review: Sister Wife Shelley Hrdlitschka

genre: ya
rating: 4/5

You can probably guess the plot by the title - Sister Wife is the story of a young teenager who was raised in a polygamist sect, named Unity. 15 year old Celeste has always let her mind wander more than it should. And although she knows that listening to her father and The Prophet, and obeying what they say, is the way to eternal life, she still struggles with what she is asked to do - have pure thoughts and prepare to be a sister wife. Well, she's not really asked to do those things. She's told. And as much as she wants to be free to think her own thoughts, even more she wants to do what God and her father want her to do.

But this story isn't only about Celeste. It's also about other young people that live in Unity - and we even get to read part of the story from their viewpoint, which I really liked. The author does a fine job of helping the reader see what a very structured and conformist society Celeste lived in, and how very, very hard it would be for someone to choose to leave. The conflict these teenagers feel is astounding - love for family, love for God, but a recognition that they are lacking any kind of independence, what teenagers crave the most.

All in all, I really liked it. It wasn't as gripping for me as it maybe could have been and the ending wrapped up a bit too nicely for me to completely believe it, but that doesn't mean I didn't appreciate that things ended the way they did. Certainly, if you are interested in the subject, it shouldn't be missed.