The 19th Wife by David Hebershoff

[vodkafan]

The 19th Wife by David Hebershoff.

 

This was an impulse buy. Unfortunately for me it didn't live up to the blurb or the promise of the front cover photo. I struggle to find something good to write about it, the subject matter ( American polygamy) was interesting but the author didn't make much of it in my opinion.

 

It was really two stories running in parallel, both about women who were the so called "19th wife"; One of these was a real and famous person who was the wife of Brigham Young, who founded Salt Lake City; the other is a modern day creation of the author .

 

 

There are a lot of historical documents presented in the book and very soon after reading I got irritated and confused as to what was fact or fiction. I google-fued and discovered that Anne Eliza Young's autobiography was real but the rest was not. Anne Eliza's passages (which make up the bulk of the book) are really the only bits worth reading, but Heberhoff admits to having rewritten her words somewhat, which I found unsatisfying and a bit sacriligious when I found out.

The modern day story was really quite poor and only amounted to a couple of chapter's work; I couldn't get into any of the characters and had lost interest by the end.

 

 

I feel that the writer has piggybacked his story on the back of an existing book which was unsatisfying, bit of a cheap shot really.

I recommend getting hold of Anne Eliza Youngs original autobiography instead.

[Readwine]

I agree with you Vodkafan. It was a bit of a struggle to finish The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff. Briefly, the storyline is set in two different time periods: 2005 (or thereabouts), and 1870-1908 (or thereabouts). The modern day storyline involves a young man who grew up in a compound of a renegade sect of the Mormon Church, which defiantly still practices polygamy (or the art of plural wives). As he reaches his teens, he is promptly excommunicated for being gay and expelled from the compound. Several years later, his mother, one of at least 20 wives, is accused of murdering her husband (the young man’s father) and placed in jail to await trial. Her son returns to Utah to help his mother prove her innocence (?).

The second storyline presents the biography of Ann Eliza Young, the 19th wife of Brigham Young (the leader of the Mormon Church during its establishment in Utah). According to the research presented in the book, Ann Eliza could actually have been the 52nd wife. Regardless, Ann Eliza seeks to divorce her husband (unheard of at that time) and launches into a fervent nationwide crusade to abolish polygamy.

Prior to reading this book, I must confess my knowledge of the Mormon religion was naught, so I can only assume that the biographical data in the book is true. It is very interesting, though its presentation in the book is quite dry and repetitive. I am glad, however, to have read the book.

I found the modern storyline a little more gripping, but not very satisfying as a murder mystery. It shown a bright light, however, on the destructiveness of polygamy. All in all, though I struggled to get through the book at times (pretty hefty tome), I am glad I read it; it presents a very interesting topic. On a scale of 1-10, I give it a 7.

[vodkafan]

Hi Readwine.

 

I was the opposite to you, I found the true parts (the 1870 biography of Anne Eliza) to be the more vital better part with its Mormon history, while the modern day story was flat and uninteresting-I couldn't get interested in any of the characters or their fates.

I do agree with you that polygamy is an awful thing, it demeans women and brings out the worst instincts of men. I would like to see a book written by a muslim woman about polygamy within Islam and see how it compares.

 

I would rate The 19th Wife only 4/10 I'm afraid

[Kidsmum]

I'd give the book a big thumbs down as well, like you i couldn't get into the characters & in the end i couldn't have cared less if the boys mother had been convicted or not. I also found Ann Eliza's story very dull & it was a bit of a slog to get to the end. Not a book worth reading IMO.

[Heffalumpi]

I really wanted to like this book but gave up after 100 pages as I felt that it just wasn't going anywhere. I felt that the style that it had been written in was really dull and didn't make me care particularly about the characters in the story. A shame really as the blurb really drew me in.

[my-sweetheart-is-drunk]

I've been meaning to read this book for a while actually, wondering whether I should bother now!?