Amity & Sorrow

“If she never tells him, he will never really know them.”

Amaranth has taken her daughters and run - run from a man with fifty wives, a man who believes he is God, a man who has done unspeakable things to their daughter. When she stops, she must decide where her future lies in the now strange world in which she finds herself.

The picture painted by two sisters, bound together by a thin strip of white fabric, is a powerful image, and an appropriate opening to this novel. Written in an unusual writing style, the strong emotions felt by these characters was very vividly portrayed. The novel occasionally tended toward the sensationalist and at times felt overdone, but even those scenes packed a sincere emotional punch.

While Amity is excited by this world in which her path is not mapped out for her, Sorrow cannot accept a world in which she is not special or chosen by God for important work. Their conflict with each other, with their mother, and with the larger world is a striking one, and the reader can feel the sadness and the anger these two girls feel as they try to find their place.

I found the ending disappointing, but I'm not sure why. Was I hoping for a more solid resolution or simply a different end? I'm not sure. Overall, I'd say that the book was good, but not great, and I don't think I'd be giving it glowing recommendations to my friends.