My Story - Softcover

Smart, Elizabeth; Stewart, Chris

3.87

43,445 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1250056691 ISBN 13: 9781250056696

Publisher: St Martins Pr, 2015

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"For the first time, ten years after her abduction from her Salt Lake City bedroom, Elizabeth Smart reveals how she survived and the secret to forging a new life in the wake of a brutal crime On June 5, 2002, fourteen-year-old Elizabeth Smart, the daughter of a close-knit Mormon family, was taken from her home in the middle of the night by religious fanatic, Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee. She was kept chained, dressed in disguise, repeatedly raped, and told she and her family would be killed if she tried to escape. After her rescue on March 12, 2003, she rejoined her family and worked to pick up the pieces of her life. Now for the first time, in her memoir, MY STORY, she tells of the constant fear she endured every hour, her courageous determination to maintain hope, and how she devised a plan to manipulate her captors and convinced them to return to Utah, where she was rescued minutes after arriving. Smart explains how her faith helped her stay sane in the midst of a nightmare and how she found the strength to confront her captors at their trial and see that justice was served. In the nine years after her rescue, Smart transformed from victim to advocate, traveling the country and working to educate, inspire and foster change. She has created a foundation to help prevent crimes against children and is a frequent public speaker. In 2012, she married Matthew Gilmour, whom she met doing mission work in Paris for her church, in a fairy tale wedding that made the cover of People magazine"--

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Review:

"Smart's memoir is as compelling as it is disturbing. Her stoic Mormon faith, moreover, will both inspire and mystify readers." --Boston Globe

"Smart speaks candidly about the shame of rape, confessing her deep fear that her Mormon family would reject her as a result of her experiences. . . . Smart is already making waves in the media." --New York magazine

"My Story chronicles [Elizabeth's] faith, aided by her memories of her family, and what she felt was the spiritual presence of her beloved grandfather, who had passed away just days before she was kidnapped. Realizing that her family would love her, no matter what her captors did to her, 'I had something still to live for.'" --Salt Lake Tribune

From the Back Cover:

How did Elizabeth Smart survive nine months in captivity-and manage to forge a new life for herself? This is her story.

On June 5, 2002, fourteen-year-old Elizabeth Smart, the daughter of a close-knit Mormon family, was taken from her home in the middle of the night by religious fanatic Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee. She was kept chained, dressed in disguise, repeatedly raped, and told she and her family would be killed if she tried to escape. After her rescue on March 12, 2003, she rejoined her family and worked to pick up the pieces of her life.

"The inspirational and ultimately redemptive story of a teenage girl's descent into hell... and of the faith that fueled her determination to survive." -Kirkus Reviews

In My Story, Smart tells of the constant fear she endured every hour, her courageous determination to maintain hope, and how she convinced her captors to return to Utah, where she was rescued minutes after arriving. Smart explains how her faith helped her stay sane in the midst of a nightmare and how she found the strength to confront her captors at their trial and see that justice was served.

"[The book's] power lies in the way Smart presents herself-stronger but somehow still innocent." -The New Yorker

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