review will be about the not so good stuff.
Let's start with the not so good:
-Pacing was just not good. In a very short span we And that is how it went throughout the book.
-It didn't feel like Gentry was in the cult for very long. She had a few things going on that said YES I live in a cult and have been living here since my childhood/since a baby, but then there were tons of things that were just weird/off. Like her constantly standing up against everything, her arguing with everyone, her constant butting into things, and other things. That just didn't seem how a girl who has been in the cult for all her life would act. I have read plenty of books about cults, and yes sure, the characters generally learn to stand up for themselves and others, but not this fast. It is gradual, and with it they also lose their faith in the cult. So it was just very weird, and each time she talked about how long she has been in the cult (forever it seems), I was just startled. Whut? Really? How?
-How Gentry met C. and they had a convo about how they felt about the cult. Again, weirdly done. Gentry thinks back to the ONE FREAKING concert (well, one song) she and her brother gave a while ago before the mess and how KIND the people were and thus her cult teachings must be off. Which sure they are, but still it seemed weird that she was so instantly convinced and instantly thought something was weird about the cult teachings. Which, also goes with the point above.
-But then there are times that Gentry is totally into the cult stuff.. It was just so confusing. Make up your mind.
-Her relationship with C. I get that they are friends, but she is constantly dodging any guys not her brothers, but in the mean time she is constantly with C. Sure, I was happy that they were so close, but come on, you two should know...
-
-The mom. I get that she is superbrainwashed, but at times I thought she would speak up. But she never did. And it was just painful.
Good (Yes, I also have at least 3 good things):
-The brother-sister relationship. I loved how Gentry's older brother was always looking out for his sister and his family. Even when poop hits the fan he tries to connect.
-Amy. Ah, Amy, I just loved the girl. She doesn't have it easy in the cult as she has Down syndrome, people bully her or make remarks. She isn't allowed to go to school or anywhere. But yet she stays positive (or at least tries as we can see the comments do hurt her), helps out her older sister, sings and dances, and other things. She sure was a radiant light in this book.
-The cult was kind of interesting though I wished we had seem more of it. Now it was mostly focused on the mess that happens to Gentry's family and less on the cult itself. We do see some workings and we do find out that the cult leader has been in jail for 11 years. Yep, the guy is in jail but still manages to preach to his cult.
So yeah, disappointed. Hopefully my next book about cults is going to be better. If anyone has any recommendations be sure to let me know!
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
This was one of my anticipated reads of September, I love books about cults, I am always interested to see how people fall for them, how people act there, and how a cult works. And to see people try to find a way out (as that is often a plot as well).
However, I am disappointed in this one. Since I am quite tired, and I have tried to write a review for the past 6 days, I will just go for a good/not so good review... though I guess most of this review will be about the not so good stuff.
Let's start with the not so good:
-Pacing was just not good. In a very short span we
Spoiler
lose Gentry's brother, her sister gets married off to an old dude, her little brother disappears, his twin sister gets taken for interrogation and hit, her father gets exiled, she and her mom and sisters get shipped to Canada, whut? It was just too fast and I couldn't even mourn or care about the characters.-It didn't feel like Gentry was in the cult for very long. She had a few things going on that said YES I live in a cult and have been living here since my childhood/since a baby, but then there were tons of things that were just weird/off. Like her constantly standing up against everything, her arguing with everyone, her constant butting into things, and other things. That just didn't seem how a girl who has been in the cult for all her life would act. I have read plenty of books about cults, and yes sure, the characters generally learn to stand up for themselves and others, but not this fast. It is gradual, and with it they also lose their faith in the cult. So it was just very weird, and each time she talked about how long she has been in the cult (forever it seems), I was just startled. Whut? Really? How?
-How Gentry met C. and they had a convo about how they felt about the cult. Again, weirdly done. Gentry thinks back to the ONE FREAKING concert (well, one song) she and her brother gave a while ago before the mess and how KIND the people were and thus her cult teachings must be off. Which sure they are, but still it seemed weird that she was so instantly convinced and instantly thought something was weird about the cult teachings. Which, also goes with the point above.
-But then there are times that Gentry is totally into the cult stuff.. It was just so confusing. Make up your mind.
-Her relationship with C. I get that they are friends, but she is constantly dodging any guys not her brothers, but in the mean time she is constantly with C. Sure, I was happy that they were so close, but come on, you two should know...
-
Spoiler
we are constantly told girls need to be 18, but for some magical reason Meryl, 15, and our MC, 13, are getting married off. What the fuck? Did this have to do with the personal vendetta of the cult leader against the dad? Or something else?-The mom. I get that she is superbrainwashed, but at times I thought she would speak up. But she never did. And it was just painful.
Good (Yes, I also have at least 3 good things):
-The brother-sister relationship. I loved how Gentry's older brother was always looking out for his sister and his family. Even when poop hits the fan he tries to connect.
-Amy. Ah, Amy, I just loved the girl. She doesn't have it easy in the cult as she has Down syndrome, people bully her or make remarks. She isn't allowed to go to school or anywhere. But yet she stays positive (or at least tries as we can see the comments do hurt her), helps out her older sister, sings and dances, and other things. She sure was a radiant light in this book.
-The cult was kind of interesting though I wished we had seem more of it. Now it was mostly focused on the mess that happens to Gentry's family and less on the cult itself. We do see some workings and we do find out that the cult leader has been in jail for 11 years. Yep, the guy is in jail but still manages to preach to his cult.
So yeah, disappointed. Hopefully my next book about cults is going to be better. If anyone has any recommendations be sure to let me know!
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
A good blend of life in a polygamous family and religion without going too dark and too deep.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
I got this for $1.50 at Dollar Tree and I wasn't expecting much but I was actually so impressed? The cult tactics, the family dynamics, the emotional turmoil, were all really well done, especially considering it's supposed to be a middle grade book. My only wish is that we knew what happened to her sister Meryl at the end.
That was really quite bad, actually.
Two stars because the prose was tidy enough and the portrayal of a character with Down Syndrome was good if amazingly improbable.
No more than two stars because... wow? Okay, I'm interested in high control religious groups, so I know just how poorly they were portrayed here. For one thing, there's... no religion to it, which feels kind of demeaning to people who grow up in these situations, many of whom have actual genuine faith, and by the same token there's no indoctrination. Gentry occasionally, barely seems to worry about the outside world but it's clearly set dressing. She has attitudes and behaviors that match someone (a particularly juvenile someone) in the normal world, just in this weird situation.
Also, Gentry is incredibly stupid. Just so dumb. She doesn't feel like she grew up in her world and she's constantly mouthing off in ways that just wouldn't happen in high-control, patriarchal religious groups because it simply would not be tolerated. On a similar note, what's with these names? Gentry, Amy, Meryl, Kate, Tanner, Channing? So... they're super religious, but no one picks Biblical names, I guess?
The setting should have been the control of the group, and it just wasn't. The character was pathetically written. And the plot... there is no plot. Gentry is a mix of stupid and passive. She screams about what's happening and makes everything worse, and also, for someone whose one redeeming trait is loving her sister, she really only acts to protect herself.
The one place this book shines is in showing that Amy is smart and capable. Um. Not really sure it considered anything else, since the ableism around her, again, feels like ableism in the mainstream world, not high-control religious ableism.
So yeah. Quite bad, overall.
Two stars because the prose was tidy enough and the portrayal of a character with Down Syndrome was good if amazingly improbable.
No more than two stars because... wow? Okay, I'm interested in high control religious groups, so I know just how poorly they were portrayed here. For one thing, there's... no religion to it, which feels kind of demeaning to people who grow up in these situations, many of whom have actual genuine faith, and by the same token there's no indoctrination. Gentry occasionally, barely seems to worry about the outside world but it's clearly set dressing. She has attitudes and behaviors that match someone (a particularly juvenile someone) in the normal world, just in this weird situation.
Also, Gentry is incredibly stupid. Just so dumb. She doesn't feel like she grew up in her world and she's constantly mouthing off in ways that just wouldn't happen in high-control, patriarchal religious groups because it simply would not be tolerated. On a similar note, what's with these names? Gentry, Amy, Meryl, Kate, Tanner, Channing? So... they're super religious, but no one picks Biblical names, I guess?
The setting should have been the control of the group, and it just wasn't. The character was pathetically written. And the plot... there is no plot. Gentry is a mix of stupid and passive. She screams about what's happening and makes everything worse, and also, for someone whose one redeeming trait is loving her sister, she really only acts to protect herself.
The one place this book shines is in showing that Amy is smart and capable. Um. Not really sure it considered anything else, since the ableism around her, again, feels like ableism in the mainstream world, not high-control religious ableism.
So yeah. Quite bad, overall.
This book makes me wish I didn't give other books five stars. I've never read another middle grade book like it, and I am SO excited to hand it off to my students. It's the perfect mix: it educates about what it might be like to be a part of a religious cult and relates to the reader with a healthy dose of teenage angst.
Any middle school student can relate to this book. They're at a special time in their lives when the first flickers of doubt start to come when their parents assert their rules and values. It is so exciting to offer this literature to students in a small town. I hope it reminds them that there is life outside of rural Illinois.
I would recommend this book to any student who leans toward realistic fiction or horror, or any student who comes from a home with values that don't reflect life in the real world.
Any middle school student can relate to this book. They're at a special time in their lives when the first flickers of doubt start to come when their parents assert their rules and values. It is so exciting to offer this literature to students in a small town. I hope it reminds them that there is life outside of rural Illinois.
I would recommend this book to any student who leans toward realistic fiction or horror, or any student who comes from a home with values that don't reflect life in the real world.
Realistic strong, but naive, female lead character in a religious cult. Someone you want to see leave the cult but the very nature of a cult provides the conflict of leaving all you know to enter a society the cult leader has demonized.
5 stars!
God, this book makes me feel so gross. I feel so bad for the members of the FLDS "church" (cult) and the victims of the Prophet. Some of the stuff you read about in this book is outrageous, but what's worse is that it actually was believed. The real beliefs of the FLDS is in this book.
I understand that people who are brainwashed often don't know it, and the children would 100% not know something is off, and they really have no choice, because their parents control them. If this has been your life since the day you were born, you possibly wouldn't have any idea that something is wrong. I just feel like they (they = the adults) would have a little voice that goes hey, this isn't quite right, you know? Especially when mothers are marrying off their 13-15 year olds to 30+ year olds (which made me so fucking angry, which is probably why I am being so harsh).
They were NOT nice to the kids in this book, fair warning. Especially the little girl with down syndrome, Amy. I am extremely pissed off at all the adults involved. Like how the fuck could anybody do these things to children???
God, this book makes me feel so gross. I feel so bad for the members of the FLDS "church" (cult) and the victims of the Prophet. Some of the stuff you read about in this book is outrageous, but what's worse is that it actually was believed. The real beliefs of the FLDS is in this book.
I understand that people who are brainwashed often don't know it, and the children would 100% not know something is off, and they really have no choice, because their parents control them. If this has been your life since the day you were born, you possibly wouldn't have any idea that something is wrong. I just feel like they (they = the adults) would have a little voice that goes hey, this isn't quite right, you know? Especially when mothers are marrying off their 13-15 year olds to 30+ year olds (which made me so fucking angry, which is probably why I am being so harsh).
They were NOT nice to the kids in this book, fair warning. Especially the little girl with down syndrome, Amy. I am extremely pissed off at all the adults involved. Like how the fuck could anybody do these things to children???