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Irene Spencer did as she felt God commanded in marrying her brother-in-law Verlan LeBaron, becoming his second wife at age 16. When the government raided the fundamentalist, polygamous Mormon village of Short Creek, Arizona, Irene and her family fled to Verlan's brothers' Mexican ranch. They lived in squalor and desolate conditions in the Mexican desert with Verlan's four brothers, one mentally ill sister, and numerous wives and children--Irene herself bore thirteen. The dramatic story of her life, and her escape to an outside world for which she was little prepared, reveals how far religion can be stretched and abused and how one woman and her children found their way to truth and redemption.--From publisher description.… (más)
I've always enjoyed a tale of all the vastly different circumstances people find themselves in, and it's even better when it ends up that they figure out how to get themselves into a place they're happy with in the end. I also enjoy a good cult story. But I felt like there was too much of the story missing in this for it to really pull me in. She would mention things once that were clearly significant in her life, but provide no other details. Random paragraphs about her children would appear in the middle of a section and then vanish again, making me wonder what, exactly, her children were doing and how they were coping. And interesting read, but it could have been a little more coherent. ( )
This was a wonderfully written book into this woman's life. It was extremely emotional reading about her hardships and loses. It most certainly pulls on the heart-strings. ( )
Utterly horrifying! I can't believe that this poor woman lived so horribly for so long. I was shocked by all the details of her polygamous lifestyle. This is a hefty memoir, but it reads like a novel, and I finished it in less than a week. A good read. It will keep you up at night. ( )
This is now the third book I've read detailing the lives of women who were either born into or married into the notorious LeBaron polygamous Mormon cult, and I have to say it doesn't get easier the more I know about the various branches of this diseased tree. Irene's story is the first to have a woman actually choose to enter the fold, and thereby provides and interesting and somewhat divergent perspective. It continues to break my heart what people will do in the name of their faith. Interesting read, although the main character's perspective is, at times, tough to sympathize with. ( )
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés.Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
Humor enables one to live in the midst of tragic events without being a tragic figure. -- E. T. "Cy" Eberhart
Dedicatoria
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés.Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
To my precious children, who made all my sacrifices worthwhile: Donna, André, Steven, Brent, Kaylen, Barbara, Margaret, Connie, LaSalle, Verlana, Seth, Lothair, and my little angel Leah, and my special gift from God, Sandra, who are both now in Heaven but live also in my heart.
To my husband, Hector J. Spencer, for allowing me to pursue my dreams, for loving all my children, and for always displaying a servant's heart. Thank you for making me not only your favorite wife but your only wife.
Primeras palabras
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés.Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
Prologue: I edged sideways down the aisle of the crowded Greyhound, careful not to bump anyone with the bulky brown suitcase, which held my every possession: two or three plain cotton dresses, my undergarments, and toiletries--the sparse but precious contents of my hope chest.
Book One: Called To Be a Goddess. Chapter One:
As we were growing up, polygamy was the ruling tenet of our lives.
Epilogue: After all my struggles to finally choose freedom, it was tragedy that actually ended my twenty-eight-year marriage to Verlan LeBaron.
Citas
Últimas palabras
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés.Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
I peered at his face for one short moment as the casket closed for the final time. Then, feeling Verlan's presence and knowing he'd understand, I whispered, "Good-bye, lover!" (p.377)
Epilogue: Writing my story has brought me healing. But this book doesn't tell it all. It doesn't describe the terror to which my infamous brother-in-law, Ervil LeBaron, subjected us for several years. He ordered the deaths of at least twenty-eight of our family, friends, and church members. I was one of the people on his death list, which helped inspire me to go along with many of our moves throughout Mexico and Central America. While I wrote this book, Ervil cunningly seemed to be taking it over, as he was prone to do with everything. So I ripped out page after page about him, realizing that this has to be my story -- the story of my shattered dreams as a polygamist's wife and my journey into the light of God's unconditional love. (p.383)
Irene Spencer did as she felt God commanded in marrying her brother-in-law Verlan LeBaron, becoming his second wife at age 16. When the government raided the fundamentalist, polygamous Mormon village of Short Creek, Arizona, Irene and her family fled to Verlan's brothers' Mexican ranch. They lived in squalor and desolate conditions in the Mexican desert with Verlan's four brothers, one mentally ill sister, and numerous wives and children--Irene herself bore thirteen. The dramatic story of her life, and her escape to an outside world for which she was little prepared, reveals how far religion can be stretched and abused and how one woman and her children found their way to truth and redemption.--From publisher description.
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