Grabbed the reader on the first page. Two different but very compelling stories. Learned a great deal about the Mormons. Everyone jumped right into discussing the book without even going to the questions. Sparked more interest about Mormon life and the history of their church. Very readable and lots to discuss!!

I am so intrigued by the history and story behind this novel!

Great read, loved both stories within. Made me want to research further. Info in book matches well with real stories published about FLDS/Colorado City. This situation really makes me mad!

I loved this book, it was so interesting. A real page turner.

We all agreed that The 19th Wife was a complex and wonderful book, combining epic historical fiction with a modern murder mystery. The insights into the lives of the early Mormons were fascinating and our favorite parts, although the murder mystery added a further dimension to the book. Jordan's mission to help prove his mother's innocence was particularly helpful in bringing attention to the issues that children of plural marriages have to cope with and how they are truly the greatest victims of this practice.


Though David Ebershoff is careful to portray many different faces within the Mormon Church in his story, it becomes clear to the reader that the author is saying that despite many good works by the church and it's leaders, there is much to be outraged about in their practice of polygamy in the past and by some still today. The mystery of faith is explored both in Ann Eliza's story as she escaped from her marriage to Brigham Young and in Jordon's search for understanding his mother's abandonment and eventual return to her life with The Firsts. The two stories are very different but share the common thread of polygamy. Specifically, they present different viewpoints on how polygamy effects women and children and ultimately even how it can be destructive and dangerous to men as well.

The content was interesting and inspired discussion, but the book was slow and it seemed that many different threads within the book could have been woven together and were instead left loose.

I enjoyed this book as it dealt with a topic about which I knew nothing. I found myself regularly looking up facts to see it they were true. The two tales are interwoven in a way that is sometimes seems brusque, as you suddenly drop the modern tale to switch to the older one or vice versa, however all in all I found that it was an intriguing story that I couldn't stop sharing with friends.

This book is very well written by intertwining the past to the present. A very interesting look at the history of the Mormon Religion.

All three elements in one book.

A present-day murder mystery parallelling early history of the Mormon faith makes for an informative, eye-opening read. The characters are interesting, but even more so is the strange history of polygamy practiced in the U.S.

Truly eye opening to a way of life and lots of room for discussion. Love the way it is two stories in one with the historical side and the present day story. An amazing book!

This is a very discussable book. I did several google searches to learn more about the Mormon church and Ann Eliza Young as did another member. We all enjoyed the history apsect of the book. The movie is available on DVD.

This was a great story on polygamy. I learned so many things. I loved how the story was told back and forth between the actual writings of the 19th Mrs. Young and a current day murder mystery. You could see the changes and the splits of the followers of Joseph Young. I highly recommend this book to anyone who ever thought as I did ......why would a man take more than one wife and why would a wife want that for herself?

Interesting to learn about the founding of this religion and its affects on its believers. Not really sure they needed a murder mystery though. Would've been just as interesting to learn about how it affects the kids in modern times and have Jordan become more involved in the kids on the "inside".

Interesting book full of surprises, but not excellent.

Two stories interwoven--the story of Ann Eliza Young and her campaign against polygamy and the story of a current sister wife accused of murder. An in-depth look into the emotions and conflicts involved in living in polygamy--the justifications for it and denunciation of it. Absolute power corrupts --with no checks on their actions, self-indulgence can be twisted into "religious" dogma. Interesting to see the effect of polygamy on the men--the emotional and financial drain.

Eye opening about the life of early Mormon women. Kept my interest!

This was a very enjoyable read! It was really interesting to learn about the history of the Mormon faith.

This book provided seed for a lively discussion about Mormonism and other organized religion. The blurring of the line between fact and fiction left us somewhat unsure about the beliefs and practices of the present day church but the history presented was very interesting. We found the story of Anna Elisa Young, Wife Number 19, more compelling than the fiction part of the book. A great book club book with potential for great discussion.

I enjoyed the historical aspect of the book, but definitely did not like the book overall. I did not feel the present day story line about polygamy and the society in which they lived added anything to the story. A little to much like Sister Wives for me, which I also dislike.

Overall as a club we enjoyed this book. We did have one member who hated the contemporary story that parallels the historical one. Most of us, however, were equally intrigued by the history of "celestial marriage" and how it continues to be justified in the LDS. The subject of plural marriages led to passionate and sometimes comical discussions.

There were 2 story lines, one in the past and one current. The did not mesh very well and the curent one could have been eliminated. Well written about the start of Mormanism. Brigham Young not shown as the great person many believe. Characters quite believable and interesting.

Interesting from a historical perspective. There were many facts that I didn't know or understand about the early Mormons. I had great difficulty with this book primarily because I didn't relate to or understand the role of women in the Mormon faith. This was difficult for me. As a member of the "baby boomer" generation the degradation of the role of women offended me. Aside from that, the ultimate "trust" in "following the leader" on blind faith is contradictory to whatI understand to be "critical thinking." Hard to believe people still find this acceptable.

Group found this book interesting and it generated a lot of discussion, however some members found some passages tedious. overall, we enjoyed reading it.

The way the author wove the past and the present in the two separate, but related stories, was interesting and kept me reading and looking forward to the next chapter. Even though this was fiction, the obviously well researched topic, is a part of our American history, and I think most people will find it informative. This book was a good choice for our club because it provided us with a lot of topics for discussion. It turned out some of our members have Mormon roots and were able to share family stories.

Well, The 19th Wife gave us plenty to talk about! I think we agreed that we found the contemporary story more engaging than the tale told from AnnEliza's point of view in the late 1800s. It was sometimes hard to keep characters straight, in both time periods. Now, which of the wives shot The whole story was fascinating in a kind of car-wreck way! Did they really live like that? Are there places where polygamy is still common practice today? Great discussion, too, on LDS as opposed to Firsts and similar splinter groups.

Interesting. Start it when you have a chunk of time as it jumps back and forth in time.

Although this book is fiction, it is based on historical records and author Ebershoff has clearly done his homework. Fascinating, and at times shocking, this story makes it clear that polygamy is about more than having multiple wives. It can also be an excuse for virtual slavery, child rape and brainwashing.

This book was very interesting and informative. It successfully wove two stories together--one from years ago and one set in the modern world. Both stories were about the 19th Wife of a Morman or a First. I learned a great deal about the history of the Morman Religion and also found the stories very entertaining.

This a a slow read, that was a little confusing. I'm not sure we would recommend it but we did learn about a time in our history that we were not that familiar with.

A very interesting and informative look at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and its polygamous past. The book interweaves an examination of the life of one of Brigham Young's wives with a current story about a breakaway Mormon cult, the Firsts. The modern day story involves a murder mystery, which is the weakest part of the book, in my opinion. The book should generate a great deal of discussion.

Two stories are going on here. One is historical fiction and quite interesting, the other is a simple mystery with problems. The book is supposedly written as a master's thesis.

The historical figure presented is Ann Eliza Young, one of Brigham Young's wives. She was miserable as a plural wife, ran away, and became famous as a speaker against polygamy.

The mystery has to do with a woman accused of murdering her husband. They are members of a Mormon fundamentalist sect in the 21st century, and theirs was a polygamist marriage.

Ann Eliza's story really begins with her mother, Elizabeth, near the beginning of Mormonism. So the early history of this religion is described by way of her experiences until Ann Eliza enters the picture.

The murder mystery is too simple and too easy. Even the characters are too simplistic. It is a fact, though, that such fundamentalist sects exist.

Eventually, you will understand how the two stories are related. The book deserves high ratings for its historical fiction but is downgraded because of its poor description of the ongoing real problem of Mormon fundamentalism.

Rated 8.0 out of 10. A bit confusing the way it was written. Blended fictional stories with real historical events and people.