Escape, a memoir by Carolyn Jessop, offers a revealing look at the religious cult, Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS).
Carolyn Blackmore, born into FLDS in Colorado City, Utah, grows up a devout believer in the precepts of the church. Her father has two wives and, in her opinion her family is loving and close-knit. But when Carolyn turns 18 and her father abruptly announces that she will marry Merril Jessop, 50, the next day, she is horrified. Although polygamy within the church is a common and accepted practice, Carolyn knows that marrying Jessop will be miserable. She will be his fourth wife, and she has no feelings for him; she barely knows him.
The author goes into some detail about the daily lives of FLDS members. The women’s and girls’ pioneer-fashioned dresses and long underwear emphasize modesty. Control lies with the man of the family and there is no limit to the number of wives he may have, though a rule exists that all wives must be treated fairly. Formal schooling is frowned upon. Children are not given toys or opportunities for normal play. The children are to consider all their father’s wives as mothers, and mothers are denied the privilege of showing special affection to their own children. Birth control is forbidden. It is believed that a woman’s path to heaven is through her husband.
The amount of control FLDS wields is shocking and obviously a result of brain washing; otherwise, it’s hard to believe that anyone would stand for that kind of abuse. Women, children and even animals suffer.
After 17 years of marriage and 8 children, Carolyn gathers her courage to plan an escape. By this time Merril has 60 children with 13 wives, some of them legally underage. The control is strong and Carolyn wonders if she will ever escape the long arm of FLDS.
I found Escape a disturbing but riveting, well-written memoir. I had never known that much about the FLDS cult but in my research after reading this book, I found that the author’s claims are well substantiated. This is not necessarily an enjoyable read, but an enlightening one.
Sounds depressing and an eye-opener we all need to read.
It IS sort of depressing, but realizing it was the truth, it still made for fascinating reading. Thanks, Judith, for your comment.
Yes, hard to believe in this day and age and in this country. It must be emotionally draining to read this book. Thank you for sharing it with us.
At first I thought it unbelievable, but when I started researching it, I was amazed at how accurate this book is. Thanks for your comment, Hema.
Good review, Mary: you provide information and opinion regarding a book dealing with a highly-charged topic objectively…not easy to do.
Thank you, Gloria. With this book, it wasn’t easy.
Horrendous way to have to live, I hope her escape was a success.
Irene, I could hardly believe it was true, but when I researched it, sure enough, it was all there. I agree–what a hard life!