In 1847, seventeen-year-old Lucy Bigelow became Brigham Young's forty-third wife, a decision that would alter her fate and cement her story in Church history forever. Known for her sweet temperament and strong spiritual insights, Lucy determined that if she was going to be happy in circumstances where she was surrounded by wives and responsibilities of this complex family, she would have to make herself useful.
And so she did. During her lifetime of faithful service, and using the gifts of the Spirit with which she had been blessed, Lucy became the first matron of the St. George Temple and was the first woman to perform endowments for the dead in this dispensation.
The second of Lucy's three children, Susa, saw her mother's strength and character and built upon her legacy. At only thirteen, Susa entered the University of Deseret and edited a school newspaper. Her skills as a writer and poet, and her adeptness as a stenographer, led her to the sacred opportunity of recording both the St. George and Salt Lake City temple dedications. She founded the Relief Society Magazine and the Young Woman's Journal, which was an intimate and amazingly eclectic publication.
Facing some of the most intense trials mortality has to offer, and dealing with their own weaknesses and errors, Lucy and Susa grew by choice and commitment, developing faith, obedience, and love as the touchstones of their lives.
Thus, the amazing stories of these two remarkable women, who were instrumental in the progress and spirit of the early years of the Church, testify of the importance of virtues they embraced, and have become an inspiration to women of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for all generations to come.
The subjects of this book, mother and daughter Lucy Bigelow Young and Susa Young Gates, are two women I had heard of but knew little to nothing about. I love that it's LDS historical fiction with a real feel. I love that it's so well researched and documented. I especially love that it's based on actual, strong women. These are women from my history, who likely knew my ancestors, women I am curious about and am anxious to learn from! I recently read The Sister Preachers by Gail Sears. This book reminded me of that, but with less dialogue. Sister Preachers felt more fictional, Women of Power felt more historical. Both were of high interest to me and very readable. This author's attempts to depict history accurately are appreciated. I agree with this statement by the author in the book's introduction, "The footprints of these two exceptional women are firm, deep and to be trusted-especially since they were human, obviously as human and flawed as we find ourselves today." I would definitely like to read more books this this and look forward to reading other books in this series!