Sister Wife

By Shelley Hrdlitschka

In the isolated rural community of Unity, the people of The Movement live a simple life guided by a set of religious principles and laws that are unique to them. Polygamy is the norm, strict obedience is expected and it is customary for young girls to be assigned to much older husbands. Celeste was born and raised in Unity, yet she struggles to fit in. Perhaps it's because of Taviana, the girl who has come to live with them and entertains Celeste with forbidden stories, or Jon, the young man she has clandestine meetings with, or maybe it's the influence of Craig, the outsider she meets on the beach. Whatever it is, she struggles to accept her ordained life. At fifteen she is repulsed at the thought of being assigned to an older man and becoming a sister wife, and she knows for certain she is not cut out to raise children. She wants something more for herself, yet feels powerless to change her destiny because rebelling would bring shame upon her family. Celeste watches as Taviana leaves Unity, followed by Jon, and finally Craig, the boy who has taught her to think "outside the box." Although she is assigned to a caring man, his sixth wife, she is desperately unhappy. How will Celeste find her way out of Unity? Torn from the headlines and inspired by current events, Sister Wife is a compelling portrait of a community where the laws of the outside world are ignored and where individuality is punished.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
• Release date: Oct 1, 2008
• ISBN: 9781551439297

Shelley Hrdlitschka

Shelley Hrdlitschka has written many novels for teens, including Sister Wife, which was nominated for a Governor General's Literary Award. She lives in North Vancouver, British Columbia, where she hikes, snowshoes and hangs out with grizzly bears at the Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife.

Reviews for Sister Wife

[lilibrarian · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In Unity, girls who turn 15 are assigned to older husbands. Men are to have as many wives and children as possible. Girls and women are to embrace purity, and do as their prophet and their husbands say. Celeste is not sure this is the life she wants to live, but is not sure if she can leave her family and all she knows to live differently.

[salsabrarian · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a fast-paced read that will provide teens an intriguing glimpse of life in a religious, polygamous cult. Celeste's decision to stay with the cult differs from similar YA novels on the same topic ("The Chosen One," "The Patron Saint of Butterflies") yet provides an opportunity for a satisfying ending. Readers also get perspectives from Celeste's more pious sister Nanette, and outsider Taviana serves as our navigator between the two worlds.

[milaxox-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I chose this book solely for the purpose of a history project. We had to choose from a list of books and this one was very interesting. I was surprised at how good the book was. The community was very interesting and I loved how it told the story from three points of view. The only reason I didn't give it five stars was because it had some slow parts.

[shouldireadit · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Celeste will soon be 15 years old, and is not looking forward to getting married. When a girl turns 15, The Prophet decides which man she will marry, and the girl has no choice in the matter. Her job is to have babies and live for her husband with his many wives. This is the way life has always been for girls, and no one dares to question any of the choices of The Prophet or the men. But, despite herself, Celeste has questions, and impure feelings towards a boy of her age, and Celeste is convinced something is wrong with her. When Nanette, her younger sister, tells her father about Celeste's impure thoughts towards someone who is not of The Prophet's choosing, Celeste's life changes forever. She doesn't have the strength to turn her back on the life she's always known. However, with the passage of time, Celeste comes to realize there is more to life than she had ever thought possible.

[pmlyayakkers · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In Unity, girls who turn 15 are assigned to older husbands. Men are to have as many wives and children as possible. Girls and women are to embrace purity, and do as their prophet and their husbands say. Celeste is not sure this is the life she wants to live, but is not sure if she can leave her family and all she knows to live differently.

[dara85 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book was okay. I have read much more non-fiction about the subject of polygamy to learn anything new. It is probably a much better book for young teens.

[francescadefreitas · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

 I liked this, the subject of multiple wives, and very young women getting marries could have been treated like a tabloid headline, but many different characters had depth, the issues of this community were not painted in black and white.

[laundrylady_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In a polygamist community, Celeste struggles with the beliefs of her family and friends. Her destiny, of course, is to marry at a young age and become one of several wives to her uncle. She longs to live her own life and make her own choices.

[ziaria_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What I loved:I loved the character Craig, the outsider who through his building of inukshuks*, shows the Celeste another perspective on life.After I got used to the character flopping, I really enjoyed this aspect and I think it added to the overall story and made parts of it flow much better.I think the author did a great job with showing us the struggles that Celeste went through. Her inner thought battles with right and wrong.What I didn't like:Certain parts of the story seemed unlikely to happen. Not to say they wouldn't happen but from what you hear/read in news stories, they seem a little more unrealistic. Did those necessarily take away from the story? A little bit but not enough to stop me from reading.Overall rating:Even with the few minor details that irked me I really enjoyed this book. I read it in just a few days and for me that is really quick. I don't get much time in the summer to read and to get it done in a few days says something positive for the book.

[ekanderson_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

While polygamy and religious fundamentalism are hot topics for fiction right now, Sister Wife steps outside the box to present the truly compelling story of three different girls from the same polygamist sect.Two sisters and one outsider each speak from their own points of view, and Hrdlitschka weaves their voices seamlessly together for the sort of prose the reader is easily wrapped up in. Celeste will soon be fifteen and assigned a husband, but she has plenty of doubts about the Movement, unlike her sister, Nannette, who is as pure as they come. It is Taviana who is bold enough to speak her mind - a former teen prostitute, taken in by the Movement, only to be thrown out when it is clear her influence is "dangerous." But there are other ways for Celeste to discover the world outside, and as it gets closer and closer to Celeste's birthday, she knows she has a choice to make. This stirring novel may not tell the most original story, but it tells the story well. The characters will stay with you long after you've turned the last pages, making time you've spent with Sister Wife time well spent.

[chrystal_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great YA take on the popular polygamy topic. Told from three teen girls point of view- one who stays, one who has joined and leaves and one who can not decide. Well drawn characters and the right amount of action. I could have read this in one sitting, terrific book!

[krissa_6 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

: I’m not really sure how to rate this book. I’m still digesting it. It is so different from anything I have come across, I’m not completely sure what to think. It is a good ending. Everyone gets what they deserve. I was drawn in by very distinct characters, all facing the same decision (to stay or go). I kept reading to find out what they would do in the end. And which factors were going to play into their decisions. And I was very drawn in by all the little details of their “culture”, as I have never experienced anything like that, and had no knowledge of that way of life. I don’t know if this kind of reading is my norm, or if I will be doing a lot of it in my future, but I did enjoy this ‘taste’. =D

[clio11_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Celeste was born in Unity, a fictional town clearly based on Colorado City, Arizona, the home of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints. Almost everyone in Unity is a member of the Movement, a fundamentalist religion that requires men to have multiple wives to reach the highest levels of heaven. Sister Wife brings the concepts of love, religion, marriage, family, and expectations together in a thoroughly believable story of one young woman and her attempts to discover how her life should be lived.Although she wishes to be faithful, Celeste has long struggled with aspects of life in the Movement. Women and children are expected to be unthinkingly obedient, and Celeste has watched her pregnant mother grow progressively weaker in a community that doesn't believe in medical care. Taviana, a newcomer to the community who was rescued from a life of teen prostitution and homelessness, tells Celeste stories of her life outside that leave Celeste both confused and intrigued. To add to her troubled mind, Celeste is about to turn 15, the age at which the Prophet will reveal the man to whom she will be assigned in marriage. Celeste knows that she will undoubtedly be assigned to a man who is as old as her father, and this reality is becoming more untolerable to her, especially since she has become interested in a young man closer to her own age.As Celeste's friends begin to leave the Movement, Celeste is caught between her desire to follow them into the outside world and her loyalty to her family. Celeste's struggle is compassionately and realistically portrayed, with her primary motivation to stay being her strong loyalty to her family and her desire not to cause them disgrace or pain. Her relationships with family members and friends ring very true, and her decisions are utterly believable.The story is told in alternating chapters between Celeste, her younger sister Nanette, who is eager to become a sister-wife and begin raising children, and Tavaina, a newcomer to Unity who was rescued from her life of teen prostitution and homelessness by a member of the community. The alternating viewpoints somewhat weakened the novel, as the girls did not have distinct voices - I sometimes found myself having to flip back to the beginning of the chapter to see who was speaking.I'm often skeptical of books with a "ripped from the headlines" feel, but I was pleasantly surprised with the way polygamy and religion were handled. A primary strength of the novel is that there are few villains; the characters were clearly struggling to do the right thing, even when they didn't know what that "right thing" was. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Sister Wife.

[phantasma_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Slightly less interesting than I had hoped. I think that the ending came a little abruptly and that the main character acted out of, well, character more often than not. I found it suprisingly hard to swallow for such a plausible premise. I think a good edit would not have gone amiss here.

[bookluver0carol · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I found this book to be very boring and dry in some parts. The character's as well were sometimes boring, but they did have their moments were they were interesting and actually acted their age. Most of them felt as if they were adult women trapped in teen bodies, but slowly they started to act their age. The chapters in the different point of views were great. I liked how it had an outsider's view of the community; a view of a girl who was raised there but questions her purpose; and a view of a girl who doesn't question the community and actually believes in what she has to do. I liked the outsider's chapters and the questioning girl's better than the Nanette's. It was interesting to read in their point of view of the community.I did like the book, don't get me wrong. I liked reading about the community and how women were expected to behave and do what their husband tells them to do. I did find the book a bit predictable at times but the little twist at the end was very good. The ending was a bit too happily-ever-after for me, but again, the little twist at the end sure made it much better. I would recommend reading this book if you want to read about polygamy.

[bibliofool · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What a great book! Completely captivating, this would be a brilliant pick for teen book clubs. There's plenty here to discuss both stylistically and content-wise. The author does a fine job of presenting various viewpoints without ever losing sight of the fact she is spinning a very good yarn.