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Loading... Escapeby Carolyn Jessop
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. It took me a while to get into this book, but Carolyn's account of her life inside the FLDS is harrowing. Being born into such a "belief system" is bizarre enough, but that such a community can exist outside the law for so long is just mind-boggling. Courage and resilience are qualities that abound in Carolyn and there is no doubt that she and her children needed to get out. Whilst she is highly critical of the "prophet", Warren Jeffs, and his cronies (like her former husband) it is clear that she does not hate those she left behind. This is the most admirable thing about Carolyn and also why she did not crumble when they tried to knock her down. Despite everything she is just looking to the future and enjoying her life and her children. Being here in Australia, I don't recall hearing much about the raid on the YFZ ranch, but I was shocked to learn Oprah had gone inside and really found nothing wrong there. That she would even give these people air time AT ALL is beyond me! Loved the book and I look forward to seeing the movie starring Kathryn Heigl if it ever eventuates... (  )1   sueo23 | Nov 3, 2009 |  This was a great story of strength from a woman who has suffered more than anyone I know. Married to a man of 51 when she was only 18, Carolyn Jessop became the fourth wife of a polygamist in the FLDS (Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints). I applaud and commend Ms. Jessop for the bravery that she showed when she literally ran away from everything she had once believed in to protect and save her eight children. This is a truly inspiring story that anyone will do well to read, but it will appeal especially to those who have been, or still are, members of any type of religious cult. ( ) GeniusJen | Oct 13, 2009 | This book exhausted me....mentally and emotionally. As I read of what this woman went through, I found myself drained and worn out. I could not put the book down. A compulsively readable story of a young woman, raised in a strict polygamist offshoot of the Mormon church, and how the male hierarchy began slowly and methodically gaining more and more power over the lives of the women and children, and eventually some of the less powerful men as well. The oldest "prophet" died, leaving the highest position open for the son to claim....but in time, the new prophet's rules and regulations began to appear to be based on the whims of his growing madness. Warren Jeffs fanaticism and power caused Carolyn Jessop, fourth wife of Merril Jessop, to realize that her life and the lives of her eight children were in serious jeopardy. Without a complete understanding of the outside world, she knew it was the only chance she and her kids had of survival....the FLDS community was imploding and she took the opportunity when it came, to escape the clutches of the religious cult. Reading of day to day life in the FLDS community, it seemed as though the women were nothing more than baby making machines, under the thumbs of their husbands. They could not do anything without clearing it first with their "priesthood heads". Any money they earned at jobs were transferred into their husbands hands. They were not to argue or question anything their husbands told them to do, no matter how bizarre or outrageous. Carolyn had several life-threatening pregnancies, constant tension between her and her "sister wives", and obstacle after obstacle thrown at her by those in the community that wanted to crush her spirit and stop her growing rebellion against the abuse that she and the children were enduring. Eventually Carolyn managed somehow to get out...but her children continued to be confused and filled with anxiety due to their upbringing, and how they had been brainwashed to believe that anything outside of the FLDS community was of the devil. With time, patience and love, the kids started to come around, with the exception of Betty, who returned to the FLDS. I will never forget this story and especially will never forget the unquenchable spirit of this amazing young woman. (  ) porchsitter55 | Sep 20, 2009 | A horrifying story, masterfully told. Carolyn was married to a major figure in the Fundamentalist Church of the Latter Day Saints (FLDS). She was 18, naive, and totally ignorant of sex. Her husband was 46 years older - she was his 4th wife. The incredible part of this story is the cruelty and dysfunction between the "sister wives," and the total hypocrisy of her husband. I was angry and upset, as I was reading, but completely engrossed. The passage of the years, the increasing isolation and extremism as Warren Jeffs gained power, the multiple sources of stress and abuse, the slow realization that Carolyn needs to do something, and the courage it took to do anything - kept me turning the pages. Anyone who reads this book will understand all too well the actions of the women and children in the wake of the last raid on Warren Jeffs' cult. ( ) MerryMary | Sep 3, 2009 | I didn't particularly like this book. It was an uncomfortable book to read and at time even laborious and mundane. I do have a great deal of compassion for Carolyn Jessop and the unfortunate circumstances into which she was born. That she was able to escape the FLDS wackheads was fortunate. The book provides an incredible insight into the polygamist lifestyle and the absolute power that is wielded by truly scary men.I can't even recommend it. I'm sure that others will find it fascinating and compelling. And, in truth, it is. It's also disturbing and sad. I simply didn't like it. (  ) 2kidsandtired | Jul 28, 2009 | 
Below, Slate flags Carolyn's most intriguing, strange, and heartbreaking allegations.
Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0767927567, Hardcover)The dramatic first-person account of life inside an ultra-fundamentalist American religious sect, and one woman’s courageous flight to freedom with her eight children. (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:57:56 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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