The Nineteenth Wife

I've read three books recently. The first two were so bad they're not worth mentioning. But "The Nineteenth Wife" by David Ebersoff was a good book. The novel addresses the issue of polygamy in the United States. The readers goes back and forth from the story of Brigham Young's 19th wife, Anna Eliza Young to a modern story of a LDS town featuring a charming boy/man named Jordan Scott. The author uses pieces of history and writings from the Mormon Church yet leaves you wanting more. He's an expert on knowing when to switch from Anna Eliza's story to Jordan's story. The author did a thorough job explaining why women put up with such a system. I've read other books about polygamy. I read Jon Krakauer's "Under the Banner of Heaven" just before the raid on the compound in Texas. But this book more clearly illustrates how the modern polygamy harms the women, the children, and society in general. These old men, righteous FLDS believers, are not supporting their families. They're collecting welfare payments from each "wife." The young men are banished from the society much like the young male antelope are banished from the herd to reduce competition for mating rights. It's crazy that this stuff is still going on in our society.