***** stars The Chosen One
by Carol Lynch Williams
Read this book. It's suitable for high school students and would also be of interest to any adults who enjoy literature aimed at this teen fiction genre sector.
Rather than summarize the plot, I will just provide my reaction to this new YA novel by an author I've not previously read. The copy is inscribed with many accolades and I was hard pressed to think of an original adjective or two to sum up my overall impression of the book. Each time I thought I had come up with something fresh and inspired, I found the same words in other reviews within the book's advance press pages.
The book starts off slowly but rapidly builds to a heart gripping climax as Kyra chooses the path she will take in response to the notion that she, at age 13, be married to her 60 year old uncle Apostle Hyrum at the behest of The Prophet who has had a vision that she should become the 7th wife.
This novel deals with a gated polygamist sect located out in an unnamed desert. The small group has settled there and is controlled by a fundamentalist type evangelist known as The Prophet. He and his minions, including the armed God Squad, dictate the lives of the men, women and children who live within the community. The society is not allowed to read anything but the Bible (all books were burned) and the girls there are raised to be given in marriage to the old men who have established themselves as loyal subjects to The Prophet.
The events that happen to Kyra as she comes of age within the sect are vividly described and heartbreakingly rendered. It is a book that I could not put down until I had read through to the very last page -- literally started reading and continued to the end. It's a quick read and a book well worth reading. It definitely relates to circumstances that could be taken off the headlines of many newspapers with regard to cults and other religious groups that seek separation from the "real world" in the USA.
Highly recommended.
Ms Crawford
2 comments:
This one sounds interesting. I have read many articles on polygamy and it would be interesting to read a novel based on a polygamist group, especially from the girls perspective.
hmm. idk if i would read that one..
Post a Comment