Book Review: My Story by Elizabeth Smart {with Chris Stewart}

Okay, I read Elizabeth Smart's new book.

Part of me wasn't sure about doing so. After all, some terrible things happened to her during her 9-month captivity by Mitchell and Barzee. I reasoned that most of what happened to her has already been in the news, and I was right. There weren't too many more details about what Mitchell and Barzee did to her, but there are more details about how she survived. It's not an easy read but it's a quick read because it sucks you in! It's a remarkable story, and the good in it made it easier.

There are more details about the first hours of Elizabeth's captivity--how she was thisclose to being spotted by a policeman just minutes after leaving her backyard, and the hours-long, arduous climb into the mountains to reach the remote camp her captors had set up to hide her. There are more details about what Elizabeth's daily life was like--constant threats, the mind-numbing boredom and the thirst and starvation she experienced.

To counteract all this, there are the little things Elizabeth did to survive it all. There are also all the many, many ways in which God helped her to keep going--the tender mercies, outright miracles, and the presence of her recently deceased grandfather, whose spirit she could definitely feel watching over her.

What I really wanted to know more about was how Elizabeth managed to heal after such a hellish experience? She gives the reader insights into the process of her recovery in the decade since her return--including her Mormon faith, her love of horses and the advice of her mother, Lois.

This is nothing short of a remarkable look at a very admirable young woman.