Meghan MacLean Weir

[A] novel of family, fame, and religion that tells the emotionally stirring, wildly captivating story of the seventeen-year-old daughter of an evangelical preacher, star of the family's hit reality show, and the secret pregnancy that threatens to blow their entire world apart.

The Book of Essie

FINALIST FOR THE 2018 NEW ENGLAND BOOK AWARD "Both timelessly beautiful and unbelievably timely."—Chris Bohjalian, New York Times bestselling author of Midwives and The Flight Attendant A captivating novel of family, fame, and religion that tells the story of the seventeen-year-old daughter of an evangelical preacher, star of the family's hit reality show, and the secret pregnancy that threatens to blow their entire world apart. Esther Ann Hicks--Essie--is the youngest child on Six for Hicks, a reality television phenomenon. She's grown up in the spotlight, both idolized and despised for her family's fire-and-brimstone brand of faith. When Essie's mother, Celia, discovers that Essie is pregnant, she arranges an emergency meeting with the show's producers: Do they sneak Essie out of the country for an abortion? Do they pass the child off as Celia's? Or do they try to arrange a marriage--and a ratings-blockbuster wedding? Meanwhile, Essie is quietly pairing herself up with Roarke Richards, a senior at her school with a secret of his own to protect. As the newly formed couple attempt to sell their fabricated love story to the media--through exclusive interviews with an infamously conservative reporter named Liberty Bell--Essie finds she has questions of her own: What was the real reason for her older sister leaving home? Who can she trust with the truth about her family? And how much is she willing to sacrifice to win her own freedom?

A novel

tori 👻

This was probably my favorite book this year.
Such a beautiful and inspiring tale of a young protagonist. Essie is incredibly written, she is real and I know she will stay with me for a very long time.
Honestly, this is a timeless story with a timeless message. A very important one.
Fictional or not, I know there will be times where I'll catch myself hoping Essie is okay and that she is happy. As I hope for every other girl, beautiful and brave in their own ways.

Heather Margaret

I liked the story of Essie but the way it was written was a little sluggish at points. You are thrown in the beginning wanting to figure out what is going on with Essie, Liberty and even Roarke, but I feel like eventually, it evens out and gets dull. The teeter-tottering toward the end made roll my eyes but the ending did work out.

Tameka Young

Solid 3.5 stars. Loved the idea and concept and even though I felt uncomfortable by a lot of the subject matter, I think it’s raises a lot of important issues to discuss.

Jennifer Dieter

3.5/5. A light summer read that felt like it was “taken straight from the headlines.” I’m kind of obsessed with reality tv and anything that pokes a bit of fun at the hypocrisies that exist in religion. Plus there was a bonus back story about a cult. I did find it to be a compelling, quick read. I, however, thought the character development was a little weak and the ending felt entirely too clean and maybe a bit too idealistic for me to find it believable.

Lauren Lopez

This book will make your stomach churn and make you furious. Essie was betrayed by her family only to protect their empire. The people who she was meant to feel the safest with were the people she desperately longed to break free from. This book touches on topics that are not widely discussed. 

Essie is the daughter of a famous pastor, who along with his calculating wife, has decided to exploit their family in exchange for fame. They are the stars of a reality show based on the father’s career as a pastor and the family’s seemingly wholesome values, and it is made clear that Essie’s mother is the puppeteer while the other Hicks are the puppets. It reminds you that reality television is just another type of acting and that you never truly know what goes on behind closed doors. 

Essie is desperate to leave her home behind, and she has worked for years to execute a plan that would fool everyone, especially her mother. She takes extreme measures to expose the secrets her family has been holding onto since she was a very young girl, and she gains a few trusted confidantes (her fake fiancé, a recently graduated reporter, and her estranged sister) to help her along the way. 

I was left a little disappointed with the ending. I wish there were more details about how everything played out for Essie’s family, but it was satisfying to see her get some sort of justice for the terrible things she had to endure.

Dorian Avers

I wish the author had just stuck with Essie's and Roarke's point of views. Liberty and Essie were almost identical characters with identical sisters. At times I thought this sounded ridiculously unrealistic, but then remembered how similar it all is to the Duggars. I thought we'd get a more raw, behind the scenes sort of thing, but this just missed the mark for me.

Tierra Wilson

This book was a hard read but I enjoyed reading it none the less. The subject matter is interesting and really makes you think but it doesn't try to make you feel dumb. Everything is revealed as needed.

Ana Couto

Laura

I do my best not to get angry about books, preferring to reserve my (rather substantial) anger for the concrete rather than abstract. But this book made me angry, though not for the reasons Weir wrote the book for. I was shocked when I found that Weir was raised in a church, because it had the most one-sided, stereotypical view of Christians possible. And the conservatives in this book are equally one-sided and awful. I get the impression she was born and raised in a liberal bubble and has no knowledge of middle American conservatives beyond what MSNBC tells her. Now, I’m from Connecticut, a blue state in a sea of blue states, but I don’t pretend to know what it’s like living in middle America, beyond having a father whose family is from rural Pennsylvania. It was clearly written from someone what has a set perspective of who she thinks conservatives, evangelicals, and Bible Belters are and did no further research. Just watch the SVU episode on The Duggars if you want a story inspired by that tired case.

The Book of Essie

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