There was something about this book that just had me captivated right from the start. There are seemingly 2 very different stories being told in the book that eventually do intertwine when you least expect it.  The first story takes place in 1992 with the tragic death of a young girl travelling through South America with her boyfriend. Eleni was the true love of Leo’s life and her death forever changes him.   After a difficult time and blaming himself for Eleni’s death Leo if eventually pulled out of his dark abyss with the help of a young handsome physicists of all people and a good friend.

The other story takes place back in 1917, when a young POW soldier escapes from a prisoners camp in Siberia and literally walks 7000 kilometers to get back to his home and his girlfriend who he left behind. The image of her and the promise of marriage it what gets him through this grueling and treacherous journey. The love in his heart cannot be distinguished and he never falters from his goal. The most incredible thing about both stories is that they are based on real events.

Now based on my description you can probably tell that the stories could be a bit depressing to say the least, however do not let that dissuade you  from reading this book.  It was a truly wonderful and  heart warming story and when you read it and get through the entire story you will understand how it all comes together beautifully.

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Book’s Author: Junot Díaz

My Review:

What a great read! A captivating story that kept me hooked. The characters are original and real, a trail mix of spit and vinegar, frailty and sorrow, curses and joy. Diaz weaves a multi-generational story of a captivating and possibly cursed family all the while almost imperceptibly drawing the reader into the sordid history of a Domincan Republic despot. Closer to my heart, the seamless intermingling of high literary turns and pop culture flourishes was astounding. Highly recommended.

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This book was not at all what I was hoping it would be. In all fairness though I had no idea what it was about only that people I had talked to loved it.  If a book doesn’t pull me in right off the bat I am not one to give it much of a chance and this is what happened with this book. I read about 25 pages and have no idea what I was reading so I felt like all I was doing was rereading and rereading what I had just read, so I stopped. I feel like I am the only one who did not like this book and am disappointed that I didn’t love it like so many others. Maybe for some reason I wasn’t in the right frame of mind and perhaps I can be convinced to try it again at a later date but for now I have moved on and I am happily involved in a new book. For those of you who have read this or are going to read it let me know your thoughts…was it really just me??? If you are one of the ones who did love it there is a sequel out called, The Girl Who Played with Fire.

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This was a great book! Not only did I enjoy the story but I also learned a lot and found the topic so interesting. There are actually 2 stories that take place, each centering on the 19th wife in a plural marriage, also known as polygamy, in the Mormon community. One story takes place in the 1800’s and is all about how the Mormon Church, also known as the Church of Latter Day Saints, came to be. The story starts at the very beginning when Joseph Smith, the founder of the religion, first received his calling. It goes on to show how he recruited thousands of followers from both the US and Europe and how they ended up in Utah. The story also describes how this one man, “The Prophet”, convinced his followers to accept the concept of plural marriage. The story focuses on one family, starting with the matriarch of the family, Elizabeth Churchill, how she came to be one of Josephs followers, how she did what the Church told her to do, how she managed to embrace plural marriage, and how it affected her and her family. The story is told by her daughter, Ann Eliza, who is very famous or shall I say infamous in the history of the Mormon Church. She is a real person who eventually becomes Brigham Young’s (one of the most well known prophets) 19^th wife. In the end, Ann Eliza was responsible for bringing Brigham Young down as well as attempting to rid the world of polygamy forever. It was interesting to see how in the beginning people did what they believed was the right thing to do for their eternal salvation but how it affected the woman and children and even the men of these times. The other story is a modern day story of polygamy in Utah also centering on the 19^th wife in a polygamous marriage. Jordan Scott is the son of this 19th wife, who is said to have murdered her husband. As a teenager Jordon was excommunicated and thrown out of his home and the community just for holding a girls hand. As you can imagine Jordan has some extremely bitter feeling towards his family and even his mother for kicking him out and forcing him to survive on his own at such a young age. After being away from the Mormons and this life for so long he does comes back to try and save his mother and prove her innocence. Again this is a fascinating look into this very private world of the Mormons and polygamy and how it affects everyone in the family. I highly recommend this book. The book is a long one, just over 500 pages, but well worth the time.

Buy The 19th Wife: A Novel

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