by Rachel Connor
Crocus Books
Release Date: Oct. 19, 2011
169 pages
ISBN13: 9780946745586
"None of us has a choice, we do what's asked of us."
Ammie and Rebecca live in a idyllic,small religious community. Today, they will pledge to share more than friendship. Today, Ammie is to be sealed to Tobias, Rebecca's husband. Together, these women will try to balance life, love, children, and faith.
As the ceremony ensues, a young radiant bride is joined with her new bridegroom. But will Rebecca be able to set aside her uncertainty, her frustration, her jealousy with Ammie in the picture now? After all, her and Tobias have been together for many years, raising children, making a life together in a place where everyone has to work harder than they did back in their old world, the city of Lot. Their families left and founded a place where they could live peacefully, practice their beliefs without punishment, and instill in their children a pure, uncorrupted vision for the human spirit.
But is their religion everything the Elders have said it is? Are its origins grounded in spirituality or selfishness and fear?
"Two people can be right and wrong at the same time."
With Ammie's abrupt departure, secrets surface that will shake an entire community, cause them to question the fundamental nature of their spiritual quest, and re-evaluate the future of their religious practices.
Connor was inspired to write Sisterwives after listening to a radio interview with an escaped wife from a Mormon compound in Utah. Practically imprisoned, the woman was caught in a rigid system of oppression and yet spoke of community and female friendship.
"The whole situation was laden with passion, tension and conflict." Connor writes in her blog.
Sisterwives isn't a book I would have normally chosen for myself, but it's one I'm grateful to have read. Although I like to preach tolerance and acceptance, I still form snap judgments, only to catch myself later. I've watched the show Sister Wives and felt a rapid emotions ranging from dismay to anger to envy and then circle back to feminist fury.
It's easy to write a book about a type of religion, cast in your views of it, and let the chips fall where they may. But Connor writes about her fictional community and its individuals with empathy, and a clear, steady eye for their flaws and their motives. And she writes about the genesis of this religion in a way that makes one question the entire bedrock of any sort of structure.
For, what is the purpose of indoctrination? And whom does it serve, ultimately?
About Rachel (from her blog):
"I was born in the north east of England and educated at the Universities of Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester. In former lives, I taught creative writing to adults for the Workers’ Educational Association and lectured in English and American literature at Salford and Glasgow Universities. In my 20s, I had stints of driving around northern France in a Renault Clio, supervising people putting up tents for a camping holiday company. I’ve cleaned hotel bedrooms in Australia and contributed to a zoological project on dik-dik (pint sized antelopes) in northern Kenya. For some reason I’ve never written about any of these things. But then I’ve always taken issue with the careworn phrase ‘write what you know.’
These days, I combine writing with working for the Arvon Foundation , a charity which runs residential courses for writers in historic, rural houses. It’s a privilege – and great fun – to host and meet so many interesting and engaging people each week. And since my role also involves designing menus and managing the centre’s catering, I’m able to indulge yet another passion in my life: food."
You can find rachel here:
Rachel Connor's Blog
