Wow - what an incredible story! Very well written memoir of growing up in the FLDS communities in Utah and Colorado. Elissa Wall was forced to marry her 1st cousin at age 14. This book is better than Escape by Carolyn Jessup in so many ways- though it's told mainly from the child's point of view whereas the Jessup book was told from the adult point of view. Elissa Wall also had more interaction and dealings with Warren Jeffs - and was the individual responsible for putting him in prison. This is a book that will affect you greatly, and one that you will have a hard time putting down.

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Reliable background information and relatively current, true events regarding the cult of the FLDS and its brainwashed followers (victims) Excellent book. A necessary read for anyone interested or involved in saving women and children from slavery and abuse.

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This was a very eye opening book regarding the FLDS religion and I would highly recommend it.

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This was a fascinating book that gives wonderful insight into what drives the people that live in polygamous sects of the Mormon church. Her experience is amazing and heartbreaking.

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This was an amazing first hand account of growing up in the FLDS (Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints). The author was forced into marriage at the age of 14. She went against church elders and members of her family and left the FLDS. She also testified against Warren Jeffs at his trial. This book gives an insider account of the mind set of FLDS members that are in actuality part of a religious cult. This is a fascinating book that speaks out about basic human rights. I highly recommend this book. It will lead you to understand the FLDS members and their mindset and how it is possible for a large group of people to be lead by a pedophile pyscho (Warren Jeffs) mind, body and soul.

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WOW! I love books like this that take the reader into a culture that they may otherwise never experience. This is a very powerful story of a girl who grew up in a polygamist sect and came through it with a story to tell. Its very powerful. The narrator connects easily with the reader and never once do you feel like she is using this story as a way to vent or be vindictive. She seems to understand her past, she does not pass blame or hate, just tells her story. Its the closest thing to an unbiased story that a person could tell after living through what she lived through.

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I've been reading several FLDS related books lately in an attempt to learn more about a subject that has been major national news recently. I find the similarities in stories shocking. Whether the person had a happy childhood or not, the details they give about the practices, beliefs, and happenings within the church are consistent. The names mentioned of major or well-known figures within the church all match, as do descriptions. So, as unbelievable as it all sounds to those of us who didn't grow up in their world, it's definitely the truth. Even better, the more you read, the more perspectives you gather, and the better you understand all that happens. This book is definitely deserving of being added to the must-read list of anyone interested in the subject.

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A very heart wrenching look inside the FDLS. Elissa takes us through her life as a member of the Warren Jeffs controlled sect and how she escaped. A very good read.

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Thought that it was both sad and very hopeful at the same time. Since she is a first time writer - the content and language was a little elementary, but overall a good read. Gives a very interesting look into something that I know little about.

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I found this book to be very interesting. I have never seen or heard of this happening until the warren jeffs story. I have always been very sheltered. The author give great detail and really lets you see what her life was like.

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The author did a wonderful job of mixing in first person account as a child along with information she learned in later years.

I found her story to be inspirational and consuming. On the one hand, I don't know how people could agree to live that way but on the other hand, the author really showed the human aspect of the FLDS community. These are real people - adults! - who've been brainwashed into giving up 100% control over their own lives.

The story shows a true contrast between the people who are very sympathetic and the FLDS system which is harsh and unyeilding. It was also very satisfying to know that even as I was reading the book, Warren Jeffs is already sitting in prison.

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This book broke my heart to learn of the truths of the cult. I had never read a polygamist biography from a child's point of view, so this makes this book a very different kind of reading. Thoroughly informative yet heartwrenching; for her to have the courage she did to bring down the leader is extremely inspiring.

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Excellent book about the FLDS religious cult. I can't imagine what it must be like for these women who are raised to believe that the only way they can get to Heaven is to do what their prophet tells them to do. They are sexually and mentally abused from early childhood. How horrible it must be for a mother to see her daughters treated the way they are by men, and can do nothing about it.
A must read for everyone.

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This book was extremely eye opening. It's hard to believe that in 2009 in this country women and children are treated like they are just the property of men who frequently abuse them. Their "prophet" and cult manages to brainwash them and control every aspect of their lives. I previously read, Escape, by carolyn jessup which tells a similar story. Its very sad and tragic. Thankfully Elissa and Lamont "got out" and she had the courage to help convict Warren Jeffs and end his tyranny. Makes you realize that one person doing the right thing can prevail against evil.

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Book review of the FLDS former member who escaped from human trafficking and sexual bondage and you can read her inspiring story in her book, " Stolen Innocence". I give this brave writer a 10 for her book, its accuracy, its brutal honesty, and her pain come through loud and clear.It is nothing short of a miracle from God Himself. Her story is shocking but we all have known deep down this is what happens when men are allowed to go unchecked in their arrogance. GOD BLESS YOU. God is using your story to set people free from the bonds of a satanic false religion known as Mormonism that is based upon a false prophets.

This writer reveals some disturbing aspects to the Mormon church. The Mormon church falls to the far left of what I would say is main stream Christianity.

There are many , many other issues associated with the Mormon religion barely skimmed upon in her books such as are addressed in the movie "GOD MAKERS 1 & 2" ie blood atonement. She does confirm our worst fears that they are performing secret sexually charged rituals within the temples, if so this too is wrong.

I recommend this book to all Christians and to Mormons too. I recommend the Mormon church do a total rehaul of their foundational beliefs and think it best if they would stick to the Holy Bible only, better for all involved, and I think it would prevent the off branches going from strange beliefs to even stranger ones. Just my thoughts. Shocking and sad book. Brave girl to write it and I hope she has a long and prosperous life. I think she will.

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The author, Elissa Wall gives a shocking and realistic look inside the life of polygamists in America. She explains how the polygamist life is set up purely for the benefit of men. Girls are groomed from a young age to serve the men, bear children, and basically live a life of poverty and slavery. Elissa was married off at the age of 14 against her will.

This book is shocking - that this type of society actually exists in America. The FLDS has learned how to manipulate the laws, welfare system, and everything around them, and the women and children suffer.

Elissa was one of the lucky ones who escaped and now lives a somewhat normal life on the outside. A must read for anyone interested in women's issues, the power of religious cults, and children's rights in America. You will be infuriated that this lifestyle is legal in our country.

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This is another one of those books that I'm unsure of how I feel about it. A memoir that is heartbreaking to read, but at the same time, something that I wish I was still ignorant about. I know that events like this really happen to people and it saddens me, but I'd just rather not know about them. Not because I'm unfeeling, I just like living in my happy, fluffy little world where every thing is coming up roses. The pictures were a nice addition to the hardback edition, but if you choose to go with the audiobook, the narration was well done, having chosen a voice that you could easily imagine as that of a child.

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Have since requested books on the similar topic. Great book. Highly recommend. Eye opening and... another book where people just DISGUST me. I guess I like that type of book. Interesting to really read up on the polygamists.

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Stolen Innocence is written from the point-of-view of a former member of The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS).

It was a happy accident that this book was sent to me, and I found myself intrigued enough to continue after reading through the first chapter.

To an outsider, the practices of the FLDS can be appalling, such as the practice of polygamy, the powerlessness of women in the society and the families torn apart by the church officials. This book takes a sensitive, personal look at these practices and gives the reader a better understanding of why they are implemented and still practiced today.

The book covers the lifetime of a born FLDS member, and her slow but steady realization that she was not in control of her life, and that something needed to change. It covers her eventual escape and adaptation to life on the outside of her sheltered community.

Though it is a large book, the language is simple and the subject matter and story line are gripping. Its still a fairly quick read.

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A haunting book, but one I could not put down.

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really good book, could not put it downn, just cant believe they could let this happend to a 14 year old. but she came out strong!!! wonderful

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This was very interesting. It made me sad, angry, frustrated, and happy at times... It is unbelievable the power of BRAINWASHING. Very well written. Very brave soul.

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Very interesting and well told.

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Very eye-opening. I learned a lot about Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints. Her writing style is very conversational.

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A depressing situation, but she is an optimistic person and worked her way through. She has eleven bros and a dozen sisters and testified at the Jeffs 2007 trial.
"At age sixteen, I'd been married for less than two years and already I'd had two miscarriages and a stillbirth (245)."
Note the poignant picture of her brother, kicked out, as he walks to the highway with his backpack and a cardboard sign saying 'Denver.'
I read some of the book on the bus and will take it to the old soldiers' home shelf on Saturday. It was the only non-fiction book in the lobby of the VA Hospital on Thursday, along with a few dozen romance novels. Luckily I was able to leave a few blood and thunder novels, a reprint of a 17th C. English playwright's work, etc.
The book has no index, a major shortcoming.

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The cover of this book drew my interest and this was the first book of it's kind I had read. I learned a lot about the FLDS group that I had not been aware of in the past. I know a lot of LDS members, but they are much different from the FLDS and don't participate in polygamous relations. This was definite a negative look at their lives and religion an I am wondering just how accurate it is for most of the members. I am anxious to read more books about the cult.

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Incredibly interesting and yet sad story of life growing up in a cult.

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This is another one of those books where I may not have liked the book (due to the subject matter), but I'm glad I read it. I don't know much at all about this subject, other than remembering some news reports of busloads of kids with indeterminate parental origin and many underage mothers being removed from a compound out in the West, so I did not have any other similar stories to compare this one to. I agree with several of the reviewers that there are many grammatical and other editing errors in the book, but I'm not picky about that sort of thing. I put the book down several times and had trouble getting through some parts of it, feeling creepy about what I was reading, but since it was a true story and I had a vague idea that it turned out okay for the poor girl in the end, I finished it. You probably have an idea of the subject matter from the title and the descriptions, and actually reading the details will seem just as ugly and disturbing as you can imagine. The book is so full of victimized people, broken lives, traumatized children who grow into warped adults, all due to what can be traced to rampant egos and an utterly freakish psychological control that a small handful of individuals have preyed upon a much larger group of women and children who have believed and trusted and feared them. There are many unanswered questions, but in the confines of this book as it is one person's story, I don't expect all my questions answered. I'm glad she turned out okay and found some supportive friends outside the group. I don't know that I have the heart to pursue any more knowledge on this subject, even though I'm wondering about several things - what happens to those boys that they pack up and throw out along the highway to fend for themselves? Was the "blood atonement" she was referring to ever practiced? And I can't help feeling that the man she was forced to marry (who was her first cousin, and several years older than her) was a victim also. I know he was an adult in years, but he had been raised his entire life that he was doing what he was supposed to do to save his eternal soul. He also feared and believed the elders that were telling him that his spiritual life depended on his obedience to their orders, and that he had to find a way to make his marriage work and to procreate. From her description, you can tell she hates him, but she also adequately describes his obvious confusion, inability to cope with mature issues such as marriage and responsibility, and his fear of repercussions when things are so obviously going wrong (as in, she frequently disappears from the house against his demands and eventually becomes pregnant by another man). Those poor kids, you really feel badly for her, and the other people in her life who have been damaged by all this, and it is a huge relief when you can find out that she seems to be okay now, and there are some really nice pictures of her with her family and her children with the man she WANTED to be with. So again, I'm not sure. I'm almost sorry I started to read the book, but having started, and seeing the wreckage and despair of so many lives, I had to finish so I could get some peace out of it. Now, I'd have to say I'm glad I read it, and I feel like I understand a little bit more about a subject I really knew nothing about. Just prepare yourself to be really disturbed by images you'd rather not have (child rape, wife beating, psychological torture, destroyed families, people committing crimes against other people out of fear for their very lives and souls) but if you can finish the book, you'll be impressed by her bravery in standing up to them in court, and in pulling together what she could of her life and being committed to being a good mother to her really adorable children.

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I read this book along with a few others about escapees from plural marriage societies and felt it was the same in content but not as interesting. Maybe I was just getting burned out on the subject but I didn't like it as much as I did the others that I had read. It is, however, an excellent picture of the power wielded by Warren Jeffs and the men who followed him.

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Good read.
I usually have trouble keeping characters straight, and when you're talking about a family with three moms, and twenty some kids, I had a heck of a time keeping people straight.
But it's written from the first person point of view, and done very well.

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This book was riveting! Once I started reading it I couldn't put it down. This is a very candid account of a young girls experience.

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Just finished this book and it was a great book. It is well written and does a good job of keeping you interested the whole way through.

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A page turner! A true story about a girl of great courage who broke away from the Polygamous Sect.

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A very eye opening book that is sad but at the same time offers hope to others as Elissa Wall relates her story and ultimate escape from the FLDS life.

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An extremely well written account of life in the FLDS. I felt for this women, she has had one crazy start to life. But she knew how to describe it well. With the shock value of this book being so high and a very good story teller, this book has become one of my favorites.

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I really got into this book. I loved her writing style. I felt like I was right there with her. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to understand the mindset of those who are members of the FLDS.

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I couldn't put this book down. I can't believe that things like this still go on in America. Elissa Wall is a very strong woman, and this book is an inspiration.

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My interest in this book was inspired by my desire to better understand how people can be brainwashed into doing things that are contrary to human nature, e.g., to give up any relationship with immediate family (including their biological children) to appease a spiritual or religious leader.
The childlike tone of the book didn't bother me as I came to learn about education (or lack thereof) in the FLDS. It was also pretty obvious in places that the author wasn't beholden to telling the whole truth, which is a shame because the strength of her important message is diminished by her whitewashing certain events.
While far from great literature, this book serves to open the eyes of those who ignore the abuse of women and children in the name of religion here in our own country.

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I have read this book twice, it was extremely hard to put this book down. this is a great read from cover to cover.

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I've read some of the other books about the FLDS and found this to be on of the ones that was better written. This was also interesting as it was Ms. Wall's experience that first brought charges against Warren Jeffs.

Fascinating and of course very challenging for someone who grew up very differently to really grasp.

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great book

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The book is well written and makes interesting reading. It is hard for me to understand the way of life depicted in the book--how a 14 year old girl could be forced to marry her first cousin that she hated. I thank God that I was not born into that kind of life.

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Very good book to read.

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I really liked this book and it was very well written. If you ever wanted to know what it was like to grow up in a Polygamous sect with Warren Jeffs who destroyed young girls by marrying them off to the older sect members.

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Gripping

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very interesting read.

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This was a good book. I live in Utah and heard about this on the news, often. Reading her story was very touching.

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Slow read but very interesting.

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