She wants something more for herself, yet feels powerless to change her destiny because rebelling would bring shame upon her family. 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. Whatever it is, she struggles to accept her ordained life. 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. Celeste was born and raised in Unity, yet she struggles to fit in. Polygamy is the norm, strict obedience is expected and it is customary for young girls to be assigned to much older husbands. It actually isn’t a choice at all.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.

*I’m not suggesting that polygamy is inherently wrong, only that being married off to an older man at the age of 15 is not a lifestyle choice. This is the sixth book I review for the New Authors Challenge. Thank you to Cindy at Cindy’s Love of Books for giving me this book to read. Having said that, I’m still going to recommend Sister Wife, with reservations, to readers who are interested in polygamy, if only because I want to know what you think of the ending! The last chapter in particular seemed to be suggesting that polygamy is just another lifestyle choice that works for some and not for others, which is a dangerous message in my opinion.* In addition, the denouement of Celeste’s story didn’t strike me as particularly realistic. Unfortunately, I also felt that Hrdlitschka tried too hard to be non-judgemental, which made the book both less interesting and less realistic.

I particularly loved how Hrdlitschka used the inuksuks to introduce Celeste to another way of looking at the world. For the most part, I enjoyed the book: I sympathized with Celeste’s plight and was curious to find out what would happen to her. This is an interesting device because it allows Hrdlitschka to explore what it would be like to live in Unity from three very different points of view. Sister Wife by Shelley Hrdlitschka is told from the alternating points of view of three teenagers living in the polygamous community of Unity: rebellious Celeste, a 14-year-old girl who is about to be “assigned” to an older man and become a sister wife virtuous Nanette, Celeste’s younger sister and Taviana, a young woman who was rescued off the streets by one of the men in the community.

Sister wife by shelley hrdlitschka