Escape

After I finished A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, I went to a completely 

different kind of book.  Escape, by Carolyn Jessop tells the true 

story of the author's escape from the religious extremism of the 

Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints 

(FLDS) and the oppression of living in an abusive polygamous 

marriage.  This was a look into a world that I could not have 

even imagined.  It was so bizarre and so unbelievable that I 

would audibly gasp!  I think Mike got tired of me constantly 

saying, "Oh my gosh, you won't believe this...."  

It was that kind of emotion that kept me up until one o'clock 

in the morning several mornings in a row because I just 

couldn't stop reading.  The book begins by Carolyn Jessop 

going back in time, retelling her family history and her own 

upbringing in the FLDS compound in Colorado City, Arizona.  

When Carolyn was eighteen, she was forced into becoming 

the fourth wife of a fifty year old leader in the community named 

Merril Jessop.  Even though she was deeply upset about 

marrying a man so much older, she was powerless to do anything 

about it.  She stayed in the marriage for many years, giving birth 

to eight of Merril's fifty-three children.  Her descriptions of living 

in an extremely unhealthy and abusive marriage were 

heart-wrenching.  Eventually Carolyn planned and executed 

a successful escape and managed to become the first FLDS 

woman to win custody of her own children.  

It was a difficult and unbelievable road for her to travel, and it 

made for a fascinating read!