Ann Young

Wife No. 19: Or, the Story of a Life in Bondage.. Ann Young

Ann Eliza Young's sensational insider's expose of polygamy was originally published in 1876. The title refers to her role as church leader Brigham Young's 19th living spouse, although she was reportedly the 27th woman to marry the president of the LDS Church and the founder of Salt Lake City. The thorough, 600-page plus book details not only Ann Eliza Young's upbringing by parents who practiced multiple marriage, as well as her marriage to Young - she was 24 and he was 67 when they wed - but gives a fascinating first-hand account of a dark history: domestic violence, lies, degradation, and even murder! Young's intriguing story was the basis for Irving Wallace's 1961 biography ""The Twenty-Seventh Wife,"" and of David Ebershoff's 2008 novel ""The 19th Wife.""