Escape tells one woman's story of fleeing a fundamentalist religion and getting her eight children out in the process. Jessop details several instances of abuse that occurred during her time involved in the Colorado City, AZ community, and many of these were difficult for me to read. Her husband's other wives shunned her and abused her (and their own) children by beating them, verbally attacking them, or depriving them of food. Her husband was not involved with the children, but the threat of losing them to the outside world was very real to him, and her fight for custody became dangerous.

Throughout the book, I admired Jessop's courage and determination. I can hardly imagine how difficult it would have been to fight for my freedom and that of my children, while I was constantly being told that my attempts wouldn't work and my children had been turned against me. In reading this, I realized how little I knew about these extremist groups that have popped up across the nation, and I have learned that they are more dangerous than I ever thought.

The writing itself is sometimes choppy and elementary, but Jessop tells her story with passion and genuineness. There was a sense of immediacy and urgency in her writing, something I believe that she felt while experiencing nearly unbelievable abuses and human rights violations. I enjoyed the book, even though at times I had to put it down and shake my head, wondering if I would have been as strong as Jessop in her situation.