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What Members Thought
I really had no expectations of this book and I've sat here for about 10 minutes trying to put into words how it's made me feel and what I think of it.
The story is an interesting one. David Ebershoff really does mesh the historical fiction about Ann Eliza Young with the modern crime story of BeckyLyn and her son, Jordan, quite well. Throughout the book there are letters, stories, memoirs and even a Wikipedia page (all fictional) that are realistic and very believable. The story is seamless and e ...more
The story is an interesting one. David Ebershoff really does mesh the historical fiction about Ann Eliza Young with the modern crime story of BeckyLyn and her son, Jordan, quite well. Throughout the book there are letters, stories, memoirs and even a Wikipedia page (all fictional) that are realistic and very believable. The story is seamless and e ...more
the two stories end up integrating, but in a way that seems forced. i think the book would have been so much stronger without the thesis, but. that's also partly my bias against historical fiction and there's a LOT of making up characters and documents in this that kind of drives me crazy.
but i made my way through it, and i wouldn't have, if i had known it was historical fiction when i picked it up. ...more
but i made my way through it, and i wouldn't have, if i had known it was historical fiction when i picked it up. ...more
Aug 13, 2009
Christina, Join Me on Storygraph!
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
books-i-recommend,
2009
I had seen this book recommended all over the place, and figured I'd give it a whirl quickly after its arrival at the library. I wasn't at all disappointed. This was a quick read, and an enjoyable one too. I liked all the favorable characters, and of course, disliked the unfavorable ones too.
It took me awhile to read this one, since I went back to work in the middle of reading it, but I really enjoyed it and do recommend it highly! ...more
It took me awhile to read this one, since I went back to work in the middle of reading it, but I really enjoyed it and do recommend it highly! ...more
I loved the 19th Wife because I'm completely fascinated by polygamy and the Mormon religion's history. The story switches back and forth between Brigham Young's 19th wife Ann Eliza who became a vocal opponent of polygamy, and a modern day 19th wife who is accused of murdering her husband. It's difficult to tell fact from fiction in this book. The modern story is all fiction. The sections about Ann Eliza Young are fictionalized history, but based on researched documents.
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This is an intersting book with two different stories and two different protagonist - one story is about Bringham Young's 19th wife who left the Morman church. The other story is about a modern Morman bride accused of kiiling her husband. The second story is a bit disjointed but a good read nevertheless. The first story is interesting but after a while gets a little drawn out and too lengthy.
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Fascinating, but lost me in the last 100 pages or so... Which robbed it of it's 5th star... The story was so good, learned a lot, which I really enjoyed! Highly recommend for anyone interested in Mormons and nineteenth century America.
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I should note that I am fascinated with fundamental Mormonism and Scientology, so I might find this more interesting than most. This is a novel that reads like a true crime crime.
Sep 14, 2008
Kristen
marked it as to-read
Sep 28, 2010
Alexis
marked it as to-read
Sep 19, 2011
Laura
marked it as to-read
Nov 18, 2012
Kim
marked it as to-read
Dec 31, 2013
Nicole
marked it as to-read
Jan 25, 2015
Natalya
marked it as to-read
Jul 13, 2015
Amy Richard
marked it as to-read
