The Witness Wore Red: The 19th Wife Who Brought Polygamous Cult Leaders to Justice by Rebecca Musser

The Witness Wore Red: The 19th Wife Who Brought Polygamous Cult Leaders to Justice Reviews

• 
  Petra X

  Totally rewritten 8 April 2016. This is a house-that-jack-built book as far as believing in terrible and incredible events goes. I tend to believe it in it's entirety and it completes her sister, Elissa Wall's book
  Stolen Innocence. The author's brother, Cole, who also left the FLDS has written his own desperate book saying, "It wasn't like that, it really wasn't". However, even if only half the abuse was true, it would still be horrifying. Further even if only Warren Jeffs tape of his abusing his new 12 year old wife, 'training' her in front of witnesses and other wives, teaching her how to behave sexually and recording it, was true, then the book would be horrifying beyond belief.
  
  What I'm thinking of, together with the Lauren Drain book,
  Banished: Surviving My Years in the Westboro Baptist Church is that although those also in the cult or church do not necessarily go along with the practice or even rhetoric 100%, they do not condemn it. They allow the abuse to go on because they are afraid for themselves. We all wonder how they could condone the polygamous marriage of men as old as 85 to 56 women, some of them very young teenagers, or perhaps not even teenagers? Surely, most of us are going to feel, these people should have at least gone anonymously to the authorities to stop these wicked things?
  
  There's a bit of an analagous situation with ISIS and it's associated Muslim terrorist groups. People don't necessarily agree with what they are doing, but they won't speak out. Certainly not on my island. Vociferous against Israel with their marches and banners, but against the terrorism of co-religionists.... not a word. It's the same situation as the FLDS, speak out against the common enemy but it is more important to show a united front against the world than expose 'the tribe' to the outside world. That comes across to all except their apologists as tacit support.
  
  But
  Charlie Hebdo,
  Day of Wrath I am condemned for saying that Muslims who have these nests of terrorists in their midst should speak out. Because they are exempt and I am told I must find all of them innocent of terrorism unless they actually committed it. Same with Catholics. Most had no idea of priests and pedastry in their midst, but if they did and didn't say anything well.... Just because you personally didn't commit any evil acts doesn't excuse your silence. Not in my book and not in this one either.
  
  The overwhelming feeling I get of the FLDS is that they have one-upped the Stepford Wives. These women are sexual and domestic slaves and brood mares. But they age, and that is the key. They age and so a man is justified in taking more, younger wives to satisfy his holy, celestial sexual needs. The older ones are cast-off, they will get their reward "beyond the veil", but the men get their's now.
  
  Beyond the veil. A man who has something like 7 wives and innumerable children will become a god with his own planet to rule, immortal and all-powerful. A woman just dies and rots in the earth unless she has "kept sweet" her entire life to her husband and then he might pull her through the veil and she will rule with him (and those of his wives he chooses to accompany him into immortality). I was going to say it is only brainwashing that keeps women in this terrible state, but then most religions exist on brainwashing children young enough to believe in unseen, unprovable rewards and fear of terrible punishments. That's what religion is all about.
• 
  Missy

  This book made me so mad!! The leaders of the FLDS church are the worst kind of evil, hypocritical, selfish low-lifes. My heart ached for the women and female children who are abused physically, emotionally and sexually. They are brainwashed into believing that their entire existence is worthwhile only as far as they are able to please the men. Anytime the supposed "prophet" got something wrong - a prophecy that wasn't fulfilled, etc. - he blamed it on the people saying they weren't righteous enough. When he went off and dressed in shorts and got a tan and took one of his wives to Disneyland and she came back with short hair, he blamed his people saying it's their fault that they had to "go into hiding" and blend in with the outside world. And his followers eat it all up and pay him more money and try to be more righteous because they have been brainwashed from the time they are born that you NEVER question the prophet. He is ALWAYS right no matter what. And it baffles me how Warren Jeffs can still have so much control over their lives from his new home for life, a prison cell.
  
  Rebecca Musser is so brave to expose her life to the world to give these girls a voice. Someone needs to speak for them. They refuse to speak for themselves and the slavery continues as they stay in this sick and twisted religion because they believe it will be their salvation. I agree with Rebecca's realization before her escape, "If this is heaven, give me hell." This is a difficult read because of the abuses that are so prevalent, especially the sexual abuse. Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, I realized I hadn't seen anything yet. Heartbreaking. Devastating. Shocking. Eye opening.
  
  And for the record, anyone who thinks the FLDS is a branch of the mainstream LDS faith (Mormons), it is not. No one who practices polygamy can be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The contrast between these two religions is black and white. I have my agency as a Mormon and feel nothing but love and compassion and kindness and encouragement from the leadership of the church. The FLDS people have had their agency and their dignity taken from them. A sobering read.
• 
  Mariah Roze

  This book was fantastic! It is a very long book, but it did not take me long to finish it. The author is a fantastic writer and she has had a crazy life. She helped bring a lot of FLDS leaders down and help them go to jail. Her story is amazing and I suggest it to everyone :)
  
  "Rebecca Musser grew up in fear, concealing her family's polygamous lifestyle from the "dangerous" outside world. Covered head-to-toe in strict, modest clothing, she received a rigorous education at Alta Academy, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints' school headed by Warren Jeffs. Always seeking to be an obedient Priesthood girl, in her teens she became the nineteenth wife of her people's prophet: 85-year-old Rulon Jeffs, Warren's father. Finally sickened by the abuse she suffered and saw around her, she pulled off a daring escape and sought to build a new life and family.
  The church, however, had a way of pulling her back in-and by 2007, Rebecca had no choice but to take the witness stand against the new prophet of the FLDS in order to protect her little sisters and other young girls from being forced to marry at shockingly young ages. The following year, Rebecca and the rest of the world watched as a team of Texas Rangers raided the Yearning for Zion Ranch, a stronghold of the FLDS. Rebecca's subsequent testimony would reveal the horrific secrets taking place behind closed doors of the temple, sending their leaders to prison for years, and Warren Jeffs for life."
• 
  Erin Krol

  I have read just about every book there is to read about the FLDS. Rebecca's book gives insight into what it's like inside the Prophet's home as well as additional insight into the Texas raid. What strikes me the most is the respect and love with which Rebecca holds her "people" despite the abuse she sustained within the culture. She's able to separate the truly bad from those who are born and indoctrinated into this craziness and know nothing else. Rebecca's most interesting insight, I believe, is her comment that she, too, could have ended up a perpetrator of abuse as some of the Prophet's other wives did. Fascinating, heart wrenching story that continues to beg the question, "why does this still go on in the US??"
• 
  Amanda

  A long and richly detailed account of a woman born into a polygamous cult, and her story of how she escaped! It's well written and sheds a lot of light onto a very mysterious culture. I know much more about the background of the FLDS after reading, and still I am impressed at the amount of respect Rebecca Musser continues to have for her people, despite the fact that many friends and family members have shunned her.
  
  She does a great job of convincing the reader that the average members of the church are brainwashed, and that the people who practice polygamy are not inherently bad. They are God-fearing people who happen to be misguided by evil leaders, and brainwashed into thinking that marrying off young girls and an oppressive patriarchal society is okay.
  
  I also appreciated the continuing story after she escaped, especially that she was prey to hardship outside the community. Just because she left, her troubles were far from over, including struggling with a monogamous relationship. This just goes to show how deep the lifestyle of the FLDS was, and still is, engrained in its people.
  
  Musser writes compassionately and sparks empathy through her writing. Reading the book, I was astonished that so many women and children continue to live this way, shut off from mainstream society, cloistered from truth. I was appalled at the actions of grown men, and I kept wondering how it was that people are able to believe in the ludicrous lies that had been fed to them for years. This is a must-read book, and a story that needed to be told. I applaud Ms. Musser for bravely telling her story and inspiring others to be free each and every day.
• 
  Marya

  This book has the interesting POV of being written by both the member with the highest and lowest social status. As the 19th wife of the leader of the FLDS, Rebecca Musser never wanted for food, clothing, or shelter (as a wife). She also clearly had access to wealth as she went horseback riding, hiking, ATV-riding, and went back and forth between Utah and Arizona courtesy of a Lear jet. Many members of the community showed her deference and she had a great deal of relative freedom.
  
  On the other hand, as a female, she was expected to restrict herself to traditionally female tasks like home-making and child rearing (including schooling of the FLDS children). She was required to submit to her husband in all things, especially in the bedroom. The book innocently shows how this mindset developed and how it expressed itself (such as the women learning to parrot the same platitudes to others that had been so ineffectively parroted to them on their wedding night). Because Ms. Musser's husband was so highly placed, she is able to give an overview of the workings of the inner circle to both the reader and the state of Texas, which would ultimately prosecute the new Prophet for rape.
  
  It's a pretty squeamish read, but still an interesting window onto another world.
• 
  Donna

  This was the memoir of a young woman's recollection of what it was like growing up in a polygamous sect and also what it was like living as the 19th wife to an 80+ year old man in the FLDS church.
  
  I just felt outrage after outrage with this one. The author isn't the only one who has come forward and it seems like the stories of these survivors are eerily similar, sharing many of the same horrors. It is such a tragedy that certain leaders can have such a control over others and how willingly the followers do as they're told when threatened with their salvation.
  
  This is tragic but it felt well written and her story needs to be told. So 4 stars.
• 
  Amanda

  “The Witness Wore Red” tells the story of Rebecca Musser who was born, married into, and escaped polygamy. After her escape “Becky” makes it her mission to bring down polygamist leader Warren Jeffs and the network of individuals who caused her and other young women and girls so much pain.
  
  Becky appears to be a very brave woman, and I have nothing but respect for her accomplishments. However…
  
  1. The degree of direct quotation and detail is not realistic for a memoir. Unless she carried a tape recorder around with her every day since she was a young child there is no possible way that she could have remembered conversations in the detail in which she reports them in the book.
  2. The book is sappy. The prose are saccharine and Halmark Movie-ish. I applaud her for being able to maintain a spiritual life after what she has been through, but I don’t want to hear about it. I bought and read the book to learn about the trial and polygamy, not about her warm and fuzzy experiences with God.
  3. It is self serving. As I have said before I believe Becky deserves to be applauded and celebrated for what she has done, but I think that applause should come from others not herself. Instead of simply telling her story, she finds it necessary to constantly share the amount of praise she has received with the reader. Be proud, but don’t roll in it.
  
  I want to be clear that I am not giving her as a person two stars, nor do I think her deeds are mediocre, but the book certainly is.
  
• 
  Catherine Richmond

  What a powerful - and disturbing - true story!
  
  I never want to hear the word "sweet" again. This cult forced women to be "sweet" - compliant, silent, obedient. But being sweet is not being holy. Jesus respected women and answered their questions. He never demanded "sweet" of us.
  
  And don't ever get between a woman and her Lord. This cult set up one megalomaniac pervert as a prophet next to God - that's spiritual abuse. Jesus had some harsh words for those who do this - it would be better for them to have a millstone around their neck and be thrown into the sea.
  
  The most disturbing aspect of Rebecca's life is that the states of Utah and Arizona went along with this cult. They knew - can't hide 10,000 people dressed like "Little House on the Prairie." In fact, the federal government knew and gave contracts to companies owned by this cult. Yes, occasionally people reached out to Rebecca and her family. But no one stopped this human trafficking operation/organized crime ring until they spread into Texas.
  
  Don't look the other way. If you see something wrong in your neighborhood, do everything you can to stop it.
  
  
• 
  Stephanie

  I feel guilty I didn't like this book more than I did. I'm always a little weary when autobiographies or personal retelling of events contain so much dialogue. Did she really remember those conversations? I doubt it - at least not word for word.
  
  The book is barely interesting, and Musser and her co-author get very wordy in some places. I've been on the waiting list for this book at the library since it was released, and it certainly didn't match my expectations. I appreciate Musser leaving the FLDS at 27, and I think it is totally understandable that she is still working through the conflicts she has with her faith. However, sometimes she just went on and on about a topic for far too long.
  
  The beginning of the book was the best part. It was interesting to read what childhood is like in a polygamous religion. She is very honest about her relationship with her mother's sister wife. I found that part of the book to be excellent.
  
  As the book went on I became bored. She glosses over her escape from Short Creek. I expected it to be some elaborate escape, but she summarizes the entire thing in just a page or so. As she approached the trial I found myself sympathizing with her husband (now ex) who just wanted her home with their family. She seemed obsessed with helping law enforcement.
  
  It's not really worth reading. If you watched any of the news stories, read the articles, or watched Dateline or 20/20 during Warren Jeffs' trial you basically know the book minus the first 150 pages or so. It isn't particularly well written either. Just skip this one.
• 
  Chris

  Fascinating story, and Becky Musser was really brave to tell it (and to live it!), but I had some problems with the book. I'm not a nonfiction reader AT ALL, and as much as I want to read memoirs and autobiographies, I never like them. A couple of problems for me. I have a really lousy memory myself, but I can't imagine that the details remembered in this book, without a journal or diary to refer to, could be remembered truly. Also, I realize that Ms. Musser is not a writer, but she did have help .... I found the writing repetitive, pretty simplistic, and boring. The author, herself, read the book, which in a way was really good, but after awhile her awkward pauses between words in weird places really bugged me. I'm too picky, I guess. My heart aches for her and all the women that are in their situation, and I'm really glad I got to hear her story. However, I found a Dateline episode about this whole story which I found much more interesting and concise.
• 
  BAM the enigma

  Audiobook #202
• 
  Dana

  Ever since the raid on the YFZ ranch in Eldorado, Tx brought the FLDS into the spotlight, I have been interested in and reading books about this group. This book, "The Witness Wore Red" tells Rebecca Musser's story. She was raised in the FLDS and at age 18 was married to Rulon Jeffs, their Prophet, who at the time was 85 years old. After Rulon's death, when his son Warren Jeffs told Becky that he would marry her either to himself or someone else and that he would "break" her, she fled from the group. She tells about her life inside and outside of the FLDS. Her sister Elissa, who was forced to marry at age 14 was part of the first lawsuit against Warren Jeffs and Becky was a key witness in that trial. When the YFZ ranch was raided, she was called in as a liason to help the police understand how to speak to and work with the people there, most of whom were her relatives. She acted as a witness in many trials against various men in the FLDS, testifying over 20 times. She learned and revealed how the FLDS was an organized crime ring hiding behind the name of religion, taking money and property from people, abusing women and children. This book is well written and shows yet another view of the FLDS debacle.
• 
  Sarah Swann

  Man, the people who led (and still lead) this group are pure walking evil. No doubt in my mind. This woman is so brave and so much of what she did put the right people behind bars. Good for her!
• 
  Just a Girl Fighting Censorship

  This was interesting and also horrifying. My only criticism is that it went on just a hair too long.
  
  The first half of the book is absolutely riveting as the author recounts growing up in an abusive FLDS Polygamist family. Her father's first wife was a grade A villain. The intricacies of the 'religion' where fascinating and the author does a great job of showing her growth through out the book. At the beginning she is just a girl. She is controlled by her father, his first wife, and as she gets older, Warren Jeffs.
  
  She then 'grows up' to marry the prophet aka Warren Jeffs' dad who is in his eighties, she is eighteen. Ugh!
  
  All along the way we see glimpses of her rebellious character. She often questions things within the FLDS but then explains to the reader how she justified it at the time. The result is that, too a point, you can understand why these people stay in these tyrannical oppressive situations. Literally everyone surrounding them believes the same lies, they have little to no contact with the outside world, and they are taught that everyone outside of the FLDS is out to get them. She never makes excuses for the terrible things that happen but she never sensationalizes the events either. The tone is very matter of fact and it seems she tries to stay as objective and honest as possible.
  
  Basically here is the breakdown of the content in this book:
  
  Life in the FLDS
  Escaping the FLDS
  Adjusting to the real world
  The investigation into the FLDS
  Trials
  Warren Jeffs' Trial
  Reflection
  
  The intricacies and amount of detail surrounding the trials and investigation were a bit necessary, it just got too be too much and was a little repetitive. I understand why it was important to the author, she sacrificed a lot to bring all these terrible men to justice, but I didn't need to hear about each and every detail.
  
  I do have to warn you that this book might make you hate men. It just seems like one vile and disgusting man after another. There were moments that made me cry and others that made me physically ill. I kept having to remind myself that this was real life or that it didn't take place 50 years ago, it was happening NOW.
  
  Overall, the author did a great job capturing the FLDS never being overly critical or trying to justify atrocities, just honest. The author is incredibly likeable and did not fit my preconceptions. Even as a child she was interested in learning and smart. She was oppressed but she was also strong. She was indoctrinated but never stopped questioning. Her story was inspiring but also heart wrenching. She goes there and shares everything, the good, the bad, and the very ugly.
  
  Part of my 2015 Special 50 Book challenge- A Book with a Color in the title
• 
  Cindy

  Reading this book was like not being able to look away from a train wreck. I've always been a little curious about the FLDS community, wondering what could make them live the way they do. After reading the book it seems that for many of the men, the answer is obvious. (And in many cases over the last decade, illegal.) I think for the women & children the answer is more complicated--that what started as a genuine belief in the correctness of the doctrine was made stronger by the use of fear tactics about the outside world and constant predictions of the end of time. (Y2K, Mayan calendar, etc.) I find it curious and heart breaking that whatever sense of self-preservation these FLDS women have, it is not enough to protect themselves from ongoing rape or in some situations to protect their children from physical abuse at the hands of other wives or half siblings. Hooray for everyone who is able to extricate themselves from this situation and find a way to have a normal life.
• 
  Bibliovoracious

  WOW! A riveting, powerful story of one woman with immense strength. I've read many books about the FLDS, and this one actually pushed Jon Krakauer's fantastic
  Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith to second place among books on the topic.
  
  This is the story of how Warren Jeffs got put away, told from the inside, before (growing up FLDS, 19th wife to the Prophet) and during (an escapee, assistant to the investigation, and witness at multiple hearings).
  
  The tale is epic; breathtaking to think of enduring, and unputdownable. Becky Musser is a hero. I wish her much strength and healing for her ongoing struggles. I hope she is now surrounded by support and love.
• 
  Cindy Garza

  Oddly, the whole thing seemed to work while Rulon Jeffs, the paterfamilias, was alive, but his son then got a little greedy with the wives and the proclamations, and the widowed author had had enough and eloped with somebody else. She doesn't reflect much about why it still goes on, except to state the obvious, that it seems normal when you're raised that way. Or why she needed another man to help her escape from the whole thing.
  This could have been an interesting look at how the FLDS culture operates, but it's light on reflection and heavy on the Hallmark moments. Readable, but don't expect much originality or flair for analysis.
• 
  Wendy

  I think I that I am fascinated by FLDS (and other sects such as even those gentle Amish) because basically I was raised a feminist (by a woman who treasured the concept but has never really been able to entirely live it). I could never understand how a woman could live under the thumb of a man…even though the woman I was raised by…kinda sort did… and I kinda sorta understand that too. In thinking about religion and patriarchy and FLDS…I first think that this is about men’s power over women and sex, the ability to have it where and when and with whom…the need to control which to some extent (oh dear dare I say it) in terms of survival instinct is maybe… possibly… perhaps... normal. The ability to know that you can lie and get away with it I suppose is most powerful and addictive. But then in thinking more…other than the sex, I think that control over someone is about the ego and supporting one’s ego, and having a really poor ego, understandable when you can never be perfect enough to suit an "all powerful" leader e.g. Warren Jeffs.
  
  It’s interesting to me that ex FLDS folks go to Christian religions…the vocabulary is sorta the same but the dogma is entirely different. And even if the definition of God and existence of a loving Jesus are different…and I cannot imagine an ex FLDS having a life without formal religion, although immediately after separation they are.
  
  I suppose to some extent the leaders themselves are brainwashed although in a different way; deluded to the existence of their own power, which does not work with men but will with those “inferior” women.
  
  Oh, and all those lost boys without a father figure…
  
  The fact that some FLDS sell products to the US government really makes me angry…as well as the fact that unmarried and officially unwed mothers allows wives after the first to receive Medicaid also makes me angry. Why is this still happening??
  
  I love that Musser recognizes in the end that this is slavery…it brings it into a contemporary conversation that we cannot just condemn in other countries…but in our own as well.
  
• 
  Havebooks Willread

  In a word, it was disturbing.
  
  As much as I might like to think I would never be a victim like this, I am also well aware that with different conditioning and upbringing, I might also allow myself--even worse, my daughter(s)--to be given as a child bride to a dirty old man. My inward cynicism which I try to keep pushed down is baited by stories like this, when dictatorial men rule with an iron fist and use religion to assuage their lust for power and sex--more and more sex, with younger and younger women/girls. It's simply horrifying.
  
  The story certainly is gripping and gets right under the reader's skin. The writing, however, isn't as gripping, and I think the book could have been about 100 pages shorter. I'm also left with my usual dissatisfaction in reading a memoir--now what? Where is Rebecca Musser now? What about the rest of the FLDS cult? Has Jeffs received justice? (honestly, I'm thinking castration here. He is so, so gross.)
  
  Disturbing indeed.
• 
  Melanie Rigney

  I liked the author's voice. She did a nice job of showing the conflict she felt about leaving a life that was by turns abusive and happy for a new world. I also liked that the book wasn't particularly salacious... and didn't present that all her problems were solved once she left. I also appreciate your passion for fighting human trafficking.
• 
  Melissa

  So glad people had the guts to stand up to this oppression. It went on for way too long. We all need to know this history so it's not allowed to happen again.
• 
  Lynn

  Today’s nonfiction post is on The Witness Wore Red: The 19th wife who brought polygamous cult leaders to justice by Rebecca Musser and M. Bridget Cook. It is 340 and is published by Grand Central Publishing. The cover has two pictures on it on top one of Rulon Jeffs with his many other -wives wives and Rebecca colored in red and on bottom with her standing wearing red as she is going to testify against Warren Jeffs. The intended reader is someone who is interested in this case, cults in America, or just autobiographies. There is language, rape, and violence in this book so adults only. This is a autobiography of Rebecca Musser and is told from her view point. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
  From the dust jacket- Rebecca Musser grew up in fear, living downstairs from her father’s “real” family, and concealing her family’s polygamous livestyle from the “dangerous” outside world. Covered head-to-toe in modest clothing, she attended Alta Academy, a Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints school headed by principal Warren Jeffs.
  In her teens, she became the nineteenth wife of her people’s Prophet: eighty-five-year-old Rulon Jeffs. Warren’s father, and watched as forty-eight additional wives were added to her marriage. After she was widowed, Warren Jeffs threated t her with remarriage, she pulled off a daring escape and sough to build a new life and family on her own terms.
  But by 2007, though far from the church, she was no longer able to stand for the abuse and underage marriages still being perpetuated within it- ones that she believed put her sisters at risk. So Rebecca took the witness stand against Warren Jeffs, the new self-proclaimed Prophet of the FLDS.
  The following year, as a team of Texas Rangers raided the Yearning for Zion Ranch, and FLDS stronghold, Rebecca was called to the scene, advising law enforcement to an outcome that avoided bloodshed. Her subsequent testimony revealed the horrific secrets behind the temple’s closed doors, sending the leaders to prison for years, and Warren Jeffs for life.
  Now, for the very first time, Rebecca Musser tell the full story- one of crimes committed in the name of God, the abuse of power played out across generations, and her own perseverance as well as the strength of those around her. A revealing memoir of escape from fanaticism and a fast-paced courtroom drama, THE WITNESS WORE RED is a testament to the power of one woman’s decisions to change the world.
  Review- This was a very interesting and eye-opening read. I remember the raid on the Yearning for Zion Ranch but other than that I really knew very little about the FLDS. Now that I have read two books about the FLDS I know a bit more and that is horrifying and stomach turning. Musser tells her story with heart-breaking honesty. She does not pull her punches when dealing with the abuse that happened and happens nor does she spare herself from the same gaze. Unlike Sam Bower, who at times I had trouble believing, I believe Musser. Because she does not have to prove herself in anyway. Bower would say things like “ I didn’t believe her” or “ I had my doubts about that witness” but Musser does not. She says that she believed because she knew it could happen. Musser just wants people to understand and have mercy on those who lived and live under FLDS teachings and control. Her story is about grace, forgiveness, and mercy towards and self.
  I give this book a Five out of Five Stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.
  
• 
  Jessica

  For me, this was an eye opening story. I knew very little about the FLDS going into this and wasn't very familiar with the. If news story that came from Becky Musser's story (I know I am terrible about keeping up with big news events. It's sad).
  
  It feels odd for me to say, "This was a great story and I couldn't put it down." Although it is true it feels wrong to say when the subject matter is so sad and even ripped my heart out at times. I was sickened by the acts several people were capable of. And yet I was saddened to the core to know that the women who were involved and some continue to be are so caught up in their religious Purity that they were blinded by it. It was heartbreaking and yet I wished I could give these women and children the freedom they deserved. The freedom to be an equal and make decisions. But while that is what I want to give them, after reading this story, o realize that's terrifying and far from what most want. Which just makes it even more upsetting.
  
  Like Musser I had to find peace within myself to have hope so many are happy with who, where and what they are. I cannot wish my beliefs and desires on them or anyone for that matter. Sometimes you have to find the strength to let the person have the freedom they desire not the ones you desire. But it is a grueling process and in this instance terrifying.
  
  I am glad I read this. It was something I would not have normally picked up but has given me a lot to think about. I believe this is something everyone should read. It won't be easy but it is something that people need to be made aware of. Human trafficking isn't just something that happens with drugs or prostitution rings. It is real and can be done in the name of so many things including a religion.
• 
  Natalia

  I read "Stolen Innocence" a couple of years ago, and as I was listening to this audiobook, there were pieces that sounded familiar. It was only about halfway through that I realized that Rebecca Musser and Elissa Wall were sisters. While they were both good books, and both cover many of the same incidents, I think The Witness Wore Red is the stronger book of the two (Possibly because Musser was older and had more distance from her experiences when she wrote her book than Wall did)
  
  Anyway, it's a good book. Musser describes her upbringing and life in the FLDS without painting an ugly picture of her family. She criticizes Warren Jeffs' actions, while still having compassion and warmth towards the people of the FLDS community. She acknowledges the difficulty she had overcoming some of her indoctrination, and so doesn't fault people for living the way they were brought up.
  
  Holy crap, though, Warren Jeffs is an awful person. One thing that struck me while I was reading - what's with all the predictions about the end of the world? I mean, seriously? He had to know that the world wasn't actually ending, so it's all a diversionary ploy? How strange.
  
• 
  Doreen Petersen

  What an outstanding book! A definite must read for all!!