My second book in a long winded history of women that have found out that Mormonism isn’t all its cracked up to be. Shattered Dreams by Irene Spencer is an incredible story of one woman’s desire for more than just plural marriage. This book is a good memoir overall, an easy read, with lots of great moments. It moves you to tears at times, but unlike Escape by Carolyn Jessop, this one wasn’t as extreme in the abuse category.

Shattered Dreams by Irene Spencer, really taks you from all sorts of different struggles. Irene spends a lot of time wishing she wasn’t another sister wife, and at times wants a divorce. Her husband keeps trying to make it work, and I have to say that He is somewhat sincere and not like the polygamy that we heard about in these latter years from Utah or Texas. Irene’s story really hit me hard because she lived like a Mexican. My mom was one of 18 children, and shares parallels with Irene’s story. While my grandmother was not part of plural marriage, she was a stone cold catholic and didn’t believe in birth control. My mom and myself lived with no electricity, no major running water, and so much lackluster things until we got here to the land of plenty.

Irene Spencer and her husband chooses to live in the lackluster world of Mexico. So she isn’t living it up in luxury, she struggles throughout as the head of the home tries to pay for each member of his families needs. It just didn’t work, and throughout you get a real sense of despair.

One story that stands out for me was how Irene Spencer’s love affair with a Mexican gardener. It didn’t get too steamy, but it was definitely a turning point for me. As a voyeur in the story, I was figuratively raising my fist and cheering her on, even though it was a sin to commit adultery I felt the Mexican passion and vigor that has gripped our culture to love White women (sorry, to be crass…), shining through the pages of this book. I liked that part, and when the opportunity came for her to escape with this Mexican man, I was hoping for her to do it! When it didn’t happened, I was let down.

It was then that I realized that this book is really good. It really goes from brainwashing to a new life in several hundred pages. While there are moments of slow moving text with Irene’s complaints and storytelling, but I understood why she was writing the way she was writing.

Shattered Dreams: My Life as a Polygamist’s Wife by Irene Spencer triumphs for me in the epilogue. She updates you on her life now, gives you a crash course in Mormonism, and really sounds happy. She finally is happy, which is a great thing, after such an exhausting time spent living in somewhat of a hell….I’ve yet to see a good point for polygamy. The sacrifice of committed women to plural marriage have never seemed too happy in these books of those that escaped. Sure, there are accounts of plural wives that showcase a true facade, but it’s not that fun…no matter what HBO’s Big Love showcases.

I liked this book. It has such a great memory of the past, and I really liked how this family was in Mexico…my home country and contrasted that with Catholicism. Extreme poverty, religion, and freedom shine through this text and it made me feel like I knew this person, and that’s another sign of a great book. Irene Spencer has a new book coming out in August, and I’ll most likely read that one too.

So which one was better? This or Escape? I’m not sure, I like each one in its own way. There’s other books to read on the subject, but I really am enjoying learning about this cult. Check out Shattered Dreams by Irene Spencer if you’re interested in Fundamental Mormon Cults.