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| Name : | Stephanie N. |
My Reviews
Born a slave to her polygamist sect religion's abusively chauvinistic culture and male-dominated way of life, Carolyn Jessop's story is fascinating in its (sad) portrayal of the inner-workings of the mysterious FLDS church. The story is reminiscent of Kate Chopin's 'Awakening' and Henrik Ibsen's 'A Doll's House' in its criticism of the blind acceptance of traditional roles of men and women in FLDS society. Most inspiring is Jessop's early recognition and refusal to remain a victim of her cult's brainwashing, despite the constant justification in the name of religion, replete with threats of eternal damnation for noncompliance. Even at her lowest points, Jessop retains measured strength and perseverence to win freedom for herself and her 8 children. She emerges from her voiceless life of hardship, prejudice, abuse, fear, neglect, terror, and misery, with the ultimate prize being happiness, peace, and mental freedom. Hers is a story that emotes compassion and hope, yet sadness for those still left behind.
I was excited about this book, and wanted to enjoy it, and was therefore disappointed to find it dull and reminiscent of teen fiction. The writing style (written from the perspective of a 9-year-old) is choppy, with constant swearing from the character of Freeda. This was grossly overused and distracting (although in keeping with her "rough around the edges" character). I didn't find the transition to the "surprise" truth revelation to be well formed. The story seemed to plod along with each chapter much the same as the prior, with no real story development to shape the build-up of the pinnacle in only the last 5 chapters. (I kept thinking, "is something eventually going to happen here? The book's almost done!"). I was hoping that the actual "book of bright ideas" itself would include some philosophical nuggets of wisdom from a child's perspective, but found them all to be somewhat useless, even to the storyline. There were no touching "awh" moments, and the girls' friendship didn't seem to ever truly gain enough momentum or substance to a point worthy of a childhood best-friendship, let alone a life-long connection. The "book of bright ideas" itself didn't hold enough presence in the novel to be considered a worthy enough character after which the title should be named. In summary, insufficient character and plot developments; poor story transitions; undeveloped concepts; not enough attention given to the crux; and overall weak writing. Better suited for a freshman or sophomore high school summer reading list.
I greatly enjoyed this book, which gave a truly unique and rare perspective into female life in early Colonial New England. Thoroughly absorbing the chapters is truly co-dependent on simultaneously reading through the footnotes at the back, so know in advance that there will be a lot of flipping back and forth, but that this will enrich and enhance the interpretation and absorbability of the diary. I love firsthand historical accounts, and now have a renewed appreciation for early colonial life, particularly that of the female voice in this era, and even moreso women in childbirth in rural Maine in the winter (!). It almost seems voyeuristic to read Martha's diary, knowing that she likely never intended for it to be read by anyone else, let alone 220+ years later, but her voice is fluid, peaceful, humble, and dutiful to her family and her society. If you enjoyed this, also rent or buy the PBS documentary video of it by the same name, which has period re-enactments, and live narration by the author as she explains the journey of putting this work together. A fabulous read, ripe for discussion particularly in examining the parallels between this life so long ago, and our own today.
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