Valerie S. (VolunteerVal) -
Helpful Score: 1
A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy is a powerful memoir by Tia Levings, and its cover and title are so poignant. As the subtitle states, it documents her immersion into, life within, and exit from Christian patriarchy. The depth of physical, mental, and emotional abuse she endured is horrifying, but her inner drive to protect herself and her children is inspiring.
Raised in a conservative Christian family, her husband showed abusive and controlling behavior before marriage, but Tia attributed it to God's will for her life. As he solely made radical decisions for their growing family in the pursuit of more and more fundamental religious beliefs, she strove to be a "better" (more compliant) wife to minimize his explosive behavior. But deep down, she knew these repressive beliefs weren't right, and she slowly and secretly gained her own agency through connections with people outside their extremely conservative circles.
I admire Tia's bravery in telling her story, so others can understand her emotional and psychological journey. As a church nerd, I really appreciated her tracing the denominations of religion her family experienced.
It hurts my soul to read about painful experiences at the hands of people who weaponize religion. It's so good Tia and her family escaped, my heart aches for the women and children who continue to be immersed in abuse under the guise of the church.
Many thanks to Macmillan Audio for access to the audiobook narrated by Ms. Levings.
Raised in a conservative Christian family, her husband showed abusive and controlling behavior before marriage, but Tia attributed it to God's will for her life. As he solely made radical decisions for their growing family in the pursuit of more and more fundamental religious beliefs, she strove to be a "better" (more compliant) wife to minimize his explosive behavior. But deep down, she knew these repressive beliefs weren't right, and she slowly and secretly gained her own agency through connections with people outside their extremely conservative circles.
I admire Tia's bravery in telling her story, so others can understand her emotional and psychological journey. As a church nerd, I really appreciated her tracing the denominations of religion her family experienced.
It hurts my soul to read about painful experiences at the hands of people who weaponize religion. It's so good Tia and her family escaped, my heart aches for the women and children who continue to be immersed in abuse under the guise of the church.
Many thanks to Macmillan Audio for access to the audiobook narrated by Ms. Levings.
