Carolyn Jessop

A bishop of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Zion Ranch has been ordered to pay $148,000 in child support to his former wife Carolyn Jessop so that she can take care of her eight children. The San Angelo Standard-Times reports that the large sum of money comes after seven years of no child support order . The $148,000 that is due is considered back pay for the seven years in which Carolyn Jessop's ex-husband, Frederick Merril Jessop, did not pay child...Read Full Story

I just finished reading “ Escape ” by Carolyn Jessop! Other than the Alex Cross Series by James Patterson, it is rare that I make time to finish a book so, the fact that I read this one means a lot! It is a sort of a hard read…difficult in content and a little drawn in a few spots but, it was one that I had to finish!  The story is just that gripping! It was like a textbook told in first-person which is my preferred way to hear about something.  Someone else’s therapeutic literature that is...Read Full Story

Escape Listened to this in audiobook form by Carolyn Jessop with Laura Palmer I had started listening to this book about a week before authorities raided the Yearning For Zion Ranch (YFZ Ranch) in El Dorado, Texas. I wasn’t very far into it when I heard the first radio report of the raid. I quickly put two and two together and realized that the book I was reading (I call listening to an audiobook “reading” it) was in fact about what was quickly taking over the national news! And take...Read Full Story

From Publishers Weekly Seventeen years after being forced into a polygamous marriage, Jessop escaped from the cultlike Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints with her eight children. She recounts the horrid events that led her to break free from the oppressive world she knew and how she has managed to survive since escaping, despite threats and legal battles with her husband and the Church. Though sometimes her retelling overflows with colorful foreshadowing and commentary on how...Read Full Story

I've almost finished reading "Escape" by Carolyn Jessop for Book Club. It's Jessop's story about escaping a polygamous marriage and the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints. She was able to escape this cult-like "church" with her 8 children. This book chronicles the horrifying events of physical and emotional abuse that occur in this community. Dear Darling and I have been talking about the recent news articles that, once again, bring these issues to our attention. It's difficult to...Read Full Story