- Shopping Bag ( 0 items )
Available on NOOK devices and apps
Want a NOOK? Explore Now
Want a NOOK? Explore Now
A RIVETING MEMOIR OF LIFE INSIDE ONE OF NORTH AMERICA’S MOST NOTORIOUS POLYGAMOUS CULTS
She had no choice in the matter—none of the girls did. Her mission was to give birth to and raise many children in devoted service to a shared husband. Susan was fifteen years old when she became the sixth wife of Verlan LeBaron, one of the leaders of a rogue Mormon cult, who was engaged in a blood feud with his brother that from 1972 to 1988 claimed up to two dozen lives.
In this gripping and eloquent book, Susan Ray Schmidt tells the story of growing up on the inside and of her ultimate escape with her children from an oppressive and violent life. Delving more deeply into this mysterious underworld than any previous work, Favorite Wife is a powerful account of the affairs of the heart, coming of age under exceptional circumstances, and the tough choices that are sometimes painfully necessary to preserve human dignity.
Where was the excitement I had anticipated as the wife of a leader in God’s church? We were supposed to be an army for the Lord, and yet babies, back-breaking work, and never enough money to go around were the lot of a polygamist’s wife. All around me were poverty-stricken homes filled with lonely women and children, living for the scattered moments when our husbands could find time for a hurried visit home. And yet the time Verlan spent at home was the most frustrating time of all. Knowing he was close, yet sleeping in another wife’s bed only blocks away, was the purest form of torture. The irony of it all was the fact that when he was with me, I felt sorry for the others.
winkyn
Posted March 13, 2011
A great book... well told story that is interesting and keeps you flipping pages.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.It amazes me the kind of isolation these compounds and religious cults seem to have. I thought the author did a great job trying to be fair and balanced to her old faith and how she sees things now. She did a wonderful job capturing her reason and the spirit of her young self and beliefs. I could see that she worked very hard no to insult anyone's way of life while also trying to be honest about some of it's pitfalls. She also did a wonderful job enticing me to read some of the works by others of the same events just so I could further compare the picture and perhaps begin to better understand what brings people to the idea that polygamy is divine and how one lives within that framework.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 5, 2012
An insightful peek inside a community far different from the norm. Very interesting and page turning. A great addition to several other books written about the Mormon way of life. I finished this book in one day!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 25, 2012
This book was a great book! I can't say enough!!! What a read!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 30, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted September 10, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted July 30, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted April 18, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted September 11, 2010
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted August 23, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted January 17, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted January 16, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted July 27, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted June 26, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted January 27, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted July 11, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted August 1, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted October 7, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted April 20, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted December 26, 2010
No text was provided for this review.
LendMe™
Overview
A RIVETING MEMOIR OF LIFE INSIDE ONE OF NORTH AMERICA’S MOST NOTORIOUS POLYGAMOUS CULTS
She had no choice in the matter—none of the girls did. Her mission was to give birth to and raise many children in devoted service to a shared husband. Susan was fifteen years old when she became the sixth wife of Verlan LeBaron, one of the leaders of a rogue Mormon cult, who was engaged in a blood feud with his brother that from 1972 to 1988 claimed up to two dozen lives.
In this gripping and eloquent book, Susan Ray Schmidt tells the story of growing up on the inside and of her ...